We choose not to use certain ingredients widely used in the cosmetics industry for ethical, environmental, and health reasons. We avoid the use of chemical compounds and derivatives, choosing alternative active natural ingredients instead.
Aluminium
Commonly used in deodorants, our deodorants however are 100% aluminium-free.
Artificial Colours
Artificial colours are chemical dyes that colour the product. These can cause allergic reactions and skin rashes in some people. We strive to keep our products as natural as possible so cannot see any point in adding an artificial colour to our products. As a result, the colour of our products varies from batch to batch, due to the natural make-up of the oils, butters and ingredients we use.
DEA
DEA (diethanolamine) is a chemical pH adjuster. The pH of a product is critically important, and is always tested when each batch is made. This is because the pH of most products is formulated to be close to the natural pH of the skin, and certain ingredients will only be effective at certain pH levels. Instead of DEA, we use only natural pH adjusters such as Citric Acid or Lactic Acid.
Palm Oil
Our products are 100% palm-free. This a very cheap oil to produce but the animal and environmental cost is prolific.
Parabens
Parabens are a group of very effective chemical preservatives widely used in over 75% of cosmetics, perfume and skincare products, they are used to prevent bacteria and fungi growth in products. However, there is speculation about health concerns linked to parabens and so we simply prefer not to use them when there are amazing natural alternatives available.
MEA
These chemical surfactants are foaming agents, commonly used in cleansing products. We only use natural foaming agents, the quantity of foam this creates is less than that using chemical foaming agents, but it has a richer, more moisturising effect.
Microbeads
We only use natural exfoliants such as Walnut Kernel, Orange Peel and Rice Powder. All of these natural exfoliators are plant-based byproducts from the food industry.
Mineral Oils
Mineral oils are common in many skincare products and are created during the distillation process of petrochemicals (eg. Paraffin Oil), it’s a cheap moisturising barrier but consequently does not allow your skin to breathe. Instead we use natural plant-based oils such as Sweet Almond oil, Argan oil, Macadamia Nut oil and Olive oil.
Paraffin
All our candles are made using a blend of Soy wax and Rapeseed oil, no Paraffin wax is used.
SLES, SLS and ALS
SLES (Sodium Laureth Sulfate), SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) or ALS (Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate) are chemical surfactants. These are chemical surfactants also known as sulphates or sulfates, which dissolve and remove oils and grease from your skin during washing. Surfactants create foam to remove dirt and grease from the skin. Although widely used in the cosmetics and beauty industry and in many shampoos, washes and bath soaks, all are believed to be more aggressive and harsher ingredients than the natural coconut oil-based surfactant that we use. SLES, SLS and ALS are around ten times cheaper than our natural surfactant, but we believe it’s well worth the extra cost because it is highly effective, gentle on the skin and moisturises as it cleanses.
TEA
TEA (triethanolamine) is a chemical pH adjuster and is also used to improve the texture of a product. The pH of a product is critically important, and is always tested when each batch is made. This is because the pH of most products is formulated to be close to the natural pH of the skin, and certain ingredients will only be effective at certain pH levels. Instead of TEA, we use only natural pH adjusters such as Citric Acid or Lactic Acid.