What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSynthetic Beeswax
Emulsion Stabilising
Copernicia Cerifera Cera
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax
Skin Conditioning
Acacia Senegal Gum
MaskingPropanediol
Solvent
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate
EmulsifyingOryza Sativa Bran Wax
Skin Conditioning
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningGalactoarabinan
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingVitis Vinifera Seed Oil
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Iron Oxides
CI 77491
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77492
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77499
Cosmetic ColorantWater, Synthetic Beeswax, Copernicia Cerifera Cera, Glyceryl Stearate, Pentylene Glycol, Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax, Acacia Senegal Gum, Propanediol, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Oryza Sativa Bran Wax, Panthenol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Galactoarabinan, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Hydroxide, Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil, Tocopherol, Iron Oxides, CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499
Water
Skin ConditioningHydrogenated Olive Oil Stearyl Esters
Emulsion Stabilising
Acrylates/Ethylhexyl Acrylate Copolymer
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Acacia Senegal Gum
MaskingButylene Glycol
Humectant
Oryza Sativa Bran Wax
Skin Conditioning
Methylpropanediol
SolventPotassium Cetyl Phosphate
EmulsifyingCopernicia Cerifera Cera
Emollient
Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax
Skin Conditioning
PCA Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Vp/Eicosene Copolymer
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Sodium Dehydroacetate
Preservative
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingAminomethyl Propanol
BufferingPhenylpropanol
Masking
Laureth-21
CleansingIron Oxides
CI 77491
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77492
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77499
Cosmetic ColorantWater, Hydrogenated Olive Oil Stearyl Esters, Acrylates/Ethylhexyl Acrylate Copolymer, Glyceryl Stearate, Acacia Senegal Gum, Butylene Glycol, Oryza Sativa Bran Wax, Methylpropanediol, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Copernicia Cerifera Cera, Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax, PCA Glyceryl Oleate, Vp/Eicosene Copolymer, Caprylyl Glycol, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Potassium Sorbate, Xanthan Gum, Aminomethyl Propanol, Phenylpropanol, Laureth-21, Iron Oxides, CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Acacia Senegal Gum has skin soothing, thickening, and formulation stabilizing properties. It comes from the Acacia tree that is native to sub-Saharan Africa.
Ci 77491 is also hydrated iron III oxide. It's sole purpose is to give a red/pink hue to products.
Iron III oxides are classified as inorganic chemicals for coloring.
Synthetically created Ci 77491 is considered safer than those naturally found. This is because the synthetically created version may contain less impurities. Iron oxides are generally non-toxic and non-allergenic.
Learn more about CI 77491CI 77492 is also hydrated iron III oxide. It's sole purpose is to give a yellow hue to products.
Iron III oxides are classified as inorganic chemicals for coloring.
Synthetically created CI 77492 is considered safer than those naturally found. This is because the synthetically created version may contain less impurities. Iron oxides are generally non-toxic and non-allergenic.
Learn more about CI 77492Ci 77499 is also hydrated iron III oxide. It is created from mixing red and black iron oxides. This helps give shades of darkness to a product.
Iron III oxides are classified as inorganic chemicals for coloring.
This ingredient comes from a palm tree native to Brazil. This ingredient is used to thicken texture and leaves behind a film when applied.
Glyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearateHelianthus Annuus Seed Wax is created from the common sunflower.
Sunflower seed wax is made up of long chain non-glyceride esters, a small amount of fatty alcohols, and fatty acids.
This ingredient is often used to enhance the texture of products. The fatty acid properties also help hydrate the skin.
Learn more about Helianthus Annuus Seed WaxOryza Sativa Bran Wax is wax from the outer layer of a rice kernel. It has moisturizing properties due to its polysaccharides and omega-3 fatty acids content.
This ingredient is a byproduct of milling rice, or the operation to produce a whole grain rice product.
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate is the potassium salt of a mixture. This mixture consists of the esters from phosphoricacid and cetyl alcohol.
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate is an emulsifier and cleansing agent. Emulsifiers help stabilize a product. It does this by preventing certain ingredients from separating.
As a cleansing agent, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate helps gather oils, dirts, and pollutants from your skin. This makes it easier to rinse them away with water.
Learn more about Potassium Cetyl PhosphateWater. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.
So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.
You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!
Learn more about WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan GumThis ingredient is a combination of red, black, and yellow iron oxide pigments. This combination of colors is usually found in foundation, because it results in a "skin" color.
The EU typically uses CI numbers for colorants when applicable, such as CI 77489. In the US, iron oxides are regulated as color additives and "iron oxides" is the most commonly used name in US cosmetic practice.
A 2021 paper looked at skincare formulations containing iron oxides and found that they reduced transmission of blue light when measured optically. In simple terms, the pigment particles helped block or scatter part of the visible light spectrum in lab testing and the authors suggest this could translate into better protection against blue-light-related skin effects.
There is also clinical and experimental research showing that tinted products containing iron oxides can reduce visible light-induced pigmentation:
Please note, whether a product reduces visible or blue light depends on things like:
In the EU's CosIng database, iron oxides are only listed as a colorant. CosIng groups ingredients by their main cosmetic role, such as colorant, preservative, or UV filter.
Though studies say iron oxides can "attenuate blue light", they're describing an optical property and not an officially recognized cosmetic function.
So CosIng isn’t contradicting the research. It’s just classifying iron oxides by what they officially are: pigments that add color.
Learn more about Iron Oxides
