What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantSynthetic Fluorphlogopite
Kaolin
Abrasive
Squalane
Emollient
Jojoba Esters
Emollient
Octyldodecanol
Emollient
Hectorite
AbsorbentSilica
Abrasive
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Alumina
Abrasive
Boron Nitride
Absorbent
Cellulose
Absorbent
Tin Oxide
Abrasive
Glycerin
Humectant
Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate
Humectant
Water
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
Antioxidant
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Bleaching
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
CI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantIron Oxides
CI 77163
Cosmetic Colorant
CI 77007
Cosmetic ColorantCI 15850
Cosmetic ColorantMica, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Kaolin, Squalane, Jojoba Esters, Octyldodecanol, Hectorite, Silica, Ethylhexylglycerin, Potassium Sorbate, Alumina, Boron Nitride, Cellulose, Tin Oxide, Glycerin, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Water, Tocopherol, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Sodium Benzoate, CI 77891, Iron Oxides, CI 77163, CI 77007, CI 15850
Synthetic Fluorphlogopite
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantZinc Stearate
Cosmetic ColorantMagnesium Myristate
Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate
Emollient
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Tin Oxide
Abrasive
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Aluminum Hydroxide
EmollientKaolin
Abrasive
CI 77120
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77163
Cosmetic Colorant
Iron Oxides
CI 45410
Cosmetic ColorantCI 73360
Cosmetic ColorantCI 17200
Cosmetic ColorantCI 15850
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77891
Cosmetic Colorant
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Ci 15850 is the pigment color red. It is an azo dye and created synthetically.
Azo dyes need to be thoroughly purified before use. This allows them to be more stable and longer-lasting.
This ingredient is common in foundations, lipsticks, and blushes. This color is described as brown/orangey red.
It has many secondary names such as Red 6 and Red 7. According to a manufacturer, Red 6 usually contains aluminum.
Learn more about CI 15850CI 77163 is the color-index name for Bismuth Oxychloride, a lab-made white powder that acts as a pearl pigment.
It's what gives a lot of pressed powders, eyeshadows, highlighteres, and mineral foundations that soft pearly glow.
Due to its structure as flat, plate-like crystals that stack like tiles, it feels silky and sticks to skin well. This also makes it very chemically stable and insoluble under normal skin conditions (this just means it sits on top of skin rather than going into it).
It has an interesting quirk: it slowly goes gray in sunlight and the graying is partly reversible in the dark.
At this time, there's no legal cap on how much a brand can use. Both the FDA and the EU permit it without restriction so real-world concentration levels come down to formulation:
Allergy risk is low as well since it's insoluble and doesn't release free metal ions into skin. True allergic contact dermatitis to it is rare enough that there's very little published cases.
However, mineral makeup users do report itching or stinging. The leading explanation for this is irritation from those stiff platelet crystals rubbing on skin (also more likely with heavy, high-percentage loose mineral powders) rather than an immune reaction.
This ingredient shows up on a lot of "pore-clogging" lists but there's no real evidence behind that. It doesn't even have a comedogenic rating from an actual study; the numbers you'll find online come from blogs citing other blogs.
Some people still find it breaks them out. So if that's you, definitely trust your skin.
Learn more about CI 77163Ci 77891 is a white pigment from Titanium dioxide. It is naturally found in minerals such as rutile and ilmenite.
It's main function is to add a white color to cosmetics. It can also be mixed with other colors to create different shades.
Ci 77891 is commonly found in sunscreens due to its ability to block UV rays.
Learn more about CI 77891Kaolin is a clay. It is used for oil control and to help minimize pores. Like other clays, kaolin has the ability to absorb excess sebum or oil. This can help clean out pores and mattify the skin.
Some types of kaolin may have exfoliating properties. When water is added to kaolin, it becomes a paste with small abrasive particles.
Most kaolin is a white color, but may be pink/orange/red depending on where it comes from.
The name 'kaolin' comes from a Chinese village named 'Gaoling'. Kaolin clay comes from rocks rich in kaolinite. Kaolinite, the mineral, has a silicate layered structure. Kaolinite is formed from chemical weathering of aluminum siilicate minerals.
Besides skincare, kaolin is commonly used to make glossy paper, in ceramics, toothpaste, and as medicine to soothe stomach issues.
Learn more about KaolinMica is a naturally occurring mineral used to add shimmer and color in cosmetics. It can also help improve the texture of a product or give it an opaque, white/silver color.
Serecite is the name for very fine but ragged grains of mica.
This ingredient is often coated with metal oxides like titanium dioxide. Trace amounts of heavy metals may be found in mica, but these metals are not harmful in our personal products.
Mica has been used since prehistoric times throughout the world. Ancient Egyptian, Indian, Greek, Roman, Aztec, and Chinese civilizations have used mica.
Learn more about MicaSynthetic Fluorphlogopite is the synthethic version of mica. It consists of fluorine, aluminum and silicate.
Synthetic Fluorphlogopite is used to add volume to products.
It is considered non-irritating on the skin.
Learn more about Synthetic FluorphlogopiteTin Oxide is an inorganic oxide used to add opacity and volume to a product. In nature, it is already found in mineral form. The main ore of tin is an opaque and shiny mineral called casseterite.
Tin Oxide helps remove translucency in a product, or make it more opaque. Besides adding opacity, tin oxide is used for bulking to add volume.
This 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
