What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
No key ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Dihydroxyacetone
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside
CleansingLeuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Pelargonium Graveolens Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil
Masking
Glyceryl Caprylate
EmollientSodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Dehydroxanthan Gum
Emulsion StabilisingPolyglyceryl-6 Oleate
Emulsifying
Sodium Surfactin
CleansingCitric Acid
Buffering
Limonene
Perfuming
Citronellol
Perfuming
Geraniol
Perfuming
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Dihydroxyacetone, Glycerin, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Pelargonium Graveolens Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil, Glyceryl Caprylate, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Dehydroxanthan Gum, Polyglyceryl-6 Oleate, Sodium Surfactin, Citric Acid, Limonene, Citronellol, Geraniol
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
This ingredient is a mild surfactant made by sticking glucose onto a blend of fatty acids.
It does two jobs because it has a sugar head that loves water and a fatty tail that loves oil:
Typical use levels range from 10-20% in cleansers and 15-30% in shower products.
Once on your skin, your skin's glucoside hydrolases breaks it down into glucose and the parent fatty alcohols.
This ingredient is considered fungal acne safe because its fatty alcohol portion sits outside the Malassezia yeast's metabolization range.
Learn more about Caprylyl/Capryl GlucosideCitric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidCitronellol is used to add fragrance/parfum to a product. It is often derived from plants such as roses. In fact, it can be found in many essential oils including geranium, lavender, neroli, and more. The scent of Citronellol is often described as "fresh, grassy, and citrus-like".
Since the Citronellol molecule is already unstable, Citronellol becomes irritating on the skin when exposed to air.
Citronellol is a modified terpene. Terpenes are unsaturated hydrocarbons found in plants. They make up the primary part of essential oils.
Citronellol is not able to be absorbed into deeper layers of the skin. It has low permeability,
Citronellol is also a natural insect repellent.
Learn more about CitronellolGeraniol is used to add fragrance/parfum to a product. It is the main component of citronellol. It is a monoterpenoid and an alcohol.
Monoterpenes are naturally found in many parts of different plants.
Geraniol can be found in many essential oils including Rose Oil and Citronella Oil. The scent of Geraniol is often described as "rose-like". Many foods also contain Geraniol for fruit flavoring.
Geraniol can irritate the skin when exposed to air. However, irritation depends on the ability of geraniol to penetrate into the skin. In general, geraniol is not able to penetrate skin easily.
Geraniol is colorless and has low water-solubility. However, it is soluble in common organic solvents.
Like citronellol, it is a natural insect repellent.
2,6-Octadien-1-ol, 3,7-dimethyl-, (2E)-
Learn more about GeraniolGlycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.
Topically, glycerin does several things at once:
Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.
Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.
This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.
Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.
Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.
Learn more about GlycerinGlyceryl Caprylate comes from glycerin and caprylic acid. It is an emollient, co-emulsifier, and preservative booster.
Its short C8 fatty acid chain makes it behave differently from its longer-chain emollient cousins like Glyceryl Stearate. It feels more lightweight, fast-absorbing, and silky instead of rich and waxy.
As a co-emulsifier, its "head" and "tail" sit at the oil-water interface. But overall, the short C8 tail and not being water soluble means it doesn't really have the muscle to emulsify a formula on its own. That's why you'll often see it paired with a primary emulsifier like Cetearyl Glucoside.
Interestingly, Glyceryl Caprylate acts as a preservative booster. This is because its fatty-acid backbone disrupts microbial lipid membranes. It shows excellent activity against bacteria and yeast but is weaker against mold.
Typical concentrations range from 0.5-1% and this ingredient is generally non-irritating.
Because this ingredient has a C8 fatty acid chain, it is outside the range that the Malassezia yeast metabolizes (making it fungal acne safe).
Learn more about Glyceryl CaprylatePolyglyceryl-6 Oleate isn't fungal acne safe.
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate is a gentle cleanser and surfactant. It is the sodium salt of the Cocoyl Glutamic Acid and comes from coconut oil. As a surfactant, it helps lift dirt and oil to be washed away.
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate also has an emolliating effect and can help leave the skin feeling soft.
We don't have a description for Sodium Surfactin yet.
