The word filler gets used a lot in cosmetics as though it is some “dirty” word and that somehow the cosmetic industry is trying to dupe us and be cheap. You only have to look at the majority of cosmetics to find water as the first ingredient. So why is this? Why don’t all cosmetic ranges use for example aloe Vera gel or hydrosols?
Despite the use of the word “filler”, water has a critical role to play in formulas. It is used to dissolve ingredients that will not dissolve in oil. Sometimes the use of plant extracts is not a suitable medium to dissolve due to plants having high tannin content as well. This does not always mix with every ingredient. Water isn’t a filler, it is actually a necessary part of a formula.
So why don’t we use Aloe Vera Gel and Floral Waters? We do use Aloe Vera gel but in a concentrated form. Our Aloe Vera is 200 x concentrated which is why it is not the first ingredient on our list. The reason we don’t use it as a gel is because as it is we have a high percentage of plant extract. Making our product 100% plant would just about make it impossible to preserve effectively. Any cosmetic needs to be safe to use and putting that much plant extract in is just plain silly as far as microbes go.
It is the same with floral water. The reason we don’t use them is because whilst some are beneficial, many floral waters can vary quite considerably from the components found in the essential oils. Floral waters can contain a higher percentage of allergens than the corresponding essential oil, which is why we rarely use them. Our aim is to provide you with a safe stable product that works, and to do that we need to use water as one of our ingredients.
