Clean Safe Skin Care and Beauty Products

At Silk Naturals we use fantastic, well researched ingredients.  Here's a list of the ones that we use and a few that we don't.

We never ever use: 

• Parabens, talc, bismuth oxychloride, nano particles, silicones, mineral oils and petroleum products, powdered starches, clays (except the Green Goddess mask), phthlates, artificial fragrance, phenoxyethanol, sodium lauryl sulfate, triclosan, oxybenzone, coal tar, hydroquinone, propylene glycol, lead, mercury compounds, EDTA, BHT, formaldehyde donors like  DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea, and diazolidinyl urea or anything with an Environmental Working Group rating over 4.  We're not fans of fear mongering, but we also know that there are ingredients you'd prefer to avoid, so we don't use them.  Nothing is tested on animals.

Acai sterols- (inci: Euterpe oleracea sterols) We use Acai Sterols to improve barrier function in lippies. They’re thick and gloopy almost like a petroleum jelly, and capable of holding almost double their weight in water so they keep moisture locked into your skin, and make lippies feel creamy, and luxurious.  

We use it in our Nourish Lip Conditioner, the Slick Sticks and Amplifying Lip Glazes

Allantoin- an extract of the comfrey plant it provides skin soothing, and promotes wound healing. Found in: Ultimate Luxury Treatment Powder

Aloe vera juice (inci: Aloe barbadensis leaf juice)- used to hydrate skin, and soothe skin.  Aloe is a fantastic humectant, and helps bring water from the air to your skin.  We use certified organic aloe juice.

Aluminum Oxide- used to provide the scrub in our microdermabrasion gel.

Apricot Kernel Oil (inci: Prunus armeniaca kernel oil)- extracted from apricot kernels.  Rich in nutrients, mild, easily absorbed, and great for skin softening.  It’s chemically similar to almond oil.

Found in: Apricot Cleansing Oil and Intensive Moisturizer

Argan Oil- (Argania spinosa kernel oil)- Extracted from the kernel of the argan fruit grown in Morocco.  It’s not too heavy, not too light it’s packed with omega fatty acids, vitamin E, and linoleic acids.

Found in:  Argan & Goji Berry Moisturizer, Cucumber Peptide Eye Cream, Make Waves Curling Gel, and Lush Locks Hair Oil

Avocado Oil (Persea gratissima oil)- rich in minerals, and vitamins A, D and E.  Avocado oil is a nourishing oil that absorbs quickly to provide fast moisturization.  

Beeswax (cera alba)- wax made by honeybees.  We use it to thicken some lippies.  It has wonderful humectant properties, and smells fantastic.  We use organic beeswax.

Beta Glucan- are polysaccharides found in oats, mushrooms, and other plants.  They helps to heal and restructure damaged skin, and provide moisture, and help with overall skin firmness, and health..  Oat derived.  EWG 1  Found in: Botanical Rehydration Serum 

Betaine- beet derived sugar extract used as a potent skin hydrator.  It helps regulate cell water balance, and makes skin feel soft. Found in: Calm Down 5% Niacinamide Serum

Blackberry Seed Oil (Rubus fruticosus)- Blackberry seed oil is high in Vitamin C, and also a source of tocopherols, locotriencols and lutein. It’s nourishing, and moisturizing without being too greasy feeling.  Found in: Liquid Gold Face Oil

Borage Seed Oil- (Borago officinalis seed oil) The richest known source of gamma linoleic acid it’s a rich oil that’s great for very dry, more mature skin.  It’s also soothing, and great for any redness, eczema, and inflammation.  Found in:  Intensive Moisturizer

Boron Nitride- a light diffusing mineral.  It has a soft, velvety texture, and helps with adhesion in our powder cosmetics.  

Calcium Carbonate- mineral found in chalk, limestone, and even egg shells.  It’s sheer, and absorbs moisture beautifully.  While it is part of chalk, it doesn’t look chalky at all.

Camellia Seed Oil- (Camellia japonica seed oil) contains more antioxidants than almost any other plant derived oil.  Light, nourishing, and rich in oleic acid and vitamins A, B, D and E.  It’s molecular weight is almost identical match for our own sebum so it absorbs beautifully. Found in: Liquid Gold Face Oil, and our Smooth and Full lippies

Candelilla wax (candelilla cera, Euphorbia antisyphilitica)- vegetable wax found on the leaves of the candelilla shrub, grown in the desert.  We use it to give our lippies, and cream foundation some firmness, and to protect your skin.

Canola Oil- (Brassica campestris Seed Oil)We use certified organic non-gmo expeller pressed canola oil to provide moisture in our lip balms.  

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride- also known as medium chain triglycerides.  A very light weight oil derived from coconut oil.  We use it in our cream blushes, and foundations because it feels almost dry, and weightless.  It’s also very friendly to acne-prone skin.

Castor Seed Oil- (Ricinus communis) thick, and glossy it provides fantastic barrier protection for skin. We use organic sustainably, and ethically harvested expeller pressed castor oil.

Chromium Oxide Green (CI 77289)- inorganic green matte pigment.  We use it in some eye shadows.  Not lip safe.

Cocamidopropyl Dimethylamine- coconut oil derived surfactant used sparingly to dissolve salicylic acid in our BHA toner.  Safe for leave-on use in this formula.  EWG score 2

Cranberry Seed Oil (inci: Vaccinium macrocarpon seed oil)- high in tocopherols, tocotrienols, phytosterols and phospholipids and Vitamin A. It helps improve circulation so we use it in lippies to make your lips look fuller, and beautifully hydrated.

Cromollient SCE- Di-PPG-2 Myreth-10 Adipate used to make our Apricot Cleansing Oil rinse off cleanly.  EWG score 1 Found in: Apricot Cleansing Oil 

Crothix- PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl tetrastearate (and) PEG-6 Capric/Caprylic glycerides used to thicken cleansers.  Lab made from natural materials (no EWG score available).

Decyl Glucoside- gentle biodegradable non-ionic cleanser made from 100% renewable resources- either corn or coconut EWG score 2

Dipalmitoyl hydroxyproline- a natural amino acid, combined with a fatty acid to help it penetrate skin.  Provides deep moisturization to strengthen, and rejuvenate the skin, and increases collagen production. Also works well as a lip plumper.  It’s one of our favorite ingredients, and we use it in a lot of different products because it plumps, firms, and moisturizes so well.

Dipotassium Glycyrrhizinate- powerful anti-inflammatory ingredient derived from licorice root.  Also works as a tyrosinase inhibitor to help lighten hyperpigmentation.  Found in:  Calm Down Serum, Grand Reserve Day Cream, Grand Reserve Night Cream

Disodium Cocoamphodiacete-coconut derived, mild biodegradable cleanser EWG 1

Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate- mild, biodegradable naturally derived cleanser EWG 2

DMAE- Dimethylaminoethanol Bitartrate  also known as DiMethylEthanolAmine and by the chemical name 2-DiMethyl AminoEthanol.  Plant sourced precursor to acetylcholine  increases collagen fiber thickness and strength, resulting in skin firming, fewer wrinkles, and over time, helps fight skin sag.  DMAE also promotes hydration, and helps fight inflammation

Ethanol-  (ethyl alcohol) Not as drying as isopropy alcohol we use it when we need to dissolve certain actives, help preserve some formulas, or when we need a formula to dry quickly.

Evening Primrose oil (inci: Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil)- great for inflammation because it’s rich in gamma linoleic acid. Taken internally Evening primrose oil is used in women’s health for relieving symptoms of menopause, and PMS. We love this oil for menopausal, and mature skin  Find it in: Intensive Moisturizer

FD&C Colors- synthetically produced coloring agents.  These are highly regulated by the FDA, and each batch has to undergo testing and certification.  We use them to make super bright, vibrant colors in blushes, and lippies.  There are a few that are approved for eye use, but we don’t use them in any of our eye shadows.  

We make the vast majority of our cosmetics with natural pigments, but for bright reds the FD&C colors are the only bright red pigments currently approved by the FDA.  They’re always declared in the product ingredients page, and you can sort to exclude products containing them if you’re avoiding them.

Ferric Ferrocyanide- also known as Prussian Blue.  Iron based inorganic blue pigment.  We use a smidge in some blue eye shadows.  Not FDA approved for lip use.

Flavor- we use natural flavors when we can, but we do use food-grade flavors to make our lip balms extra yummy.  They're always food-grade from confectionary suppliers, and never contain any propylene glycol.

Our colored lip products are gently flavored with a bit of vanilla infused fractionated coconut oil.  It's not overpowering- it just gives a hint of vanilla scent.

Fragrance- we don't use any fragrances in the vast majority of our regular line.  Sometimes for special occasions we release a fragranced lotion, and only use phthalate-free fragrances from very trusted suppliers we've worked with for over 20 years from our soap making days.

Gluconolactone (and) sodium benzoate- our preservative system for products that contain water.  It’s Ecocert approved, kind to the skin, and provides fantastic protection against product spoilage.  Gluconolactone is a poly-hydroxy acid, and can be used as an exfoliant in higher concentrations.

Grape seed Oil (Vitis vinifera seed oil) nourishing, and rich in linoleic acid to help build ceramides.  One of our favorite oils for acne prone skin because of its unique fatty acid profile.  Silk Naturals is located in wine country, so this is an oil near, and dear to us.  We use expeller pressed grapeseed oil.

Hemp seed oil (Cannabis sativa Seed Oil)- one of the best sources of gamma linoleic acid. It’s great for inflammation, and our hands-down favorite for acne-prone skin.  

Hyaluronic acid- Sodium Hyaluronate potent moisturizer, and humectant able to hold 1000 times its weight in water.  There are a lot of different molecule sizes, and grades of hyaluronic acid.  By itself it’s a very large molecule that sits on top of the skin, and pulls moisture from the air (humectant), but there are newer smaller particle size forms that can penetrate the skin to provide deeper, longer lasting moisture, and some skin plumping. 

Iron Oxides- Naturally occurring mineral that we use to tint our makeup. It comes in shades from red, orange, yellow, brown, and black, and they also use it to treat micas to get rich shimmery colors.  Iron oxides were originally mined from the ground, and were one of the first pigments ever used to enhance appearance.  

Jojoba Oil (pronounced ho-ho-ba) (Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil)- the closest oil to human sebum (the oil we naturally produce) it absorbs quickly to provide fast moisturizing, and feels fantastic on skin.

Kaolin- a naturally occurring clay that we use to help absorb oil. It’s a big component of our Green Goddess Mask

Lactic acid- Found naturally in yogurt lactic acid helps to increase cell turnover, exfoliate skin, build collagen, build ceramides to strengthen your skin’s barrier, binds water to your skin, and inhibits melanin formation so it’s great for helping to fade hyperpigmentation.  

Lactic acid is the only alpha hydroxy acid that helps replenish ceramides so it performs well without being drying.  It’s a bigger molecule than glycolic acid so it doesn’t penetrate skin quite as deeply, and is a little more gentle.   We use corn derived lactic acid so it’s vegan EWG score 1-4

Lavender flower water (Lavendula angustofolia)- the liquid from distilling lavender essential oil.  Smells wonderful, and lavender can provide some skin soothing properties.  Found in: Lavender pH Toner

Licorice extract- (inci: Glycyrrhiza glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, (and) glycerin).  Used for its anti-inflammatory, and moisturizing qualities.  Found in Oatmeal Hydrating Serum, Mama’s Helper, and Lemon Wasabi Blemish Buster

Magnesium Myristate- a fine white powder derived from the amino acid Myristic acid.  We use it to help eye shadows glide on your eyes, adhere and blend beautifully. Vegan

Magnesium Stearate- soft white powder that helps our powder cosmetics glide onto your skin. It helps the powder foundations meld with your skin, and look almost creamy.  Plant derived, and Vegan.

Manganese Violet- inorganic pigment made from manganese oxide.  It’s bright purple.

Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate- a stable form of vitamin c.  A powerful antioxidant that helps decrease inflammation, increase collagen synthesis, stabilizing collagen fibers, and decrease collagen degradation.  It also inhibits melanin production to help with hyperpigmentation.  MAP works at a higher pH than l-ascorbic acid which need a pH of 3.5 to be effective.  Magnesium ascorbyl phosphate is much less irritating and compatible with more actives than l-ascorbic acid, but provides similar results.  We use 3% MAP in most of our serums - it’s roughly equivalent to 10% l-ascorbic acid.

Meadowfoam Seed Oil (Limnanthes alba seed oil) - Incredibly stable oil that provides fantastic moisture.  Contains a lot of long-chain fatty acids, and feels velvety on skin.  Grown in the USA.

Mica- a natural mineral.  We use mica in pretty much all of our makeup.  Once it’s been mined it’s processed into several different forms to provide different levels of shimmer ranging from matte to pretty darn glittery. It’s also surface treated with pigments to make it available in a lot of gorgeous colors.

All of our micas are produced without the use of child labor, and we have statements from all of our mica suppliers ensuring it’s ethically produced.

Mineral oil- highly refined processed petroleum.  It's very neutral, and can have some solvent properties.  We prefer plant based oils because we think they have better skin benefits.

MSM- (Methylsulfonylmethane) Great for fighting inflammation it’s also a fantastic source of sulphur.  In hair products it can lessen shedding, make hair stronger, and enhance curls. Skin benefits from the anti-inflammatory, and anti-microbial properties making it great for all skin types, but particularly acne-prone skin.  Used in Make Waves, Eyelash Conditioning Gel, Super Serum

N-Acetyl Glucosamine- is a “skin identical” ingredient that’s naturally produced by our bodies.  It helps maintain your skin barrier, increases collagen production, and increases your skin’s production of hyaluronic acid. NAG can also help repair sun damage, lighten hyperpigmentation, and gently increase your skin’s rate of cell turnover.

NAG is derived from shellfish, and is not vegan.

Niacinamide- also known as vitamin b-3.  Super gentle, suitable for all skin types and a great staple ingredient.  Niacinamide helps boost ceramide, and collagen  production, calms skin, reduces the appearance of pores, and regulates oil production.  It also helps fade hyperpigmentation, and makes skin feel smoother.  One of our favorites.

Found in: Super Serum and Calm Down Serum

Olive oil (Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil)- used to provide emollience in our Olive Oil Lotion, and lip balm. It has humectant properties so it’s great for dry lips.  We use organic extra virgin olive oil.

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5- Syn-Coll  peptide used to stimulate collagen formation to lessen the appearance of fine lines, and wrinkles.  Used In: Facelift Serum, Vitamin C Peptide Serum, Cucumber Peptide Eye Cream

Panthenol- vitamin b5 used to nourish, and hydrate skin

Parabens- a class of preservatives that have been in use since the 1920's.  There's some evidence that they can be endocrine disrupters.  While preservatives are very necessary in any personal care product that contains water there are other ones with better safety profiles, so we use them instead.

Passion Fruit Seed Oil (Passiflora edulis seed oil)- also called Maracuja oil it’s rich in vitamins, and antioxidants. Ours is virgin, cold pressed passion fruit seed oil.  We use it in lippies, and Firming Moisturizer

Pearl Powder- pure, finely crushed pearls.  Pearl powder contains 31% Calcium and 56% Protein as well as an assortment of amino acids to help nourish skin.  Used in our Ultimate Luxury Treatment Powder 

PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate- coconut derived emollient, and emulsifier.  Helps boost foam, and condition skin.  Ours is sourced in Europe, and free of contaminants. EWG 1

Phenoxyethanol- a fairly common preservative.  It can cause contact allergies.  Karen, the owner, is allergic to it, so we don't use it.  That allergy is one of the big reasons we have a skin care line.

Phospholipids- liposome lipid molecule used to help carry ingredients into the skin, and provide moisture EWG 1

Pomegranate seed oil (Punica granatum seed oil)- it takes over 200 pounds of pomegranates to produce one pound of oil. It’s incredibly nourishing on skin,and one of the few sources of punicic acid which is great for inflammation.  It’s also rich in flavonoids.  

Pumpkin Seed Extract- (inci: Hydrolyzed Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seedcake Extract)  Firms skin, and helps increase collagen production. Increases smoothness, and elasticity.

Pumpkin Seed Oil (Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seedcake oil) -  Rich in vitamins A, and C, zinc, antioxidants and unsaturated fatty acids.  We use it in our pumpkin salve because it sinks in quickly to provide instant moisture. 

Raspberry Seed Oil (Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Seed Oil )- rich in essential fatty acids, and antioxidant tocopherols including vitamin A, and vitamin E.  Cold pressed, and cold filtered from luscious red raspberry seeds.  It helps promote circulation, and is fantastic in lippies.

Rosehip Seed Oil- (Rose mosqueta seed oil) incredibly lightweight oil that sinks into your skin instantly, and feels almost dry.  It’s rich in antioxidants, unsaturated fatty acids, and beta carotene, the precursor to vitamin A.  We use only cold pressed, and unrefined rosehip seed oil

Salicylic acid- beta hydroxy acid (BHA) with anti-microbial properties. Used to treat acne by exfoliating the skin, dissolving excess oil, cleaning inside of pores.  Also great for preventing razor burn, and ingrown hairs.

Sea Buckthorn Berry Oil-  (Hippophae Rhamnoides (Sea Buckthorn) Fruit Oil)  Rich in vitamins A, B1, B12, C, E, K, and P; flavonoids, lycopene, carotenoids, and phytosterols. Used as an antioxidant, and to help with tissue regeneration. EWG 1  Found in: Firming Moisturizer and Intensive Moisturizer

Sea Kelp Bioferment- (Lactobacillus/Nereocystis Luetkeana Ferment Filtrate)  made from North American Bull Kelp it’s a great skin moisturizer and film former to help prevent water loss.  

Silica- one of the most abundant minerals in the world.  It’s found in sand, clay, and even a component of glass.  The silica we use is in the form of tiny white microspheres that help provide slip for better blending, and oil absorption

Silk Powder- is a natural moisture balancer. It adjusts according to the humidity to help makeup last longer.  It also contains 18 amino acids which are easily absorbed into the skin, and it’s great for controlling oil.  It also feels fantastic!

Snow Mushroom Extract- (Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp (Snow Mushroom) Extract) naturally derived polysaccharide that holds many times its weight in water.  Used to hydrate skin with better results than the most common forms of hyaluronic acid.  Found in Calm Down Serum

Sodium Bicarbonate- also known as baking soda.  Used to adjust the pH of our products

Sodium carbomer- lab made thickening agent.  We use it in moisturizers to make thick gels.  EWG 1

Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate- very gentle moisturizing cleanser.  Naturally derived, and food safe.  EWG 1

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate- is a natural sustainably sourced biodegradable surfactant.  It belongs to a class of chemicals called anionic surfactants, and they're made to strip oils and grease.  It cleans very well, but can be pretty harsh on hair, and skin (think "dish pan hands").  It's one we avoid using in personal care products, because we prefer other, more mild surfactants. It's fantastic for household cleaning, and degreasing, and tends to get a worse reputation than it deserves.  EWG 1-2

Sorbitol- plant derived humectant used to draw water to your skin.  As formulators we prefer this to glycerin for rosacea or redness prone skin. It feels almost cooling, and it works in a wider range of humidity conditions.  In dry environments glycerin can pull water from your skin, but sorbitol just keeps moisturizing. EWG 1

Stevia- extract from the stevia plant.  We use it as a sweetener in our lip balms

Sweet orange oil- (Citrus sinensis) used to dissolve oil.  The naturally occurring terpenes can make your skin more sensitive to the sun, so we use a terpenless distilled form to avoid this.  Used in our Pore Refining Toner

Synthetic Fluorphlogopite (floor-flog-a-pite)- synthetic mica alternative.  It produces nice, vibrant colors with a lot of sheen and shimmer

Talc- We don’t use any talc in anything.  It’a a natural mineral that is used in a lot of different cosmetics, and it looks great, but it’s commonly contaminated with asbestos.  There’s no good reason to use it- mica does pretty much the same thing in a formula without the contamination concerns, so we skip it.

Tamarind seed extract- (Tamarindus Indica) used as a moisturizer to improve elasticity, hydration and smoothness

Teprenone- Renovage anti-aging ingredient.  Renovage helps to stabilize DNA, and lengthen cell life.  Increases skin moisture, barrier function, and fades sunspots.  It’s fantastic for skin that’s easily irritated, and is great for skin soothing. Used in Awesome Sauce, Firming Moisturizer, and Intensive Moisturizer

Tin Oxide- mineral used to coat micas.  It gives interference colors their beautiful tones, and makes duochromes spectacular.

Titanium Dioxide- white mineral used to provide coverage in our cosmetics

Triclosan- is an antibacterial, and antifungal agent.  Citing safety concerns the FDA banned it in 2017.

Ubiquinone- also called co-enzyme Q-10 it’s a powerful anti-oxidant  Used in Awesome Sauce EWG 1

Venuceane- (Thermus Thermophillus Ferment (and) Glycerin)  An extract made from algae found in deep sea ocean vents.  It offers UV, and Infrared protection, and is an almost inexhaustable anti-oxidant.  Found in:  Super Serum

Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana (witch hazel) water (and) Ethanol)- astringent with some skin soothing properties.  We use some in our Lavender pH Toner

Xanthan gum- natural food grade thickener made from fermented sugar  EWG 1

Zinc Oxide- white mineral used to provide coverage in our foundations.  It’s great for skin calming, and it’s an active ingredient in a lot of sunscreens too.  

.