Close-up of clear water splashing with droplets suspended mid-air.

The skin harming preservative problem.

Most modern "skincare" is water-based, which requires preservatives that don’t discriminate between harmful bacteria and the beneficial microorganisms your skin needs. Add cleansers that strip the skin’s oil barrier and emulsifiers that disrupt it's composition, and you have a formula for chronic, low-grade skin barrier disruption , the exact kind of damage the research now shows promotes skin-aging, acne, eczema, psoriasis & rosacea.

I formulate differently because the science demands it!

My products are built on New Zealand grass-fed tallow with an oil profile that mirrors human skin and requires no synthetic emulsifiers. Because my formulations are water-free, they need no preservatives, meaning your skin’s microbial ecosystem stays intact.

Basic Science - Helping your skin to heal & rejuvenate itself.

The skin harming emulsifier problem.

Emulsifiers force water and oil to blend in a jar.

But they don't stop working when they hit your skin. Every application dissolves a little more of your natural oil barrier, the very thing keeping your skin healthy.

My tallow based balms are water free. No water means no emulsifiers. No emulsifiers mean your skin barrier stays intact, your skin stays healthy.

Water-free. Preservative-free. Emulsifier-free. 100% Natural! Back to skincare that works with you to heal & rejuvenate - not against you.

The skin harming oxidation problem.

But there's another problem the skincare industry will not talk about: water accelerates oxidation.

Dissolved oxygen, trace metals, pH instability, it's breakdown waiting to happen. Those expensive botanical oils and vitamins start degrading the moment they hit that water-based formula.

By the time the product reaches your skin, you're applying oxidised remnants of what used to be skin-healing oils & actives.

And oxidised ingredients don't just stop working in the jar — they trigger skin inflammation, the root driver of nearly every skin condition people are desperately trying to fix.

My tallow based balms are water free. No water means no accelerated breakdown. Healing oils & natural actives stay effective.

Water-free. Preservative-free. Emulsifier-free. 100% Natural! Back to skincare that works with you to heal & rejuvenate - not against you.

If there is water listed, it must have preservatives & emulsifiers!

One of the industry's favourite tricks — replacing "water" as the first ingredient with something like "organic aloe leaf juice" so the label reads as more natural or active, when the functional reality is that it's still a 80% water-based formula requiring preservatives and emulsifiers all the same.

Water goes by a lot of names on skincare labels.

Aqua, Purified Water, Deionized Water, Distilled Water, Thermal Water, Mineral Water, Spring Water, Glacier Water, Sea Water (Maris Aqua), Deep Sea Water, Volcanic Water, Micellar Water.

Botanical waters & hydrosols:

Rose Water (Rosa Damascena Flower Water), Lavender Water, Witch Hazel Water, Chamomile Water, Orange Blossom Water (Neroli), Cucumber Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice (often 95%+ water), Coconut Water

Juice/extract-based water substitutes:

Aloe Vera Juice, Bamboo Water, Cactus Water, Birch Sap, Maple Water, Rice Water, Barley Water, Fruit juice concentrates reconstituted with water

Infusions & decoctions:

Herbal infusions (listed as "Extract of X" where the solvent is water), Tea extracts (Camellia Sinensis Leaf Water), Flower/plant decoctions.

The sneaky ones:

Hydrosol (steam distillation byproduct — still essentially water), any ingredient listed as "[Plant Name] Extract" where water is the extraction solvent, "Organic Juice Base" (water with trace botanicals)

Preservative check list

Don't be mislead - many of these preservatives are aggressively Natural/Green -washed (falsely marketed as "natural" while containing chemically-suspect synthetics), in reality the are no natural preservatives in skincare production!

Benzyl alcohol

Caprylyl glycol

Dehydroacetic acid

Ethylhexylglycerin

Glyceryl caprylate

Glyceryl undecylenate

Gluconolactone

Lactobacillus ferment

Levulinic acid

Phenethyl alcohol

Potassium sorbate

Salicylic acid

Sodium benzoate

Sodium levulinate

Sorbic acid

Emulsifier check list

Again don't be mislead - many of these emulsifiers are aggressively Natural/Green -washed (falsely marketed as "natural" while containing chemically-suspect synthetics), in reality the are no natural emulsifiers in skincare production!

Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) .

Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES)

PEG-100 Stearate

Polysorbate 20/60/80

Ceteareth-20

Steareth-20/21

Cetearyl Alcohol + Ceteareth-20 (Emulsifying Wax)

PEG-40 Stearate

Glyceryl Stearate

Sorbitan Olivate / Cetearyl Olivate (Olivem 1000) —