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Topical skincare products fall into two main categories: water based skincare and oil based skincare. Water based skincare products contain mostly just water. Oil based skincare products contain no water and are made of oils. You can tell which type of product it is by looking at the ingredient label. If water is listed as an ingredient in your product, it is a water based product. It also is considered a water based product if the ingredients list juice, aloe vera, or tea, or anything that is typically made mostly of water. The FDA requires that ingredients in any skincare product be listed by volume - that means the largest ingredient is listed first and the smallest last. In the majority of cases, water based skincare products will list water in the top three ingredients. That means the product is made mostly of water. Even if it says juice - that means it is mostly made with water because juice is mostly water.

A salve is a healing solution that you put on your skin. Salves are shelf-stable and include nourishing oils such as coconut oil and olive oil. Along with a herbal infused-oil, salves also typically contain natural waxes or butters to bind the ingredients and make them semi-solid at room temperature.

Salves have softer consistency, as they contain a lower ratio of beeswax or sometimes no beeswax at all, as compared with a balms. Being softer, they can penetrate the skin more deeply. This makes salves more ideal for healing wounds. Balms tend to be harder and thicker than salves as they contain more beeswax. Since balms have more wax, they will form a more protective barrier on the skin.

We only use the organic beeswax from our own beehives. Beeswax is a byproduct of the honeycombs made by the honeybees themselves when they consume honey. We use beeswax as a binding agent and it provides a protective barrier allowing the ingredients to penetrate deep into the skin. It is also a natural anti-inflammatory and antibacterial agent, which will help to soothe your skin and stop bacteria from creating acne. Beeswax also contains many valuable vitamins, such as Vitamin A, D & E which are all great for keeping your skin healthy!

Water based skincare products are more readily available and lighter to apply but are made mostly of water and are required to include emulsifiers and preservatives that can be harmful to your skin. While water based products are easy to use, widely available at a variety of price points, and are light on the skin, every water based formulation requires two things that can interrupt your skin health: Preservative and Emulsifier. Preservatives can be synthetic or natural, but all preservatives, even the most gentle natural preservative can disrupt the microbiome of your skin. This is because current preservative systems not only target the bad bacteria that can make your lotion go rancid, but they also attack all bacteria and fungi that are on your skin. Using a preservative on the skin on a daily basis will always disrupt the skin’s microbiome, and in the long term dry skin out, possibly leading to even worse skin problems. Sodium benzoate, an Ecocert approved preservative, is known to cause redness, but it’s still listed as one of the gentlest preservatives available. The other troublesome ingredient in skincare products is Emulsifier. Emulsifier is the ingredient that makes it possible for the oil and water in your cream to hold together. Emulsifiers can be synthetic or natural. Emulsifiers themselves typically do not cause skin problems. The problem arises when the emulsifier makes it possible for other skin irritants to penetrate into the skin. Emulsifiers disrupt the skin microbiome by penetrating through the skin barrier and disrupting the ability of the skin’s layers to hold onto moisture. Water based products include a wide range of products including cleansers, serums, gels, toners, treatments, and moisturizers. They do not bind to skin as tightly as oil based products so they often do not feel greasy. And they can be light and creamy to put on your skin. Oil based skincare products are made entirely of active, skin loving nutrients and do not include potentially harmful preservatives and emulsifiers but are heavier to apply and can cost more. Delicate and gentle oils are an essential part of any effective, high quality skin care product - whether its a water based product or an oil based product. They gently cleanse, nourish, and moisturize while maintaining a proper oil balance that supports skin’s battle against aging and environmental damage. Oil based skincare products need NO emulsifier and can use natural preservatives to extend their shelf life. These natural preservatives actually pull double duty as an active ingredient. For example, vitamin E is great for your skin and also helps an oil based formula last longer. This means most oil based skincare products can contain 100% active ingredients. So in the case of oil based products you are paying mostly for skin-loving active Ingredients that support skin health. Oil based skincare products have a much heavier texture or weight than water based skincare products. That can take some getting used to. But you can offset this heaviness by applying oil based products over damp skin to help them spread on more lightly. Resource: https://7dayglow.com/blogs/journal/pros-cons-water-based-vs-oil-based-skincare-products