Ordering from indie companies is great for people with sensitive skin, special requirements or allergies to common make-up or cosmetic ingredients. Because indie make-up and cosmetics is often handmade, rather than being produced in a commercial lab, there is much more control over ingredients and less of a chance for fillers or irritants to be used. However one person's allergen is another person's preferred ingredient, so this page will be dedicated to:
- explaining the uses of popular and common ingredients.
- identifying the possible side effects of these ingredients.
- listing companies and products which do not use some of these ingredients, so those with allergies/special requirements (i.e. vegan) may have a good starting point for their indie make-up purchases.
A note about ingredients:
Most countries require, by law, that products have ingredients listed on them. At the very least, any indie company you buy from should have the full ingredients for every product available somewhere on their website. If you contact them requesting an ingredients list and they either fail to provide one, or it is incorrect/incomplete (listing ingredients like 'pigment,' 'glitter', 'filler', 'base', 'scent' etc.) consider this a big red flag.
There is a lot of disagreement internationally about certain ingredients, so we will try to include notes on which products are safe to use in the EU but not in the US. Also there will be clear notes where an ingredient is safe for use on certain body parts but not on others.
Mica
Beeswax
Carnuba wax
Candelilla wax
Kaolin
Bismuth
Carmine
Talc
Oxides
Dioxides
Stearates
Pearl powder
Silk powder
Silica
Ferric ferrocyanide
Rice powder
Lauroyl lysine
Oils - jojoba, castor, avocado, coconut, hemp seed, meadowfoam, sunflower, grapeseed
Butters - shea, cocoa, pistashio, coffee, hemp,
Squalalene
Dyes
Lake dyes
Ultramarines
Zinc