You pick up a skincare product, turn it over, and find yourself staring at a list of words that look more like a chemistry exam than a beauty product. Sound familiar? You're not alone. Ingredient labels can feel deliberately impenetrable — but once you know the basics, they become one of the most powerful tools you have for making informed choices about what you put on your skin.
Here's your guide to decoding them.
The Basics: How Ingredient Lists Work
In the EU, skincare ingredients must be listed using their INCI names (International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) — a standardised system that uses Latin or scientific names. This is why your favourite lavender oil appears as Lavandula Angustifolia Oil and aloe vera becomes Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice.
Crucially, ingredients are listed in descending order of concentration — the first ingredient makes up the largest proportion of the product, and the last the smallest. This means the first five or six ingredients tell you most of what you need to know about a product's character and efficacy.
What to Look For
Water (Aqua) is often the first ingredient in many skincare products — it's a perfectly valid base, but if it's followed immediately by a long list of synthetic ingredients, that's worth noting.
Botanical oils and butters — look for names like Rosa Canina Fruit Oil (rosehip), Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil (jojoba), or Butyrospermum Parkii Butter (shea). These are your skin's best friends.
Active ingredients — ingredients like hyaluronic acid (Sodium Hyaluronate), vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), and niacinamide are effective at relatively low concentrations, so don't worry if they appear further down the list.
What to Watch Out For
- Fragrance (Parfum) — a catch-all term that can hide hundreds of undisclosed chemicals. One of the most common causes of skin sensitivity and allergic reactions.
- Parabens — preservatives ending in "-paraben" (methylparaben, propylparaben). Widely used but increasingly avoided due to concerns about hormonal disruption.
- PEGs — polyethylene glycols, used as emulsifiers and penetration enhancers. Often derived from petroleum.
- Silicones — ingredients ending in "-cone" or "-siloxane". They create a smooth, silky feel but can form a barrier that prevents the skin from breathing.
The 1% Rule
Ingredients present at 1% or less can be listed in any order after the main ingredients. This is often where you'll find preservatives, fragrance, and small amounts of active ingredients. It's a useful thing to know — a brand might list an impressive-sounding botanical near the top of their marketing, but if it appears at the very end of the ingredient list, it's likely present in a negligible amount.
Trust Your Skin — and Your Labels
At Lomaberry, we believe in complete transparency. Our formulations use only organic, plant-derived ingredients — nothing you can't pronounce, nothing you wouldn't want on your skin. Browse our organic skincare collection and discover products you can trust from the very first ingredient to the last. Because you deserve to know exactly what you're putting on your body — and why.