Follow us on our new Insta page »
Lorac Pro Contour Palette With Contour Brush

Pro Contour Palette With Contour Brush

This pro artistry palette contains 2 matte highlighters, 1 shimmer highlighter and 3 matte contour shades to easily create perfectly sculpted features.
Uploaded by: asian_darwin on

Lorac Pro Contour Palette With Contour Brush
Ingredients explained

What-it-does: absorbent/mattifier, abrasive/scrub | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 1

Talc is the major component of most powder makeup products (think face powder, eyeshadows, and blushers) that usually contain it up to 70%. Its two winning properties that make it very suitable for this role is its outstanding spreadability for a smooth application and its low covering power, aka translucency to avoid clown-like effects.

Chemically speaking, it is a clay mineral (hydrated magnesium silicate) that is mined in several countries. The drawback of mined minerals is potential impurities and the version used in cosmetics has to be white (not gray like cheaper grades), free from asbestos, sterilized and have thin plates for a maximum slip. 

Also-called: CI 77019 | What-it-does: colorant

A super versatile and common mineral powder that comes in different particle sizes. It is a multi-tasker used to improve skin feel, increase product slip, give the product light-reflecting properties, enhance skin adhesion or serve as an anti-caking agent.

It is also the most commonly used "base" material for layered composite pigments such as pearl-effect pigments. In this case, mica is coated with one or more metal oxides (most commonly titanium dioxide) to achieve pearl effect via the physical phenomenon known as interference. 

What-it-does: colorant, viscosity controlling | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

Zinc Stearate is probably the most commonly used binding agent in powder makeup products such as face powders or eyeshadows. It gives very good adherence qualities meaning it helps powders to stick together in the pan and to stick to the skin on application. It is typically used at 3-10%, too much of it though can cause lumpiness or greasiness on the skin.

What-it-does: absorbent/mattifier

Boron Nitride is a graphite-like, crystalline material that has light-diffusing and texture improving properties. It is quite the multi-tasker as it can blur imperfections, add an exceptional creamy feel to products and act as a mattifying agent.

In powder makeup products (think blushers, highlighters), it enhances the skin feel and improves the color pay-off. In lipsticks, it gives a creamy feel and a better color on the lips. 

A white powdery thing that's the major component of glass and sand. In cosmetics, it’s often in products that are supposed to keep your skin matte as it has great oil-absorbing abilities. It’s also used as a helper ingredient to thicken up products or suspend insoluble particles. 

What-it-does: emollient | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 1

Probably the most common silicone of all. It is a polymer (created from repeating subunits) molecule and has different molecular weight and thus different viscosity versions from water-light to thick liquid.

As for skincare, it makes the skin silky smooth, creates a subtle gloss and forms a protective barrier (aka occlusive). Also, works well to fill in fine lines and wrinkles and give skin a plump look (of course that is only temporary, but still, it's nice). There are also scar treatment gels out there using dimethicone as their base ingredient. It helps to soften scars and increase their elasticity. 

Also-called: Paraffinum Liquidum | What-it-does: emollient, solvent | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0-2

The famous or maybe rather infamous mineral oil. The clear oily liquid that is the "cheap by-product" of refining crude oil and the one that gets a lot of heat for its poor provenance. It is a very controversial ingredient with pros and cons and plenty of myths around it. So let us see them:  

The pros of mineral oil
Trust us, if something is used for more than 100 years in cosmetic products, it has advantages. Chemically speaking, cosmetic grade mineral oil is a complex mixture of highly refined saturated hydrocarbons with C15-50 chain length. It is not merely a "by-product" but rather a specifically isolated part of petroleum that is very pure and inert.

It is a great emollient and moisturizer working mainly by occlusivity. Occlusivity is one of the basic mechanisms of how moisturizers work and it means that mineral oil sits on top of the skin and hinders so-called trans-epidermal water loss, i.e water evaporating out of your skin. When compared to heavy-duty plant oil, extra virgin coconut oil, the two of them were equally efficient and safe as moisturizers in treating xerosis, a skin condition connected to very dry skin.

What-it-does: emollient | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 2-4

A super common, medium-spreading emollient ester that gives richness to the formula and a mild feel during rubout. It can be a replacement for mineral oil and is often combined with other emollients to achieve different sensorial properties.

What-it-does: emollient

Bearing a close relationship to the famous Dimethicone, Methicone is the slightly trimmed down version missing the methyl (-CH3)  groups on one side of the silicone chain. Like most silicones, it has nice emollient properties and improves the spreadability of products.

But Methicone's main thing in practice is not being an emollient but a silicone fluid for hydrophobization treatment of powders, i.e. making solid powders (mineral filters & color pigments) very water resistant and easily spreadable. Methicone does this by absorbing traces of water from the surface of pigments that is very useful for mineral sunscreens and makeup products. 

Also-called: Cucumber Fruit Extract | What-it-does: soothing, emollient

Cucumber is a nice, non-irritating plant extract that’s known for it’s soothing and emollient properties. It’s not something new to put it on our face: even Cleopatra used it to “preserve her skin”.

It’s commonly believed that cucumber is the answer to puffy eyes, but there is no research confirming this. What research does confirm is that it contains amino acids and organic acids that’s helpful for the skin’s acid mantle. There is also an enzyme (called shikimate dehydrigenase) in the pulp that’s shown to have anti-inflammatory properties.

We don't have description for this ingredient yet.

Also-called: Marshmallow Root Extract

We don't have description for this ingredient yet.

Also-called: Lemon Peel Extract | What-it-does: emollient

We don't have description for this ingredient yet.

What-it-does: astringent

We don't have description for this ingredient yet.

Also-called: Calendula Extract, Marigold Extract | What-it-does: soothing, antioxidant, perfuming

The extract coming from the popular garden plant Calendula or Marigold. According to manufacturer info, it's used  for many centuries for its exceptional healing powers and is particularly remarkable in the treatment of wounds. It contains flavonoids that give the plant anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. 

Kaolin - goodie
Also-called: Type of clay, China clay | What-it-does: colorant, absorbent/mattifier, abrasive/scrub | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

Kaolin is a type of clay or to be precise, a naturally occurring hydrous aluminum silicate. When you hear clay, you probably think of a muddy greenish-black mess, but that one is bentonite, and this one is a fine, white powder. It is so white that it's also often used, in small amounts, as a helper ingredient to give opacity and whiteness to the cosmetic formulas.

As a clay, it's absorbent and can suck up excess sebum and gunk from your skin, but less so than the more aggressive bentonite. As it's less absorbent, it's also less drying and gentler on the skin, so it's ideal for dry and sensitive skin types.  

What-it-does: viscosity controlling

We don't have description for this ingredient yet.

Also-called: Aqua | What-it-does: solvent

Good old water, aka H2O. The most common skincare ingredient of all. You can usually find it right in the very first spot of the ingredient list, meaning it’s the biggest thing out of all the stuff that makes up the product. 

It’s mainly a solvent for ingredients that do not like to dissolve in oils but rather in water. 

What-it-does: moisturizer/humectant, solvent | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0
  • It's a helper ingredient that improves the freeze-thaw stability of products
  • It's also a solvent, humectant and to some extent a penetration enhancer
  • It has a bad reputation among natural cosmetics advocates but cosmetic scientists and toxicology experts do not agree (read more in the geeky details section)
Read all the geeky details about Propylene Glycol here >>

What-it-does: preservative | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

The most common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason parabens. It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon

Apart from the general controversy around parabens (we wrote about it more here), there is a 2006 in-vitro (made in the lab not on real people) research about methylparaben (MP) showing that when exposed to sunlight, MP treated skin cells suffered more harm than non-MP treated skin cells. The study was not done with real people on real skin but still - using a good sunscreen next to MP containing products is a good idea. (Well, in fact using a sunscreen is always a good idea. :))

What-it-does: preservative, perfuming | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

A very common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason parabens. It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon.

Also-called: Titanium Dioxide/Ci 77891;Ci 77891 | What-it-does: colorant | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

Ci 77891 is the color code of titanium dioxide. It's a white pigment with great color consistency and dispersibility.

Also-called: Ci 77491/77492/77499 | What-it-does: colorant | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

A bit of a sloppy ingredient name as it covers not one but three pigments: red, yellow and black iron oxide.

The trio is invaluable for "skin-colored" makeup products  (think your foundation and pressed powder) as blending these three shades carefully can produce almost any shade of natural-looking flesh tones. 

Also-called: Ci 75470 | What-it-does: colorant | Irritancy: 0 | Comedogenicity: 0

Carmine is a natural pigment that gives a bright, strawberry red shade. It counts as a special snowflake as it is the only organic pink/red colorant permitted for use around the eye area in the US.

Outside of the US though, it is not that often used, as unlike most other colorants (that tend to be synthetic or if natural, plant-derived), Carmine is animal-derived and comes from an insect called Coccus cacti. This makes it both very expensive and excludes it from animal-friendly, vegan cosmetic products.  

Also-called: Tartrazine, Yellow 5;Ci 19140 | What-it-does: colorant

Ci 19140  or Tartrazine is a super common colorant in skincare, makeup, medicine & food. It’s a synthetic lemon yellow that's used alone or mixed with other colors for special shades. 

FDA says it's possible, but rare, to have an allergic-type reaction to a color additive. As an example, it mentions that Ci 19140 may cause itching and hives in some people but the colorant is always labeled so that you can avoid it if you are sensitive. 

You may also want to take a look at...

what‑it‑does abrasive/scrub
irritancy, com. 0, 1
Talc is the major component of most powder makeup products (think face powder, eyeshadows, and blushers) that usually contain it up to 70%. Its two winning properties that make it very suitable for this role is its outstanding spreadability for a smooth application and its low covering power, aka translucency to avoid clown-like effects. [more]
what‑it‑does colorant
A mineral powder used to improve skin feel, increase product slip, give the product some light-reflecting properties, enhance skin adhesion or serve as an anti-caking agent. A real multi-tasker. [more]
what‑it‑does colorant | viscosity controlling
irritancy, com. 0, 0
Zinc Stearate is probably the most commonly used binding agent in powder makeup products such as face powders or eyeshadows. It gives very good adherence qualities meaning it helps powders to stick together in the pan and to stick to the skin on application. [more]
Boron Nitride is a graphite-like, crystalline material that has light-diffusing and texture improving properties. It is quite the multi-tasker as it can blur imperfections, add an exceptional creamy feel to products and act as a mattifying agent. In powder makeup products (think blushers, highlighters), it enhances the skin feel and improves the color pay-off. [more]
what‑it‑does viscosity controlling
A white powdery thing that can mattify the skin and thicken up cosmetic products. [more]
what‑it‑does emollient
irritancy, com. 0, 1
A very common silicone that gives both skin and hair a silky smooth feel. It also forms a protective barrier on the skin and fills in fine lines. Also used for scar treatment. [more]
what‑it‑does emollient | solvent
irritancy, com. 0, 0-2
A clear, oily liquid that comes from refining crude oil. Even though it is a highly controversial ingredient, the scientific consensus is that it is a safe, non-irritating and effective emollient and moisturizer working mainly by occlusivity. [more]
what‑it‑does emollient
irritancy, com. 0, 2-4
A super common, medium-spreading emollient ester that gives richness to the formula and a mild feel during rubout. [more]
what‑it‑does emollient
Bearing a close relationship to the famous Dimethicone, Methicone is the slightly trimmed down version missing the methyl (-CH3)  groups on one side of the silicone chain. [more]
what‑it‑does soothing | emollient
Cucumber is a nice, non-irritating plant extract that’s known for it’s soothing and emollient properties. [more]
what‑it‑does emollient
what‑it‑does soothing | antioxidant | perfuming
Marigold extract - contains flavonoids that give the plant anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. [more]
what‑it‑does colorant | abrasive/scrub
irritancy, com. 0, 0
A type of clay that's a fine, white powder and is used for its oil-absorbing and opacifying properties. It's less absorbent and less drying than bentonite clay. [more]
what‑it‑does viscosity controlling
what‑it‑does solvent
Normal (well kind of - it's purified and deionized) water. Usually the main solvent in cosmetic products. [more]
what‑it‑does moisturizer/humectant | solvent
irritancy, com. 0, 0
A common glycol that improves the freeze-thaw stability of products. It's also a solvent, humectant and to some extent a penetration enhancer. [more]
what‑it‑does preservative
irritancy, com. 0, 0
The most common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason parabens. It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon.  Apart from the general controversy around parabens (we wrote about it more here), there is a 2006 in-vitro (made in the lab not on real people) research about methylparaben (MP) sho [more]
what‑it‑does preservative | perfuming
irritancy, com. 0, 0
A very common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason parabens. It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon. [more]
what‑it‑does colorant
irritancy, com. 0, 0
Titanium dioxide as a colorant. It's a white pigment with great color consistency and dispersibility.
what‑it‑does colorant
irritancy, com. 0, 0
A mix of red, yellow and black iron oxide. [more]
what‑it‑does colorant
irritancy, com. 0, 0
Carmine is a natural pigment that gives a bright, strawberry red shade. It counts as a special snowflake as it is the only organic pink/red colorant permitted for use around the eye area in the US. Outside of the US though, it is not that often used, as unlike most other colorants (that tend to be synthetic or if natural, plant-derived), Carmine  [more]
what‑it‑does colorant
A super common colorant with the color yellow. [more]