The Drunk Elephant Difference
We are committed to using only ingredients that either directly benefit the health of the skin or support the integrity of our formulations. We never take into account whether something is synthetic or natural, instead choosing ingredients based on biocompatibility. That’s why we focus on healthy pH levels, formulations the skin recognizes, small molecular structure that’s easily absorbed, and effective active ingredients that also support and maintain the skin’s acid mantle. But what we leave out of our products is just as important as what we put into them, so you will never find what we call the Suspicious 6™ (essential oils, drying alcohols, silicones, chemical sunscreens, fragrances/dyes, SLS) in our line. We believe that these six ubiquitous ingredients are at the root of almost every skin issue, and when they’re removed entirely from your routine—that is, when you take a Drunk Break™—skin can reset and return to its healthiest, most balanced state. This ingredient-elimination diet benefits all skin types and inspired the #barewithus🐘 Instagram movement, a collection of bare-faced selfies that chronicles the Drunk Elephant journeys of people who have found not only healthier skin but more importantly, healthier self-confidence.
How We're Different
Our Ethos
We decided early on that we would exclude any “question mark” ingredients.
We avoided the obvious “toxins” and controversial synthetics, along with any other ingredients seemingly linked to internal health disruption. We are not alone here, many “clean” brands are doing this. Our reasoning: If consumer perception is negative about a certain ingredient, right or wrong, we simply find a great alternative to put minds at ease, so that’s what we did.
We then took it a step further and eliminated the 6 ingredients we suspect carry a potential risk to the health and function of the skin organ itself, which are called the Suspicious 6™.
Where your health is concerned, we will always subscribe to "If there's any DOUBT, it's OUT.”
Made in USA
We don’t take shortcuts or compromise ingredients to save money. We are hands-on and will stay true to our ethos. Our products are designed, tested and made in the United States.
Our Own Category:
Biocompatible
SMART
First, we only use ingredients that directly benefit the skin or support our formulations. Secondly, at the heart of our philosophy, we avoid the six ingredients that we believe are at the root of almost every skin issue. The Suspicious 6™ includes silicones, essential oils, chemical screens, SLS, drying alcohols, and fragrance/dyes. We don't care at all about smelling pretty or changing the look or feel of our ingredients, we just let them be what they are naturally. When the Suspicious 6™ are entirely removed from one’s routine, skin can reset and return to a healthy, balanced state.
BIOCOMPATIBLE
Never compromising on safety, we synergistically blend the highest percentages of actives with non-sensitizing ingredients at ideal pH levels. We also formulate using biocompatible ingredients. These are non-irritating, small-molecule ingredients that skin can easily absorb, understand, and use. Biocompatible ingredients are non-irritating, but not all clean ingredients are biocompatible.
Natural vs. Synthetic
Drunk Elephant’s mission is to deliver clinically-effective, biocompatible skincare formulated with both cutting-edge synthetic and natural ingredients; and without the ubiquitous “toxins”, sensitizers and irritants, such as the disruptive essential oils, that block the pathway to healthy skin. We pay close attention to pH levels and safety, as well as formulating with efficacious percentages of active ingredients. Our goal is to teach the consumer that “natural” doesn’t automatically mean good and that every ingredient should directly and only benefit the health of our skin or the safety of the formulation. We shift the focus off of the consumer’s “sensitive” skin and on to the insensitive marketing ingredients that are responsible for the majority of our skin problems, in our opinion and experience.
Unfortunately, today’s regulations allow companies in both categories to use harmful, disruptive ingredients. And while Drunk Elephant aims for its products to be as natural as possible, it is far more important that the ingredients in them be effective and safe. Plenty of natural ingredients are harmful to the health of the skin, so we consistently formulate our products with soothing, low-hazard ingredients — regardless of their natural or synthetic status.
Our product development team obsessively self-regulates and reviews every single precious ingredient to make sure it is the safest, most efficacious and most synergistic with the entire product line, while staying focused on both internal and external health. That leaves Drunk Elephant in a category of its own.
Less is More
Paring down your routine to a collection of carefully-formulated products is our plan for a bare-faced, radiant you. Our goal is to improve whatever it is you’ve felt you needed to hide and allow your skin to function as it should again.
We want to reset your skin back to its healthiest, best state. When you use Drunk Elephant, your skin glows in response.
Break the Cycle
We believe that you leave your skin vulnerable through the overuse of harsh exfoliates, chemical peels at pH levels under 3.0, expensive laser treatments, Botox abuse, layered foundations and powders, and irritant-laden beauty products. There’s nothing wrong with an occasional, beneficial beauty splurge here and there (when appropriate), but it can be a vicious cycle that is hard to stop.
Our formulations are balanced and optimized to work with the physiological processes of the skin to make those types of indulgences less necessary, less often. With the help of Drunk Elephant, you will finally be able to give your skin a drunk break.
No Fragrance
Drunk Elephant products are fragrance-free and do not smell like anything other than what they are.
Other skincare lines use “natural alternatives” to scent their products. Things like essential oil blends, citrus peel extracts, and limonene may sound pretty and innocent, but they are known to cause allergic sensitivities that are cumulative and imperceptible. The irony here is that they are often found in products marketed towards those with sensitive skin.
After carefully balancing the best ingredients available, we don’t have to add anything to mask their natural scents. When you smell our products, you will likely detect nothing but a glycerin base with slight hints of Marula oil, Zinc Oxide, Thermal Mud, Fruit Enzymes, antioxidants and Vitamins. It’s refreshing and reassuring.