When we started RECREATION we were originally going to do just perfume oils, but one of the best things about spraying perfume is actually ... spraying perfume.
So we found the best alcohol to house our fragrance: sugar cane derived alcohol which comes from sustainably grown sugar cane and is 100% natural with no chemicals or synthetics.
It's an environmentally friendly option to other alcohols with no pollutants or toxins. It won't deposit chemicals in your bloodstream and is safe to spray on your skin.
We also did a roll-on oil made with organic jojoba and fractionated coconut oil as a base for our fragrance, you'll find this in our 10ml travel roller ball fragrance oil. This has no alcohol in it.
The difference between alcohols
Perfumes made with synthetics and other cosmetics most often use Denatured Alcohol - a process which adds various harmful chemicals and toxins to the alcohol, in order to avoid paying extra tax on it (denaturing the alcohol is the process that makes it unfit for consumption, as in, to eat or drink).
So Denatured Alcohol is cheaper and most often used by the bigger beauty companies.
Denatured Alcohol should be avoided. It's absorbed into your bloodstream and that's where the toxins end up. Denatured Alcohol can also be listed as 'alcohol denat' or 'SD (specially denatured) alcohol', or SD40 on the ingredients listing.
If the ingredient is just 'alcohol', assume that it is synthetic. Synthetic alcohol is known to be moderate to highly toxic.
Synthetically made Benzyl Alcohol is also listed as moderately hazardous on the EWG due to its toxicity levels and is often used in perfumes and perfumed products.
Other safe alcohols
There is also a naturally derived Benzyl Alcohol made from fruit and plants that is not toxic - not used in perfume, but in other skincare and cosmetics. If the product you buy is natural, it is most likely made with the harmless benzyl alcohol.
Fatty alcohols are actually beneficial for your skin, derived from natural fats and oils. Think Lauryl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol and Oleyl Alcohol and you'll find these in skincare and other cosmetics, not perfume. Don't freak out when you see these on an ingredients listing, they'll moisturise, soothe and soften without any harmful side effects.
Interested in RECREATION natural perfumes? Try RECREATION here.