Beeswax and honey ingredients have created a lot of buzz for beauty products but what are the negative effects? Rose water is said to have a long list of benefits but is it really just a company trying to sell water at a premium, thanks to a spritz of something girly?

LittlePinkTop asked the founder of LuxeBeauty, Jane May Graves, what she thinks about these beauty issues. Jane also sent over some samples of her products: 4 in 1 cleanser, vanilla-flavored face, neck & hand moisturizer, and beeswax-free lip balms.

I was especially curious about her lip balms. Some lip balms claim to be hydrating but actually dry my lips. The LuxeBeauty website points to a potentially guilty ingredient: beeswax, and suggests that maybe people’s logic is flipped.

Their webpage states: “Let’s think about this for a second, would bees want water in their hive? Or would they create a wax to keep water from the hive to protect their home, young, and honey?”

LuxeBeauty rejects the claim that this wax hydrates the lips and locks in water, viewing it instead “as a waxy barrier” that repels water.

Jane shared more of her views with LittlePinkTop:

“Beeswax is essential to the honeybee colony, being used to construct the combs in which they raise their brood (brood refers to the eggs, larvae, and pupae) and store pollen and honey to eat for the winter when flower nectar is in very low supply. 

I learned about beeswax from beekeepers in San Deigo, California. Most beekeepers considered it cruel to take too much beeswax from the hive. Only a small amount of beehive wax can be taken out of the hive each time, or the bees will suffer. For example, PETA, ‘People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals,’ will not ‘PETA-Certify’ any product that uses beeswax.

Honeycomb is also the bees’ backup food supply if pollen and honey supplies run low. The honeycomb is also the bee’s home. We need bees to pollinate most of our food crops, and there is no need to exploit and harm bees by taking their wax to make lip care and skincare products.

There is a lot of misinformation online, saying beeswax is hydrating and humectant (retains water). Beeswax is hydrophobic, meaning it repels water from the beehive and skin. Run water over a beeswax candle, and one will quickly see that the water slides off.

There are great natural non-petroleum wax alternatives. We use candelilla wax and organic carnauba wax in our lip balm instead of beeswax. Both are sourced from plants.”

Plants to the rescue!

Okay, so what about rose water?

A Healthline article lists off many compelling reasons to use rose water: improving the skin, soothing sore throats, antiseptic properties, antioxidants, boosting mood, relieving headaches, and aiding digestion.

As I explained to Jane, I used rose water as a toner for several months but didn’t see much difference. Should I start doing it again, and why? How is LuxeBeauty’s rose quartz toner different from what’s on the market?

“I understand your disappointing experience with rose water you have tried. I experienced the same until I tried real authentic organic rose water,” Jane replied.

She said that part of the issue is actually with brands misrepresenting their production process. The real stuff works better.

Jane explained her approach:

“Most rose water on the market is not authentic rose water. It is made in a lab to smell like roses. It is literally like buying water that smells like roses, and of course, that won’t show any positive skin results.

I searched the world for the most authentic organic distilled rose water and discovered an organic farm in Bulgaria established in 1809. They use a unique distillation technique that embodies century-old traditions and modern technology.”

So there you have it, honey!

In case you were too bzzz bzz busy to look into these aspects of beauty products, you can now take off those rose-tinted glasses, begin your own research, and maybe even find a product you love from Jane’s company!