Answers to some Frequently Asked Questions
Newsletters
We don't send out newsletters as such, as these are just marketing gimmicks and sales tend to take care of themselves around here... Anyone who has been doing business with us for any good amount of time will tell you that Signing up for our newsletter may result in a single notice each year regarding product availability.
Do You Have a Printed Catalog
Unfortunately as we update our product line very often we have found through experience that Our catalogs tend to go out of date sometimes before they have left the press. For this reason we do not have any printed Catalogs.
Our most up to date catalog will always be available Here at DenhamsNatural.com
Why are your prices so low?...
We are fully aware of what most people are charging for similar products, but because we Buy supplies in bulk, we are given deep discounts by our suppliers. Because these natural Products are sometimes out of reach to some of those on a tight budget we have decided that it would be better to pass those savings onto our customers and to keep prices low than to unnecessarily sell our product at the high prices reflected almost everywhere else.
Low Prices HIGH Quality.
Although our prices are low we have extremely high standards when choosing raw materials. The materials we use are the same as those used to manufacture most all of the similar high priced natural skin care products out there. But again... Believing that the more Natural Cosmetic & Body Care products should be an easy choice made by everyone including those on a budget. We try our best to compete with Store brought prices even though we believe that Our Products are far superior to anything you will find on your local Super Store shelf.
What's the difference between your products and those available elsewhere?
Most store brought products contain incredible amounts of chemicals, fillers, colors and preservatives. For example:
How many times have you seen the word "Soap" on a store brought label?
Most store brought "bath bars" are not even legally able to be defined as "Soap". Soap is a natural product whereas the vast majority of the Store brought brands are purely chemical in makeup...
With nothing to hide We have listed the ingredients of all our products on our web site so you are easily able to Compare your current brand's ingredients with ours, before you decide to buy.
Do you use Essential Fragrance Oils in your lotions and Butters?
Literally due to demand We now carry safe essential oil fragrances in some of our higher end products.
Please be aware that during the testing phase of our products we found that more people with reportedly sensitive and problem skin types reacted adversely to the use of citrus essential fragrance oils in our products than was reported with laboratory made and tested safe fragrance oils. If you suffer from any irritable skin conditions we would strongly suggest that you stay away from any fragranced products.
Those pregnant or nursing a baby, have epilepsy, heart disease diabetes, or high blood pressure need to seek the advice of a healthcare professional before using ANY Natural Skin Care Product in particularly ANY products containing essential oils.
We believe that Natural skin care should never be carried to the point of harm and strongly suggest that before buying any Natural or Organic Skin Care Product you be Become fully Aware of All properties of all ingredients from an in dependant scientific research perspective.
You Mentioned Testing...
Before we release ANY product We keep them on a shelf for a full year to ensure that the natural ingredients we use do not deteriorate over time and fully test our products to ensure that it will be stable on a retail outlet shelf and that it is preserved properly to ensure against bacterial contamination and degradation.
We subject test all of our products on ourselves first, then pass them on to a group of friendly volunteers who unfortunately suffer from various problem skin types.
No Animals will ever be used to test our products..
In many years, tens of thousands of sales supplying every entity from hospitals to pharmaceutical companies, from plastic surgeons, to product development labs to private label skin care retailers and private individuals, and with millions of applications of our products worldwide we have never had a report of skin sensitivity due to our product's formulation or had a single report of product integrity degradation.
It is because All of our released products have withstood the test of time that we can offer our guarantee that our natural products will remain exceptional for use for at least one full year after purchase date.
Does your Soap contain Lye?
All of Our finished soap bars do not contain any traces of Lye.
But To Make ANY Natural Soap you have to use Sodium Hydroxide (or Lye) or it's closest cousin Potassium Hydroxide (potash)... These chemicals are very similar to each other with neither being "Better" than the other in most regards.
Sodium Hydroxide is classically used in making hard soaps while Potassium Hydroxide is used in the making of liquid soaps and shampoos. These Chemicals when added to pure base oils creates an organic chemical reaction that turns the whole oils into fatty acids, or soap. At the end of this chemical reaction all traces of the Potassium Hydroxide (potash) or Sodium Hydroxide (Lye) disappear.
This necessary chemical reaction is termed "Soponification".
Many manufacturers try to hide the fact they use lye to make their soap products by using phrases such as "Soponified Oils" or the like on their labels. But all Natural soap is created with these chemicals.
Why do You Use Shea Butter In Everything?...
Shea Butter is an incredible natural butter that helps heal, moisturize, condition, and actually rejuvenate the skin. It has been used in Africa for hundreds of years for all over body care and has natural daily UV protectant properties as well as dozens of other benefits. Knowing this we would be negligent NOT using it in our products.
What's the difference between Refined and Unrefined Butter?
We use ultra refined Shea butter which has been processed to remove impurities and protect it from picking up contaminants. Refined Shea butter is generally better for cosmetic purposes as it is a more stable product and we know what properties it contains and what will be conveyed to our customers skin.
UnRefined Shea butter contains More nutrients and is generally better in most regards except that , from the moment it is derived from the nut to the moment you remove the last of it from the jar and put it on your skin. It is highly susceptible to contamination. If the butter does become contaminated it is highly likely to lower or even negate shea butter's natural healing benefits.
How can I find out if my Unrefined Shea Butter has been Contaminated?
Without scientific tests it is usually impossible to detect contamination and this is why some manufacturers "Guarantee" their Un-Refined Shea butter is Pure. They are guaranteeing you wont go to the expense of taking it to a lab and have it analyzed every week especially when the most you will get back if you can prove it is contaminated is a refund and an apology. Reputable dealers of unrefined Shea butter can show lab test reports at the time of their purchase, but most won't test before shipping and guarantee purity for the life of their product.
In an Ideal and sterile world we would all use unrefined shea butter; but in this one - We Will Not gamble with quality, This is why we will use refined shea butter in our products.
What's the difference between Unrefined Shea Butter and Unrefined Cocoa Butter?
Like Shea Butter Unrefined Cocoa Butter has more nutrients than the refined Butter so this makes it better for promoting skin health, but Unlike Shea Butter, Cocoa Butter also contains a natural preservative that enables it to be safely stored contaminant free for up to 5 years. (also it smells wonderful)
Because of it's highly stable nature and is better for promoting skin health we use the Unrefined Cocoa Butter in our products.
Shea Butter unfortunately doesn't have the same preservative properties found in natural unrefined Cocoa Butter. which is why we choose to use refined Shea Butter... To Ensure Quality.
What preservatives do you use in your Lotions and Creams ?
Without ANY Preservative at all in our emulsified products like Lotions and Creams. It wouldn't be long before all manor of nasty critters would be swarming through them.
To ensure our Creams and Lotions show up at your doorstep as fresh and pure as the day they left production We use a variety of Mild & Safe industry standard cosmetic preservatives. Unlike their close competitors these Preservatives are NOT derivative of - or contain formaldehyde so our products are completely safe and can be legally exported to Europe.
Can't you use Natural Preservatives?
We do use natural preservatives when possible, Examples of this would be our use of very small quantities of Rosemary Extract to stabilize and preserve our lip Balms and Solid Perfumes, and Black Willow Bark Extract in our Body Mists. The problem is that Rosemary extract & Black Willow Bark extract becomes irritating to the skin when used in the massive quantities needed to preserve water and oil based products like Lotions and Creams, and would render our products unsafe for long term use completely rendering them unusable.
Is there Any other Alternative to the use of These Preservatives?
Believe us - we have looked at ALL Natural alternatives and there simply isn't ANY Safe & Effective Natural way of preserving certain products using Any other Ingredients at ANY Price.
We are aware that there are Certain Other companies out there that rely on the Natural and Organic Image to justify their incredibly high prices. These companies may use grain alcohols which are an incredibly cheap alternative, Will dehydrate the skin and rob it of it's natural oils, and are NOT a safe alternative to the use of a proper preservative in most products as grain alcohol does not prevent ALL common bacterial and fungus growth.
At the risk of being unpopular we would rather produce completely safe skin care products and not subject our customers to a vast variety of harmful bacteria just to retain an "Image".
Are Un-preserved Lotions & Cream products safe?
They can be, but only if you make them yourself and are immediately stored in a refrigerator. Treat these un-preserved lotions and creams like Dairy Products. You have to know when to discard them and adhere to the "use by" date. Usually they will start to break down and separate after a short period of time, this is a sign that the critters are winning the war on freshness.
As Always - We are happy to answer any questions that you may have. So, If you need any further information regarding our products please feel free to contact us.
Take Care and Thank You For Your Visit
With Warmest Regards
Mark & Lisa Denham
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