Good Reason for Reading Product Ingredient List!
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free skin care · Sun Aug 06, 2006 3:46 pm

I recently bought some Softsoap Pure Cashmere Body Wash. I didn't pay any attention to the ingredients, but I did notice that on the front of the bottle it said it contained "cashmere extracts". Well, not knowing much about fashion (and never having owned a cashmere sweater), I just assumed since the word "extract" was there, that it meant it was from some type of plant. So I decided to try the formula for extra dry skin, since my skin is so dry. After using it a couple of times, I noticed that it smelled like suntan oil, so I read the ingredients list. This time I decided to look online to find out what exactly "cashmere" is. (Yea, I know, I'm a dummy for not knowing.) This is what the Softsoap website said about this product:

Pure Cashmere Body Wash--
*What is cashmere extract and where does it come from? Goats have two layers of hair. The inner layer of their hair is soft and is referred to as cashmere. Cashmere extract consists of proteins taken from this inner layer of goat hair.
*In what form (i.e., oil, powder, etc.) is the cashmere extracted from the goat? It is an oil that is extracted from the inner layer of goat hair. The goat hair is collected after shearing. No goats are harmed during this process.
*How are the cashmere extracts incorporated into the formula? The extracts are infused into the Pure Cashmere™ formula.
*What are the benefits of cashmere extract? Cashmere is known for its conditioning and softening benefits.

Boy, was I shocked! In fact, I almost threw up! Basically, I was putting GOAT OIL on my skin! I'm not a vegan, but I find this to be totally DISGUSTING!!
NOW I KNOW THE IMPORTANCE OF READING/KNOWING THE INGREDIENTS OF PRODUCTS! Rolling Eyes

Has anyone had any similar experience(s)?

free skin care · Sun Aug 06, 2006 4:14 pm

Actually, this doesn't sound all that surprising to me, given the number of commercial moisturizers that contain lanolin.

For my part, I've become a passionate label-reader ever since I discovered that my "natural bees wax" brow wax was mostly petrolatum. Ugh.

free skin care · Sun Aug 06, 2006 7:47 pm

This isn't so gross. I'm sure you have a lip product somewhere containing lanolin (a substance secreted from a sheep's skin to protect their wool). I mean, you'd wear a cashmere sweater, wouldn't you? That, and I do believe a lot of ladies on here use emu oil. Same concept, I guess.

Though I have seen this and wondered exactly how it'd contain cashmere. I mean, how would a fiber be in a body wash? I guess you could say the same thing about silk. So I guess it's interesting to know what they mean.

free skin care · Sun Aug 06, 2006 8:51 pm

seekingHG, I've had so many rude shocks in my life from not reading ingredients closely enough! The worst was when I found out that fabric softener is actually lard (gross!!), but there have been plenty of times when I found out that products contained gelatin, animal collagen, etc. Since I'm a strict vegetarian obviously that stuff is a no-no for me... I wouldn't touch that darn emu oil with a 10 foot pole!! Emus are my friends!!!

free skin care · Mon Aug 07, 2006 7:50 am

i agree with violetanne on the cashmere not being so gross. the goats aren't killed in the process, they are just sheared like sheep. so i guess that makes it less evil than emu oil since the emu is killed for the oil, but then again, don't people eat emu meat anyway?

i am not particularly against all this stuff unless an animal is killed only for its fur, like mink. then that angers me!

still, if you'd rather not use animals products, then i guess cahmere is offensive. yes, i agree, read ingredients though.

free skin care · Tue Aug 08, 2006 2:03 am

I can assure myself 100% of the time when I read labels on big brand cosmetics that I am
a)confused by all the technical terms
b)can find no seemingly useful ingredient there
c)shocked to see in the list that there is more colour (titanium oxides, aliminium lakes and what not) and fragrance than herbal extracts

free skin care · Tue Aug 08, 2006 3:40 am

Sounds lovely to me. I want some. I could mix it up in a skin cocktail with some snail mucus and emu fat.

free skin care · Tue Aug 08, 2006 4:07 am

I must be an awful creature but i basically have no problem with smearing goat-fat on my face if no goat was harmed for. i'm also a fan of cashmere sweaters (and eat loads of goat-cheese...)
i have definitely more problem with emu-oil or eating caviar - and still buy them both (but as i mentioned already, i'm an awful creature...)

free skin care · Sat Aug 19, 2006 8:57 pm

Thanks Seeking~HG!

I was interested in purchasing the new Cashmere bodywashe but I decided to look into this what exactly this "cashmere" meant, and I forgot about it until I came across your post!

I am a vegetarian and am quite choosy about the products I use - and I am so glad I found your thread that answered my question and made my decision for me! back to the body shop I go!

free skin care · Sat Aug 19, 2006 9:30 pm

mmm, it does sound lush Embarassed

yet i'm not so sure about animal products

free skin care · Sun Aug 20, 2006 11:31 am

It's just something about goats. I find them to be such disgustingly nasty animals. I guess sheep (lanolin) aren't much cleaner, but goats are just . . . YUCK!

free skin care · Mon Aug 21, 2006 2:09 am

Seeking~HG wrote:

It's just something about goats. I find them to be such disgustingly nasty animals. I guess sheep (lanolin) aren't much cleaner, but goats are just . . . YUCK!

, i was actually going to buy one of those pygmy goats as a pet years ago. then i found out my city didn't allow farm animals so that idea went out the door. but i think they're cute actually. sheep scare me more with all their wool...so many places for ticks to hide....

free skin care · Mon Aug 21, 2006 2:21 am

Molly wrote:

Sounds lovely to me. I want some. I could mix it up in a skin cocktail with some snail mucus and emu fat.

I almost sprayed my tea every where when I read this.

Ever since I saw ads for this cashmere wash I was very skeptical and grossed out because what I thought (how they "extracted" cashmere) turned out to be true.

I had a similar experience (with using something for awhile and then looking at ingredients or finding out about them) and it was with fabric softener sheets. I can't use them anymore knowing they contain lard.

While I am not technically a vegan I sure have started leaning toward using vegan products in the last few years.

free skin care · Mon Aug 21, 2006 8:56 pm

I thought the word "extract" applied to plants, but apparently the word can be used for plants or animals (mammals in this case). The thought of an "animal extract" just turns my stomach. :-/

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