Explore more shades with Cosmetic Colours today!

Cherry Red or Pretty Purple, with more colours, the excited consumers get more product variants and the manufacturer earns more profits. Colours play a very important role in the cosmetics industry. A lot of effort goes into finalizing the right colours for the right product in the cosmetic industry.

Although, the cosmetics industry is perceived as glamourous, it is a very serious business. Manufacturers and users of cosmetic colours in India have to stricty follow certain stringent regulations and adhere to the BIS quality standards. This inturn, ensures a safe product for consumers too.

Types of cosmetic colours

Cosmetic colours or colour additives can be classified into two categories: Cosmetic Dyes and Cosmetic Pigments.

Pigments can be inorganic pigments or organic pigments. Inorganic pigments consist of iron oxides, chromium dioxides, ultramarines, pealescent pearls etc. Organic pigments consist of cosmetic lakes, toners or true pigments.

Lakes are pigments used in cosmetics for their suitable chemical properties and colour characteristics. Cosmetic Lakes are created by absorbing the dye on a substrate and the dye turns into a water-insoluble colour by adapting the property of the substrate.

Dyes Vs Pigments

Cosmetic pigments are insoluble in most liquids including water while cosmetic dyes are water-soluble and soluble in many solvents. Cosmetic dyes are used mainly to create natural colours because dyes are made of organic compounds. On the other hand, pigments are generally made of inorganic compounds, sometimes with highly toxic contents. Dyes are combustible in nature while pigments are non-combustible in nature. In terms of shelf-life, pigments last longer than dyes.

Selecting the right colours

Colour selection for cosmetics depends on various factors as given below:

• Be it natural light or sunlight, the source of light where the colour will be viewed makes a lot of difference in the way it will be seen.
• Certain ingredients are restricted in specific type of cosmetics such as eye pencil, lipstick etc.
• Who sees it or what medium views the final colour can also give different results as the colour is perceived differently by human eyes and by an external object such as a camera or others.
• Accuracy in shade values ensures consistency in cosmetic colours.

Regulations for using cosmetic colours

Appropriate care is to be taken while preparing the colours for cosmetics. Any small error in mixing the ingredients or inclusion of incorrect amount of toxic substances can lead to undesirable consequences and even stringent legal actions. Manufacturers of natural cosmetic dyes in India face lesser challenges compared to ones making synthetic pigment colours.

The business of cosmetic dyes in India is growing as always with great demand for natural colours. Certified colour providers do the necessary testing and follow industry standards to meet the demands of the cosmetic colour requirements of personal care product manufacturers.

So, add more glamour to the cosmetics industry with vibrant cosmetic colours.

Do you have any interesting new shades in mind? What kind of cosmetic colours would you prefer?

Koel is the author of this article on cosmetic dyes in india here.