FAQ

Clay is not more fragile in breaking than glass, which is a common packaging material in cosmetics. Many interior refill hand soap dispensers are also made out of clay which should give you an idea of what it may be like. If nevertheless your Oquist packaging would break we will send you a new one.

Terracotta is not heavier than glass, actually less heavy since the porous nature of the material (which also helps it break down faster than glass in nature). An empty 6-in-1 Anti Aging Serum weights 100 grams.

With each product comes an instruction which also can be found on the product pages on our website. Using the packaging may feel a bit unusual at first but one gets used to it quickly. The consistency of our liquid products is specially designed to work with the packaging. Pumps may be a more convenient way of dispensing liquid, but always comes with toxic and carbon intense plastic and/or aluminum.

Yes, you can put it in your dishwasher, but we recommend hand washing if this is something you will do often. Simply remove the caoutchouc stoppers and wash the insides with regular dishwasher soap.

Remove the caoutchouc stoppers and sort as per local regulations (they may differ in different countries). In the Nordic countries terracotta is turned into construction material since it is basically pieces if earth/rocks. We would also love to know why you wouldn't want to repurpose the packaging so that we can improve the design. Feel free to send us a message athello@oquistcosmetics.com.

Most countries doesn't have sophisticated recycling management, so it was very important to us that our packaging material wouldn't do any harm if it ended up in nature or landfills (which are also part of nature, really). Terracotta clay doesn't contain or release any chemicals since it is mud coming from earth herself. With time it will break down into small rocks and unite itself with earth again.

Decomposition is a process that happens to organic things such as wood or cotton. Clay is the product of geological processes causing chemical and physical weathering of igneous rock. When it is heated it becomes a rock again. This is similar to the natural geological cycle, whereby small rocks are formed and melts together again in the mantle layer inside the planet. Since terracotta clay is more porous than porcelain and glass it breaks into small rocks/sand faster. This is why old terracotta is often used as part of construction materials.

Recycling is a process developed for materials that in some way put our environment under stress if simply thrown out in nature:

Plastic & aluminium release toxins and hormone disruptors that are harming nature while also mechanically harming wildlife (animals that gets stuck in plastic or eat plastic thinking it's food).

Carton and paper are made out of wood which is a scarce resource as deforestation is a big problem for the environment. To avoid cutting down more trees recycling carton is preferred.

Glass is made out of sand which isn't a scarce resource, but creating virgin glass takes huge amounts of CO2 and financial resources why recycling is preferred. Shattered glass is also a danger for wildlife if left in nature.

The above described environmental stressors are the reasons for why recycling is preferred for these materials. But recycling comes with two big backsides: 1. It's a process that releases huge amounts of CO2, and 2. It's heavily dependent on the fact that the consumer is the one that need to take the recycling action.

Unlike the above described materials terracotta doesn't need to be recycled. Terracotta is small pieces of rocks that have been molded together into a form. Once thrown out in nature they will whitter down into small rocks again. There's no toxins, hormonal disruptors or mechanical risks with terracotta, moreover the production process is highly manual and emits much less CO2.

For the same reason we have found dinosaur skeletons (which are organic materials) that are 60 million years old. The conditions under which something is stored in the earth plays a major role in how long it will take for it to break down geologically or organically. We have certainly not found all the pottery and dinosaurs that has ever lived on Earth, most of them have indeed become rocks and dust as part of natural organic and geological processes. Terracotta clay breaks down faster than other clays thanks to its porous nature and unlike glass, does not present danger to wildlife when broken into pieces

The stoppers are caoutchouc or natural rubber made out of the rubber tree - Hevea Brasiliensis (unlike synthetic rubber that is made out of petroleum/fossil oil). Rubber can be recycled and made into new rubber materials such as shoes, mats, mulch, different surfaces, construction materials etc

While many common oils and butters are indeed comedogenic (i.e. pore clogging), there are also those that are non-comedogenic. In fact non-comedogenic oils help clarifying the pores. Oquist's face products are made out of non-comedogenic ingredients that are suitable for all skin types, including acne prone skin.

A common misconception is that hydration comes from the water in water based creams. The fact is that hydration of the skin comes from water molecules in the air and from the water we drink and eat. It is then up to our skin barrier to keep this water balance. A disrupted skin barrier function is what leads to dryness of skin (and many other skin problems), so the priority should be getting your skin barrier and skin microbiome functioning again. Things that disrupt the barrier's normal function can be preservatives, alcohol, perfume, SLS, stabilizer and many other chemical components that are added to formulas in order to keep the products long lasting and cheap. Oquist's products are waterless (and hence don't need any stabilizers etc) and are designed to nourish your skin barrier function so that it heals and starts doing what it was designed to by billion of years of evolution - self heal and self hydrate

Since our product strategy is multifunctionality it also means the products are developed to suit all skin types. When it comes to the skin of the face the Serum and Elixir suits all skin types, from young to mature, from dry to acne prone and sensitive skin. They are all free from preservatives and skin irritants and suit even the most delicate skin. The formulas are non-comedogenic and won't clog pores. We don't believe in creating different products just to sell more units. Instead we believe in potent formulas so that the same product can be used by the whole family.

We call the Serum and Elixir "siblings" because they have the same base and functions. The Elixir contains a small fraction of Retinol which is there to give a more efficient anti aging effect. So if you're looking for anti aging effect the Elixir would be your choice. Bare in mind that Retinol can create irritation for sensitive skin types, while the Serum suits even the most sensitive skin. Some of our users prefer to use the Elixir for night care and Serum for day care in order to minimize retinol and sun exposure.

Oquist's products are 100% preservative free which decreases the risk for irritation/reaction. The formulas are also free from other common irritants such as Alcohol, Perfume, SLS, PEG etc. However, if your have individual sensitivity to specific ingredients, please check the ingredient lists before use.

They don't last less than regular water based products, thanks to the absence of water. Bacteria and mold needs water to grow. Although our products may last for several years we recommend using them within 2 years and 6 months from the date when the packaging was first opened.

Yes, our Tocopherol is derived from sea buckthorn.

Yes, no animals or animal byproducts are used in the formulas. Also neither we nor or our suppliers tests on animals

We source our ingredients from well-known European natural ingredients suppliers. Ingredients that can be grown in non-tropical environments (such as sunflower seed oil, olive oil, apricot oil etc) are mainly grown in the EU (which ingredients we prefer, to avoid unnecassary CO2 emissions), while more exotic ingredients such as Shea Butter are responsibly sourced from Africa. We always make sure our suppliers have solid sustainability strategies, audits (for the plantations), and are certified in several organic, vegan and sustainability related categories.

Our sourcing strategy is based on three main principles:
1. Quality
2. Sustainable and responsible raw material production
3. Using waste products when possible

Some of our ingredients are Fair Trade such as Shea Butter and Coconut but most of our ingredients are grown in areas where living standards are too high for such initiatives.

The products and concept are developed in Sweden. The packaging is sourced and produced in EU Riga, Latvia. The formulas are developed and blended in the EU Riga, Latvia.