Hydrolats

What is a hydrolat?

As naturalists, we can't imagine skincare without hydrates. Hydrolats are highly effective and extremely fragrant aqueous extracts of aromatic medicinal plants used as toners, cleansers and refreshers. A mist of hydrolats makes you feel like you are being caressed by the soothing dew of a morning dew plant. A hydrolat is an aqueous extract of an herb, which is only obtained by water and/or steam distillation. Aqueous extracts of plants produced by other methods or aqueous scented cosmetic waters can not be called hydrolates.

What hydrolats are used for:

• Natural skin care is unthinkable without hydrolats, which are some of the most effective natural botanicals for skin care, especially for the face and baby skin.They are the most effective and safest prebiotic facial tonics, moisturisers, mists; sprayed on before applying creams or oils, or used as a facial mist to add moisture, they have a beneficial effect on our skin's protective microbiota, alleviating problematic and atopic skin conditions; they soothe irritated mucous membranes such as those of the mouth and genitals. We use hydrolats in ALL our creams, emulsions, shampoos instead of plain water.
• Hydrolats are a safe alternative to essential oils for babies and children, as well as for sensitive adults and nursing home patients. Our high quality hydrolats are preservative-free, making them suitable for even the most sensitive skin.
• In phyto-aromatherapy - health promotion, taken internally (orally) as dietary supplements, e.g. to improve digestion; this is an ancient and particularly widespread use in Iran and other eastern countries.
• In food - for pickling, canning, drinks, smoothies, ice cream and other desserts.
• In cosmetics - we use hydrolats, not water, in ALL our creams, emulsions and sleeping powders, making our cosmetics far more valuable and richer

Hydrolats properties

Concentration and potency of hydrolats: Hydrolats are a valuable and safe aromatherapy tool. Hydrolats contain a very low essential oil content of 0.01-0.1%, but it is this low concentration that makes them a better and safer alternative to essential oils for infants and the seriously ill, and they can be used in their pure form without the need for dilution. Water has the special property of taking information, in this case from a living plant, storing it and transferring it to the human body, which is also largely made of water. All our hydrolats are preservative-free and therefore suitable for even the most sensitive skins.

Scent: In most cases, hydrolats smell slightly different to essential oils, as only a small proportion of the essential oil components can 'dissolve' in the water, and the scent is weaker, lasting up to 30mins (in hair and clothes, it can last longer).

Acidic pH. The pH of most hydrolats is between 3.5 and 6.5, which corresponds to the natural pH of the skin and mucous membranes; therefore, hydrolats are not only suitable for daily skin care rituals and routines, but are also recommended for use as refreshing mouthwashes and rinses, when suffering from atopic skin conditions, rashes, itching, redness, and when  feeling discomfort in the most intimate areas of the body.

How to use the hydrolat

Hydrolats can be used in a variety of applications and ways:

• Sprayed on the face as a toner before applying an oil, serum or cream
• sprayed on the face as a moisturiser in air-conditioned, dry-air environments in winter; in hot weather in summer
• sprayed on problem skin areas to soothe itching, inflammation, burns, e.g. babies' skin or sunburn
• for (facial) washing(s) when the skin is sensitive to tap water
• in compresses
• sprayed on the skin of babies, children and the elderly, on beds when they are sick, etc.
• for mouthwash
• for soothing irritations in intimate areas - spraying or sitting baths
• use in ultrasonic diffusers, vaporisers
• take 1 tbsp. for health purposes
• for use in food production

For more information on hydrolats and their use, please read this article and here.

The widest range

At Kvapų namai you will find the widest range of hydrolats in Lithuania for a wide variety of skin, hair, body, mucous membrane care or aromatherapy needs. Some of the hydrolats we bring from distillers we know, some we distil ourselves from wild herbs we have collected or from local farmers. We distil ourselves:

• Mountain Pine,
• lemon verbena,
• birch buds,
• frankincense (boswellia resin),
• lemongrass,
• Peppermint,
• spearmint,
• and other hydrolattes made from herbs collected by the farmers or bought from herbalists.

Our hydrolats are authentic and pure. How do we ensure quality?

All Kvapų namai hydrolats are preservative-free and alcohol free. The effectiveness and goodness of the hydrolats is only revealed if no biocides, such as preservatives or alcohol, are added to them. Therefore, strict hygiene must be observed in all steps of the production of the hydrolat, from collecting the flowers to packaging. However, such "live" plant extracts, preservative-free and unspoiled, can sometimes give surprises, i.e. microbes can start to breed in the hydrolats, although not necessarily dangerous ones. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the manufacturer to ensure that they are under constant microbiological control. We have an in-house microbiology laboratory at the House of Scent, where we regularly carry out microbiological tests so that you can have our hydrolats delivered to you in a clean state of health! Be vigilant: as the popularity of hydrosols grows, more and more hydrosols are stabilised with alcohol or other biocides - preservatives; we are also seeing more and more counterfeits, where hydrosols are not distilled, but are called "floral waters", or "floral tonics", which are not distilled, but are composed of "floral tonics", which are difficult to predict the effect of the products they are being used to produce; and where salespeople are often not even competent in the presentation of the quality of the product they sell.

Our hydrolats are free of phthalates and other contaminants. Like essential oils, hydrolats can be contaminated with phthalates, bisphenols, pesticides etc.. These endocrine disruptors can get into hydros from contaminated soil, transport, contact with plastics and containers. For more information on the dangers of phthalates, click here. At our laboratory, we test every batch to make sure that you and your little ones stay calm, safe and healthy.