In the world of cosmetics, it is not only the effect that plays a central role, but also the appearance. Colors influence our perception and our well-being \u2013 and they contribute significantly to the attractiveness of a product. However, more and more consumers today want natural ingredients \u2013 even when it comes to coloring. The good news is that nature offers an amazing variety of coloring plant substances that not only look beautiful but also have nourishing and protective properties.<\/p>\n
In this article, we present a selection of natural colorants that are playing an increasingly important role in modern cosmetic formulations. From intense violet to sunny yellow to deep blue\u2014discover the variety of plant-based colors and their benefits for skin care, decorative cosmetics, and more.<\/p>\n
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A\u00e7a\u00ed berries are dark purple in color. Their main chemical components are anthocyanins, including\u00a0cyanidin-3-rutinoside<\/strong>and\u00a0cyanidin-3-glucoside<\/strong>, which are the predominant pigments in a\u00e7a\u00ed fruit. The berries also contain various flavones and flavonol glycosides, flavanol derivatives, and phenolic acids. An oil of dark green color is extracted from the flesh of the fruit of the a\u00e7a\u00ed palm, which grows in Brazil, by pressing.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Alkanet belongs to the borage family. The roots provide a dark red pigment. Although the flowers are blue, the plant has dark red roots that appear black on the outside but are blue-red on the inside and whitish in the middle. The most important chemical component of the madder root is\u00a0alkannin<\/strong>, which is soluble in alcohol, ether, and oils but not in water. However, madder is toxic when ingested (hepatotoxic) and should therefore not be used in formulations such as lipsticks.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Annatto is an orange-red dye obtained from the seeds of the achiote shrub (Bixa orellana<\/em>). The reddish-orange annatto dye comes mainly from the resin layer that covers the seeds. The yellow to orange dye is formed by the carotenoids\u00a0bixin<\/strong>and\u00a0norbixin<\/strong>. Through saponification, the fat-soluble bixin is converted into the water-soluble norbixin. It is very rare for a carotenoid to have two types of solubility, as is the case with the annatto dye. The seeds contain 4.5\u20135.5% dye, 70\u201380% of which is bixin. Unlike the well-known beta-carotene, annatto dyes are not precursors of vitamin A. The higher the proportion of norbixin in the annatto pigment, the stronger the yellow color; the higher the proportion of bixin, the stronger the orange color.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Unrefined avocado oil is bright green and so heavy that it quickly hardens at cooler temperatures. The skin, flesh, and oil contain carotenoids and chlorophylls such as lutein, alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, neoxanthin, violaxanthin, zeaxanthin, antheraxanthin, chlorophylls a and b, and pheophytins a and b.<\/p>\n The most significant pigment in avocado oil is lutein. Lutein is one of 600 known naturally occurring carotenoids. It is produced only by plants and, like other xanthophylls, is abundant in green vegetables such as spinach, kale, and avocado.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Beetroot is a well-known pigment for water-based natural cosmetic products. The main chemical component is\u00a0betanin<\/strong>, which decomposes when exposed to light, heat, or oxygen. When beetroot powder is dissolved in glycerin, the result is a bright pink or red glycerite that can be used in emulsions, water-based gels, or facial toners. Since beetroot is water-soluble, the dye cannot be used in oil macerations.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Blue tansy belongs to the Asteraceae family and is related to chamomile. Chamomile contains chamazulene. This substance is also found in blue tansy: 17-38%\u00a0chamazulene\u00a0<\/strong>in the essential oil. It is obtained by steam distillation. The essential oil of blue tansy can be used to color formulations blue.\u00a0It should not be confused with tansy oil (Tanacetum vulgare<\/em>).<\/u><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Buriti is a type of palm tree that grows mainly in the Amazon region. Its fruits resemble chestnuts. The yellow-orange pulp is used to make juice and extract oil. The oil is edible and is used in cooking and frying. Can you imagine frying chips in this oil? The oval seeds of the fruit are also edible.<\/p>\n Buriti oil contains over 70% oleic acid, which is similar to acai oil. Buriti has an incomparably high\u00a0beta-carotene<\/strong>content. No other natural source surpasses the fruit in its beta-carotene concentration, not even carrots: 100g of carrots contain 6.6 mg of beta-carotene, while 100g of buriti pulp contains 30g of beta-carotene. The concentration is even higher in buriti oil: 330 mg of beta-carotene in 100g.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The flowers of the blue clitoria have a striking blue color and are often used as a pigment in organic cosmetics. They contain anthocyanins,<\/p>\n p-coumaric acid, and ferulic acid. In addition to anthocyanins, the petals of blue clitoria contain many flavonoids, such as p-coumaric acid and ferulic acid. The anthocyanins in the petals of blue clitoria are derivatives of the anthocyanin\u00a0delphinidin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Carotenoids are primarily responsible for the yellow to red colors of the flowers. The wide spectrum of flower colors in calendula is due to the diverse combinations of carotenoids. Nineteen carotenoids have been discovered in extracts from the petals of orange and yellow calendula varieties. The most important carotenoid in calendula petals is\u00a0\u00a0flavoxanthin<\/strong>;<\/p>\n which is responsible for the orange color of calendula flowers. Other carotenoids in calendula are lycopene and lutein. As a food additive, flavoxanthin is used as a colorant with the E number E161a, but it is not approved in the EU or the US.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The term carotenoids derives from the fact that they are the characteristic colorants in carrots,\u00a0Daucus carota<\/em>. They are among the most common and important colorants in living organisms. Carotenoids give many plants their color, including carrots. Alongside chlorophylls, carotenoids form the largest group of pigments found in nature. The main pigment in carrots is a beta-carotene derivative. Carrot macerated in oil is very important in the production of organic skin care products and gives them a beautiful orange color.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This type of chamomile, also known as Hungarian or blue chamomile, produces an essential oil that is deep blue due to its high chamazulene content (2-5%). The essential oil also contains a high percentage of alcohols, such as bisabolol. Chamazulene is only found in the essential oil of Roman and true chamomile. It is extracted from a substance called matricin during the distillation process. This substance gives the essential oil of true chamomile its bright blue color. During the distillation of Roman chamomile essential oil, the formation of chamazulene is often prevented, as the industry prefers this oil to have a pale straw color. The anti-inflammatory properties of both types of chamomile are based on chamazulene.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Luteolin<\/strong>\u00a0gives dyer’s reseda (also known as yellowweed, yellow herb, or dyer’s woad) its color. Dyer’s reseda is one of the oldest plants used for yellow dyeing and is native to many parts of Central Europe. The leaves and seeds are used, as they contain more dye than the stems. Infusions of the plant are suitable for treating wounds.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Elderberry has a similar content of chemical pigments and natural dyes as acai berry. This is not surprising, as they are very similar in their dark purple color. Their most important dye is\u00a0cyanidin-3-glucoside<\/strong>, a highly water-soluble anthocyanin.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The hemp oil has an intense green color due to its chlorophyll<\/strong>\u00a0content. Hemp oil extracted using supercritical CO2 contains three times as much chlorophyll and four times as much carotene as oil extracted using cold pressing (Aladi\u0107, et al., 2014) . Chlorophyll is soluble in alcohol and oil, but not in water.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Since ancient times, henna has served as a natural dye for skin, hair, fingernails, and textiles like silk, wool, and leather. Henna contains the dye Lawson<\/strong>\u00a0(2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone), also known as henna tannic acid. The red-orange dye is found in the leaves of the henna plant (Lawsonia inermis<\/em>) and also occurs in the flowers of the water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes<\/em>).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The red pigments in the red flowers of the rose mallow plant are anthocyanins, which are widely used as colorants. The petals of the species Hibiscus rosa-sinensis mainly contain the chemical pigment cyanidin-3-sophoroside. Extracts are also obtained from the hibiscus variety Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa<\/em>), which probably originates from West Africa. The most important anthocyanins in\u00a0Hibiscus sabdariffa<\/em>\u00a0are cyanidin-3-sophoroside and delphinidin-3-sophoroside.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The blue dye is obtained from the fermented leaves of the indigo plant. It produces a blue to mauve dye called\u00a0indigotin<\/strong>(indigoid structure). The dye from the plant is also known as\u00a0Pigmentum indicum<\/em>. It is a paste-like substance that is secreted during the fermentation of the plant material. It is processed into cakes, which are then finely ground. Upon exposure to air, the powder develops its characteristic blue color.<\/p>\n The indigo dye is a derivative, indican, a glucoside of several\u00a0Indigofera<\/em>\u00a0species, which is converted into blue indigotin by an enzymatic process. The dye is very colorfast; and is used to produce a number of dyes with stabilizers and other components. Today, almost all commercially used indigo dyes are produced synthetically (Dweck, 2002).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The iris extract obtained from the roots of\u00a0Iris germanica<\/em>\u00a0(blue iris) contains high concentrations of isoflavones. The\u00a0mangiferin<\/strong>\u00a0contained in iris is considered one of the essential co-pigments of iris flowers; in interaction with anthocyanin (a delphinidin glycoside), it forms a whole spectrum of violet, mauve, and blue tones.<\/p>\n In earlier times, Iris germanica was used to produce iris green together with the petals and other plants. To prepare the dye, the juice was simply pressed from the flowers and then mixed with an aluminum hydroxide base (alum). The green color came from the petals of the purple iris. The dye was initially purple, but turned blue with the addition of alum and green with the addition of calcium.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Madder is native to Mediterranean countries and was cultivated on a large scale in the past for the production of dyes. The genus name\u00a0Rubia<\/em> means red. This plant is the source material for permanent red dyes. The 2\u20133-year-old rootstock of the plant is used medicinally and retains its red color even after drying. Its components include anthraquinone glycosides, which are two red chemical compounds from the roots and tubers: alizarin<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0purpurin<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Monascus purpureus<\/em>\u00a0is a purple mold. During its growth, it breaks down starch into several metabolic products, including dyes as secondary metabolites. The colors available to date are violet and red. The most important chemical dye in Monascus purpureus is rubropunctamine, which accounts for 57-87% of the total dyes formed.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nAlkanet<\/h2>\n
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Annatto<\/h2>\n
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Avocado<\/h2>\n
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Beetroot<\/h2>\n
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Blue tansy<\/h2>\n
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Buriti<\/h2>\n
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Blue clitoria<\/h2>\n
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Calendula<\/h2>\n
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Carrot<\/h2>\n
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Chamomile (true)<\/h2>\n
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Dyer’s reseda<\/h2>\n
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Elderberry<\/h2>\n
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Hemp<\/h2>\n
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Henna<\/h2>\n
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Hibiscus<\/h2>\n
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Indigo<\/h2>\n
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Iris<\/h2>\n
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Madder<\/h2>\n
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Monascus purpureus<\/h2>\n
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Nettle<\/h2>\n
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