Pure witch hazel question

[Nicholas]

I have a question for you gents. Does anyone use any 100% pure witch hazel as a toner?

Thayers is a great product but last time I made an order from iherb it took more than 6 weeks to arrive. Also, custom duties are high and I'm not willing to take the risk again. I found a high quality pure witch hazel at a good price here in Greece and I'm about to buy it.

My main question is if the pure witch hazel is sticky. If so, I won't enjoy it as much and I will probably look into some other solutions. Comparing to a Thayers how does a pure witch hazel perform? Do you feel any difference? Is it better?

Thayers witch hazel concentration is relatively low and contains other ingredients as well.

 

[Chevyguy]

I have a question for you gents. Does anyone use any 100% pure witch hazel as a toner?

Thayers is a great product but last time I made an order from iherb it took more than 6 weeks to arrive. Also, custom duties are high and I'm not willing to take the risk again. I found a high quality pure witch hazel at a good price here in Greece and I'm about to buy it.

My main question is if the pure witch hazel is sticky. If so, I won't enjoy it as much and I will probably look into some other solutions. Comparing to a Thayers how does a pure witch hazel perform? Do you feel any difference? Is it better?

Thayers witch hazel concentration is relatively low and contains other ingredients as well.

Thin it down with some water, or your favorite aftershave.

Clayton

Sent from my LG-K450 using Tapatalk

 

[Nicholas]

Thin it down with some water, or your favorite aftershave.

Clayton

Sent from my LG-K450 using Tapatalk

Thanks the suggestion, Clayton!

Any info on the asl-witch hazel ratio?

 

[Chevyguy]

Thanks the suggestion, Clayton!

Any info on the asl-witch hazel ratio?

I would start at 25% witch hazel to whatever you are mixing it with.

Clayton

Sent from my LG-K450 using Tapatalk

 

[Nicholas]

I would start at 25% witch hazel to whatever you are mixing it with.

Clayton

Sent from my LG-K450 using Tapatalk

Very helpful info, thanks a lot, Clayton!

 

[UTVol]

I have pure witch hazel and it's pretty thin and not sticky, kind of like water.

Sent from my Vivo 8 using Tapatalk

 

[Ron R]

Witch hazel usually has 14%> alcohol and witch hazel toner usually has no alcohol and I usually dilute it with my strong scented Aftershave or colognes approx 4:1. I sometimes just use witch hazel as a aftershave and it's good for the skin. The nice thing about witch hazel with 14 % alcohol is self life and that is important to consider.

 

[Cristobal]

I use distilled witch hazel that is sold in British supermarkets or pharmacies (about £2 for 200ml); no alcohol in it. It's completely liquid and dries on my freshly shaved skin in 1 or 2 minutes.

 

[Nicholas]

Thank you very much for the answers, gents!

 

[emwolf]

I bought a v very expensive witch hazel hydrosol. No alcohol distilled at the farm. The only noticeable difference was it had a much more green scent less sour than store bought. It also said to refrigerate after opening

 

[Wirebender]

I use pure witch hazel after every shave. I love it.

 

[Scaramouche]

Boots, Dickinsons, et al are just distilled witch hazel in a 14% alcohol solution, which is the most common dilution. AFAIK, there is no solution containing "100%" witch hazel. I prefer it to Thayers because Thayers usually has an abundance of aloe or other additives that leave my face a sticky mess, where the alcohol solutions just dry off and leave no residue.

 

[Nicholas]

Boots, Dickinsons, et al are just distilled witch hazel in a 14% alcohol solution, which is the most common dilution. I prefer it to Thayers because Thayers usually has an abundance of aloe or other additives that leave my face a sticky mess, where the alcohol solutions just dry off and leave no residue.

Thayers toners contain about or less than 10% of witch hazel. They are mostly purified water.

 

[Bakker1964]

I have Dickinson's and Thayer's at home. Prefer the price of the Dickinson's, but the smell of the Thayer's. I notice no difference in feel or results.

 

[Scaramouche]

Almost all types of witch hazel are distilled using denatured alcohol(ethanol), with the extract containing about 14% to 15% alcohol. Witch hazel extract is a clear, colorless distillate prepared from recently cut and partially dried dormant twigs of hamamelis virginiana linne (USP). This is essentially Dickinson's and other similar preparations, the concentration of "witch hazel" essential oils and water being 86% essentially, with 14% alcohol residual in the distillate and nothing else.

Thayers ingredient list, which varies by whatever else they dump into the mix - lavendar, rose, cucumber, etc. - contains camphor 0.1%, and inactive ingredients: Aloe Vera Extract (Certified Organic), Calendula Extract, Clove Oil, Denatured Grain Alcohol (20% v/v), Eucalyptol, Glycerin (Vegetable), Grapefruit Seed Extract, Peppermint Oil, Purified Water, Hamamelis Virginiana Extract (made from Certified Organic Witch Hazel) . I've not seen a specific concentration of witch hazel extract listed for Thayers.

 

[Nicholas]

Almost all types of witch hazel are distilled using denatured alcohol(ethanol), with the extract containing about 14% to 15% alcohol. Witch hazel extract is a clear, colorless distillate prepared from recently cut and partially dried dormant twigs of hamamelis virginiana linne (USP). This is essentially Dickinson's and other similar preparations, the concentration of "witch hazel" essential oils and water being 86% essentially, with 14% alcohol residual in the distillate and nothing else.

Thayers ingredient list, which varies by whatever else they dump into the mix - lavendar, rose, cucumber, etc. - contains camphor 0.1%, and inactive ingredients: Aloe Vera Extract (Certified Organic), Calendula Extract, Clove Oil, Denatured Grain Alcohol (20% v/v), Eucalyptol, Glycerin (Vegetable), Grapefruit Seed Extract, Peppermint Oil, Purified Water, Hamamelis Virginiana Extract (made from Certified Organic Witch Hazel) . I've not seen a specific concentration of witch hazel extract listed for Thayers.

The one you posted is the Thayers Medicated Superhazel ingredients list which is a lot different than the others.

 

[Nicholas]

And this is the Original formula in the newer packaging with the ingredients list in order.

 

[njpaddy]

I hated Thayers and wound up dumping 2 bottles down the drain because my wife wouldn't use it either. After 55+ years of shaving, I use the alcohol Dickinson's or generic before aftershave. Besides shaving, I splash the real stuff on my face, head (a 1-1.5 buzz) and neck after a shower and also use it for bug bites, cuts, skin irritations, etc.

 

[Chandu]

I like pure and agree with @njpaddy on the Thayers. Thayers with the aloe leaves my face sticky and I don't like it. The only time I use my Thayers now is if I have an ESPECIALLY bad shave with a lot of irritation, then I will apply some Thayers throughout the day, it does seem to sooth nicely in that capacity.

Normally I use straight up TN Dickenson. Any 100 percent WH product without aloe or any other additives will be fine. Oh, and most WH does and should contain a little alcohol.

And Thayers is $10 and the good stuff is $2.

 

[Ad Astra]

Yeah. The Thayer's Superhazel is sticky as heck ... too much aloe ... but you can use it up by mixing with other stuff, i.e. making aftershaves. I wouldn't buy it again.

Regular generic $1 storebought WH @14% is good stuff.


AA