Frequently Asked Questions

For the best quality product we recommend all of our oil-based products be used within 18 months of production. Our products are made in small batches to ensure freshness. We have included a ‘best by’ date on our products – our product is still safe to use beyond this date but it may begin to lose its powerful antioxidants and the scent of the oils and herbs may change. Our Baby Powder has a shelf life of 2 years.

As soon as you open a tin of any product and use it, the life span varies. Since Olive Baby does not use any chemical stabilizers, factors such as storage temperature and humidity, as well as how clean the fingers are that scoop out the product, impact an open tin’s life span. You can expect your opened balm to stay good for 12 months. If the product starts to smell rancid, chances are the oils have oxidized – the product is still safe to use but won’t smell as fresh and won’t have the full benefits of the antioxidants that are contained in our oils.

Our Head-to-Toe Body Wash is used by many as a gentle face wash to remove makeup and help manage acne. It won’t strip your natural oils but cleans the face effectively. Our Bottom Cleaner doubles as a facial toner after cleansing. If you have mature skin you can also use our Body Butter on the face, however if your face is sensitive to oils, you have oily skin or are prone to breakouts, you may want to avoid the facial area.

Yes! The sediment you are seeing is the herbs that we infuse into our oils. Although we use whole herbs which are carefully strained, some of the powder from the dried herbs will remain in the oils. This powder increases the healing potential of our products, but sometimes will settle to the bottom of the jar during the cooling process, leaving a dark residue in your container.

Yes! Our Body Wash is made from Olive oil using the traditional castile methods of soap making which turns the fat into a soap. The liquid soap will change color and texture depending on the temperature. During the winter months when the soap is exposed to cold (ie. during shipment), it develops a cloudy appearance, which goes back to a clear liquid once brought to room temperature. Another possible reason for a cloudy soap is if the bottle was immersed into water (ie. dropped into the bath) and was contaminated with water, bubble bath or other soaps).

Have you noticed that Olive Baby products don’t smell like babies, flowers or the great outdoors? As a Naturopathic Doctor I knew that I didn’t want to add fragrances into our products for many reasons. First off, many individuals and especially those with sensitivities are irritated by fragrances. Secondly, the perfumes and essential oils in MOST baby products are not gentle enough to be put directly onto baby’s skin. I know, I know, we all want our babies to smell sweet and yummy – but at what cost? You probably have noticed that many (if not ALL) ‘natural’ baby products state that they do not add perfumes or fragrances, but they DO add essential oils. Are essential oils natural? Why yes they are! Should babies have essential oils on their skin? Most often the answer is no. In the early days of life babies have very sensitive skin – it’s been protected for almost 10 months by mum’s amniotic fluid and the vernix (thick white coating) which covers their skin. Essential oils are irritants when applied directly to the skin, but diluted into creams and oils it often lessens the reaction, therefore not ALL babies will react. As a naturopath I prefer not to take that risk. I respect the medicinal properties of essential oils, but do not believe them to be completely safe for infants or those with irritated skin. I often see patients using essential oil based salves on their baby’s diaper rashes, and it often worsens the rash and skin irritation. In these situations you don’t want to take any chances with irritants, even as natural as an essential oil. For these reasons you won’t find essential oils in our baby skin care line. All you will see is the use of oils infused with whole herbs, and the smell you find in our products is that of the oils, beeswax and herbs used! I find this approach to be the safe and effective one in my patients, my children, and those using our products!

Yes, this is always a choice that you can make for your family and their specific skin types. If your children are older and members of your family do not have sensitive skin, you can add essential oils into both our Body Wash and Baby Powder. I personally love adding 20 drops of lavender oil into the Body Wash to use as a face wash. You can also add 10-15 drops (total) of your favorite essential oil into our Baby Powder and gently invert it a few times to mix the scent into your powder. I would not recommend using it on baby at that point, but you can use it as an adult body powder or dry shampoo once it’s been scented.

Yes! During pregnancy it’s especially important to use the most natural products on your skin, and to avoid essential oils. Our products can be safely used on the entire body during pregnancy and nursing. Nursing mums can use our Body Butter or Healing Balm on their bellies or breasts without the worry of baby coming into contact with them (even during nursing). Our Healing Balm can be used effectively as a nipple cream to form a protective barrier and to help soothe cracked nipples.

Yes, Olive Baby products were formulated with the most sensitive skin in mind. Our Body Wash can be used as needed for washing infants, toddlers and children of all ages. Our Body Butter and Healing Balm can be used daily to manage dry skin, eczema, cradle cap and diaper rashes. Use all of our products as needed!

Olive Baby products are NOT made with any nut oils, including the following Tree Nuts (Baobab, Cocoa, Coconut, Nutmeg, & Shea). We have specifically chosen the most hypo-allergenic oils to use in our products so that parents whose children have allergies could confidently use our products.

No! We test the products on our own kids, family and friends (all of whom can act like animals at times).

Read our labels and you will see that there are only the most natural ingredients in our products. We are committed to choosing only the simplest and most effective formulations for our skin care products, and have purposely left out mineral oils, petroleum products, sodium lauryl sulfates, dyes, perfumes and anything carcinogenic.

Our oils are naturally very high in antioxidants, but we have also included a non-GMO source of vitamin E to help extend the shelf life of our products without having to use any chemical preservatives.

No! Our bottles are made from a sturdy PET material that contains no BPA or phthalates. Our PET bottles are a safe and recyclable form of plastic.

Treat it just like you would a salad dressing stain. Pre-treat the area with a stain remover of your choice (or make a paste out of baking soda and vinegar). Let it sit for 10 min and then wash in warm/hot water with your regular detergent.