Emollient

Fills in the tiny cracks between skin cells to make everything feel smooth and soft. The "silky finish" ingredient.

Skin Conditioning

A catch-all term for ingredients that improve how skin looks and feels — softer, smoother, more supple. The workhorse behind most moisturizers.

Solvent

Dissolves other ingredients so they distribute evenly in the formula. Often the invisible "base" everything else is mixed into.