Ingredient guide · S

Sandalwood

Sandalwood is a luxurious, creamy-scented ingredient widely used in British skincare and fragrance for its calming aroma and gentle soothing properties. Derived from the heartwood of the sandalwood tree, it appears in creams, oils, serums and perfumes, lending a warm, woody note while helping to comfort the skin.

Sandalwood — Sandalwood oil is steam-distilled from the heartwood of Santalum album, a small evergre… | UK Lips ingredient guide

How it works in skincare

In cosmetics and skincare sandalwood essential oil and extract function as natural fragrance components and soothing agents. The oil’s rich, woody aroma provides a sensorial experience in creams, balms and bath products while its mild astringent and anti-inflammatory-like qualities help calm and balance the skin’s appearance without stripping natural oils.

Key benefits

  • Calms and comforts irritated-looking skin
  • Provides a warm, woody fragrance in perfumes and creams
  • Helps balance oiliness for a refined skin texture
  • Adds a luxurious feel to moisturisers and body oils
  • Supports a smooth, even skin tone appearance
  • Gentle enough for use in sensitive-skin formulations

Best for

dry skin, sensitive skin, mature skin, irritated skin

Where it comes from

Sandalwood oil is steam-distilled from the heartwood of Santalum album, a small evergreen tree native to India and parts of Southeast Asia. The slow-growing tree’s dense, fragrant core is harvested and distilled to produce the pale yellow essential oil prized in cosmetics.

Products with Sandalwood

Not every product on UK Lips lists a full ingredient breakdown — so there may be many more formulas that contain Sandalwood than we can show here. These are the comparisons where we’ve confirmed it in the listed ingredients.

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