Skip to content

Cart

Your cart is empty

Article: How VAER Products Are Made Like Food

How VAER Products Are Made Like Food

At VAER, we formulate skincare the way you’d prepare a nourishing meal - simple, nutrient-dense, and thoughtfully sourced. We don’t chase trends or lab-made textures. We build our products the way our ancestors would have: starting with whole ingredients your skin actually recognizes.

We Don’t Extract - We Use the Whole Ingredient

Most skincare brands isolate one compound - a vitamin, an acid, a peptide - and build an entire formula around it. But your skin isn’t a machine that responds to isolated inputs. It’s a living organ that thrives on synergy.

That’s why we use whole tallow, not a refined extract. Tallow contains a wide spectrum of skin-loving nutrients: saturated fats, monounsaturated fats, cholesterol, and fat-soluble vitamins A, D3, E, and K2 - all in the ratios your skin barrier is biologically designed to use.

When you treat tallow as an ingredient, not just a base or a trend, it transforms the entire formulation. It's not something we "add in” - it's the heart of everything we make.

Our Rendering Process Respects the Ingredient

We source suet - the prized fat around the kidneys - from grass-fed, grass-finished cattle raised on regenerative pastures. Not only is this the most nutrient-rich form of tallow, it’s also the most ethical and sustainable.

Rendering is done in-house and in small batches, using a slow, low-heat boil in water and natural salts. This traditional method gently separates impurities without damaging the fat’s molecular structure. Then we triple-filter for clarity, removing sediment while preserving nutrient integrity.

The result? A creamy, scent-neutral balm base that’s clean enough to eat—and powerful enough to transform your skin.

Every Ingredient Has a Partner

Skin doesn’t just need fats. It needs nutrients in the right carriers.

That’s why we pair our tallow with cold-pressed jojoba oil, a wax ester nearly identical to human sebum, allowing for deep absorption without clogging pores. We infuse calendula extract into that jojoba to add anti-inflammatory and healing benefits - no synthetic extracts needed.

Beeswax provides a breathable barrier, helping lock in moisture while protecting from environmental stress. And arrowroot powder improves the finish and skin-feel, especially when applying to damp skin.

Everything in a VAER formula works together - like a balanced meal, where each ingredient enhances the others.

No Preservatives Needed...Nothing Needs Preserving

Because we don’t use water, we don’t need preservatives. There’s nothing in our balms that’s prone to microbial growth. No emulsifiers. No stabilizers. No synthetic binders or fillers.

Just pure, stable ingredients that resist rancidity and support skin health long after the jar is opened.

This Is Skincare Built Like a Recipe, Not a Lab Formula

We don’t follow conventional cosmetic manufacturing rules. We follow principles of whole nutrition, ancestral wisdom, and bioavailable design.

If it wouldn’t go on our dinner table, it doesn’t go in your jar.

Welcome to VAER - skincare that feeds your skin the way real food feeds your body.

Read about our rendering process here

Our Philosophy

See our Tallow Range

 

Read more

clean beauty myths

What Ingredients We Don’t Use (And Why It Matters)

Clean isn’t always enough. At VÆR, we go beyond “non-toxic” to eliminate ingredients that disrupt skin balance, cause long-term dependency, or offer no real nourishment. Here’s what we leave out - ...

Read more
balm vs lotion hot weather

Is Tallow Skincare Safe in Summer or Hot Climates?

Tallow skincare isn’t just safe for summer - it thrives in heat. Learn why this ancestral ingredient remains stable, nourishing, and travel-ready in even the hottest climates.  

Read more