Cosmetics hourglass (minimum durability)
What it looks like
A small hourglass or egg-timer shape, with a date printed beside it.
What it means
Required on cosmetics whose minimum durability is thirty months or less, which is why it and the open-jar mark rarely appear together — a product either has a short enough shelf life to need a date or a long enough one to need a period-after-opening figure. The date refers to unopened product stored normally. Past it, the risk is loss of effectiveness, separation or a failing preservative system rather than anything dramatic, but sun creams are the case where the loss of effectiveness matters most.
Defined by Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products. Where a symbol differs between standards, the difference is described above rather than resolved — both versions are in circulation on real labels.
Other product care symbols
| Symbol | Means |
|---|---|
| Upholstery cleaning code W | Clean with water-based cleaners only. |
| Upholstery cleaning code S | Clean with solvent-based cleaners only — no water. |
| Upholstery cleaning code W-S | Either water-based or solvent-based cleaners may be used. |
| Upholstery cleaning code X | Vacuum or brush only — no liquid cleaner of any kind. |
| Period after opening (open jar with 12M) | How many months the product stays good after you first open it. |
| Footwear: leather | That part of the shoe is leather. |
| Footwear: coated leather | That part is leather with a surface coating no thicker than a third of the total thickness. |
| Footwear: textile | That part of the shoe is a textile, natural or synthetic. |
| Footwear: other materials | That part is made of something that is neither leather nor textile. |
Common questions
- What does the cosmetics hourglass (minimum durability) symbol mean?
- The best-before date of a cosmetic product — it is best used before the date shown.
- What does it look like?
- A small hourglass or egg-timer shape, with a date printed beside it.
Related pages
- Period after opening (open jar with 12M) How many months the product stays good after you first open it.
- Upholstery cleaning code W Clean with water-based cleaners only.
- Upholstery cleaning code S Clean with solvent-based cleaners only — no water.
- Upholstery cleaning code W-S Either water-based or solvent-based cleaners may be used.
- Upholstery cleaning code X Vacuum or brush only — no liquid cleaner of any kind.
- Period after opening (open jar with 12M) How many months the product stays good after you first open it.
- Footwear: leather That part of the shoe is leather.
- Footwear: coated leather That part is leather with a surface coating no thicker than a third of the total thickness.
- Footwear: textile That part of the shoe is a textile, natural or synthetic.
- Footwear: other materials That part is made of something that is neither leather nor textile.
Sources
- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place