Phenoxyethanol   
Okay
Preservative believed to be less irritating than others. Can also be used as a fragrance [Winter pg 399].

Phenoxyethanol is mild to the skin but can be hugely irritating to eyes—though it isn't found to be irritating in the tiny amounts normally used in products. Surprisingly, it also has some conditioning and emollient properties.

This is an oily, white to off-white liquid that smells a bit like roses. It doesn't dissolve easily in water, but will in ethanol or alkaline environments. Though Phenoxyethanol kills bacteria, it doesn't kill all types of them, so it's often combined with other anti-bacterial ingredients to kill all bacteria that may form in a product. Because it is conditioning, Phenoxyethanol may be found more often in conditioners or cosmetics, or shampoos meant to be moisturizing. The problem with Phenoxyethanol is that you do have to use higher amounts to do the job, and since it smells like roses, it may be hard to cover up the scent (if you aren't wanting your product to smell rosy) [Hunting (Shampoo) pg 317-318]. This is in one of my favorite, go to conditioners that I've been using for well over ten years. It has not caused any problems as far as conditioning and defining my hair. That's why I'm calling it a

* * * Tried and true ingredient * * *
See also: Preservative
Source(s): Winter Hunting