Make Your Own Makeup!

Makeup is an enhancer that people use to accentuate and define their features. For teens though, buying makeup can be expensive, so why not make it yourself for cheap?

Making makeup may sound complicated, but I assure you that it is not. Choosing to make your own makeup is rewarding and easy if you follow the recipes carefully.

You will need the following ingredients and also a food scale – nothing fancy, just something that's accurate.

Basic Lip Balm Recipe

Makes: 60 grams (four lip balms)

40 g castor oil
5 g jojoba oil (clear)
6 g beeswax pastilles
4 g carnauba wax
4 g shea butter
2 g vitamin E
Optional: ½ tsp mica or iron oxide of your choice (colouring)
Lip balm container (any small container that's clean)

Combine all the ingredients together in a microwavable container and then microwave for about one minute. Take the container out of the microwave and stir the mixture. Microwave the mixture for another minute. If you are adding colour, make sure to stir in the mica or iron oxide when the mixture has just melted. Pour the mixture into the container and let it harden.

Basic Loose Eye Shadow Recipe

Makes: one eye shadow

Just under ½ tsp of mica or iron oxide pigment
Just under ½ tsp of titanium oxide (oil soluble)
½ tsp microsphere
Eye shadow container with sifter top

In a small, closed zip-lock bag, squish the pigment with titanium oxide until it’s completely combined. Then add the microsphere and squish again. Once it is all combined, fill up your eye shadow container. Voila!

Note: you will have enough ingredients to make dozens of lip balms and eye shadows if you buy it in bulk, and it should cost you less than $20.

You can purchase the above ingredients, like the oils, from most grocery stores, but you can also head to stores that specialize in these raw ingredients. You can also look online for suppliers that carry a variety of products.

These are just two examples of basic makeup recipes – you can find tons of online recipes on how to make lipsticks, foundations, bronzers/blushes, mascara and more. So next time you feel like splurging on makeup, considering making your own!