DIY Mineral Makeup

Mineral makeup is more than just a new beauty trend - it offers health benefits for skin as well. And now you can make it at home!

It's made of all natural, finely ground minerals from the earth, without many of the chemicals, dyes, and preservatives found in traditional makeup.

I have VERY sensitive skin, and have had trouble in the past with commercial makeup (even store-bought mineral makeup!) being too heavily fragrances, or containing irritants like bismuth oxychloride.

This formula eliminates classic irritants so that it's kinder to the skin.

Since it contains titanium dioxide which has anti-inflammatory properties, it also has a calming effect on the skin, particularly important if you suffer from inflammatory problems such as rosacea or acne.

AND I've added micronized zinc oxide to give it an SPF rating, helping to further protect skin from damage and wrinkles.

By making your own at home, you can control not only the purity of the ingredients you use, you can also create a custom color, matched exactly to your own skin tone!

Step 1 Materials

Some of these materials may seem hard to come by, but fret not! I was able to find some of these products cheaply at my local coop. The rest I got from Ponte Verde Soap Shoppe!

Makes approximately (3)-30 gram jars (3 oz)

• Micronized Titanium Dioxide
• Zinc Oxide
• Sericite Mica - Matte Finish
• Magnesium Stearate
• Yellow, Red & Brown Iron Oxide Pigments
• Jojoba Oil
• Vitamin E Oil
• Essential Oil (opt.) I used Geranium mostly since I love the smell, but it also has excellent qualities to help relieve pain, soothe anxiety and stress, diminish swelling and inflammation, and is renowned for healing burns, wounds, and skin ulcers, dry eczema, burns, shingles, ringworms, lice, acne, herpes, cuts and wound - Ok, so I don't have all of those problems, but it sounded promising. Mostly I love the smell.
• Mortar & Pestle or small grinder
• 30g (3oz) Sifter Jars
• measuring spoons
• cosmetic brush (large full brush for foundation)

Comments

[miafrieda]

Great to know that I can also find these things in BA. I also live in Argentina, and I'm constantly hating this country and thinking why proper natural and organic skincare and makeup can't be found here and that only big old brands like L'Oreal or Lancome rule this country. I know those comments are from 2009, but have any of you or any in here found really the ingredients? Where did you found them? What about the oils? I never had luck finding good oils and essential oils here, and raw, organic, natural stuff, like essential oils, clays, herbs and stuff like that. Argentinean Patagonia is also the second producer or rosehip oil after Chile and I couldn't even find a good, organic certified oil here! Not to talk about essential oils, impossible. Any information will be appreciated!

[bethany4287]

coastalscents.com has a lot of ingredients for making your own makeup and lotion etc.

[Trixie.in.Dixie]

Hi, I just happened to find this page looking for a recipe to make mineral makeup. I order a lot of color/base ingredients from http://www.tkbtrading.com/ - they are not the only ones who sell raw materials, but they have the widest selection I have ever seen! There are a lot of indie makeup sellers who find their ingredients here, which is how I discovered them. Look for the dry ingredients under the "makeup" tab and the oils/waxes under the Lipstick tab. Hope that helps!

[jjo1]

I'm about to make my first mineral makeup. I have the particle filter for my face. that's a HUGE thing you all should get. Breathing in ANY fine partles is bad for your lungs.

Contrary to what others may think, all products you put on your skin do NOT get into your bloodstream. The molecule has to be small enough. FEW products have molecules that small. Some of the more dangerous ones are dimethicone and cyclomethicone.

Good carriers are seabuckthorn seed oil and DMSO.

Think about it, if everything went thru, we would all be pretty sick. The top of the skin has an acid mantle on it, to prevent bacteria and such from getting in.

LOL I just saw doxsys' comment.

You can purchase ingredients from Presperse, from brambleberry.com, lots of different suppliers. soapersupplies.com has a HUGE going out of business sale going on right now.

[tcalvin]

The materials are available at tkbtrading.com fairly cheap, they even have a kit that makes eye shadows and several years worth mineral makeup for under 50 bucks.

[thernandez12]

It's a good idea to skip the magnesium stearate which Bare Minerals has omitted from their recipe, too. It can cause bad allergic reactions and in general age the skin. Just google it & you will see. I was wondering why my Bare Minerals which I first bought in 2009 was drying me out and I called the company and they said to replace with their new formula. I went on to make it myself since they are $26 a jar!!!

I have not used this recipe with jojoba because some people are allergic and have found that I don't need it. The Magic Bullet grinder works great for getting these ingredients to a silky consistency and you can find all of your ingredients at tkbtrading.com They have the best prices and can point you in the right direction with their descriptions. They have many different Sericite Micas with descriptions on which are great for foundation and others that work best for shadows...Some Sericite has carnauba wax infused so it's better for shadow and others are infused with other inorganic material that helps foundation have a great "slip".

It's best to get your jars from Qosmedix if buying in large quantity or eBay/etsy if only needing a few. I hope this helps!

[Gottwinkies]

Scoochmaroo has listed some sites and I found another one listed in my comments below. www.pvsoap.com was the best one that I found overall, but that is just my opinion. I made this after spending $60 but I bought some extras, too, and you should be able to make more make-up than you can ever use! I made one batch and it has been a year, and the batch wasn't big at all-less than 1 cup total. I used some leftover storebought make-up for a short period and went right back to this. From the author's recipe, I cheapend up the ingredients a little, as diffferent forms of the same ingredient can vary alot in price, but for example, one pound of sericite mica was like $21...and I think that was the biggest cost. Best bet, know you are going to use the supplies for something else (lip gloss?), or see if someone wants to split costs with you.

[askybbpapabull]

where do i get the materials??

[aknittel herman]

i am a little late on this, but just wondering, approx. how much did it cost to purchase all the ingredients and how much makeup did you get from them? i am looking for makeup without the toxins that doesn't cost me an arm and a leg as i am on a very tight (graduate student and parent!) budget. thanks!

[Minke]

I know that I'm a year late with my comment, lol but I thought I would give this a shot anyway...

First of all I would like to thank you for this Instructable. I have sensative skin and I am also concerned for my health and I had spent good money on Bare Minerals only to have it be one of the worst things I've ever put onto my skin! I had a horrible reaction to it but anyway...

If I were to make blush (rouge) would I just follow this Instructable but use a blush-type color instead of the flesh-type colors? And what about eyeshadow? The eyes are a whole different story than the face so I wasn't sure if the process would be the same or similar to the foundation process.

[scoochmaroo]

Before you try this recipe at all, it would be good to figure out what was causing a reaction with you.  The ingredients in this are very similar to Bare Minerals, only with a few things left out.  However, if it turns out what you're allergic to is not one of the ingredients still left! 

This is what I recommend (though a dermatologist would know better):
Do a small allergy test by applying each of the ingredients to the skin on the inside of your elbow.  It's a good idea to make a chart for yourself so you'll know which is which.  After 24 hours, you'll know if any of them is going to cause you a problem.

If not, then yes, go with some blush-colored pigments (there are plenty to choose from!) and have fun.  Best of luck to you!

[KittyF]

Another diy'er on instructibles says that you test each ingredient at aprox the same concentration as you would use it, not pure.

[Minke]

Thanks, that's a really good idea! I don't have the money to see a dermatologist (although I really do need to see one) so I'll probably end up doing the tests on my arm. :)

[scoochmaroo]

Here's a secret I recently discovered.
I went without health insurance for a long time, because I couldn't afford it.  Now I still have to limit who I can see because of office visit costs.  I did go to see a dermatologist recently, who asked me why I hadn't been to one sooner.  I told him I had no insurance and couldn't afford it.  He said, next time, you just come in, we'll work something out.  Now, granted, he's a very generous man, but I've also had dentists and general practitioners tell me the same thing.  My grandfather was an internist, and used to trade his services for baked goods.  These people are out there, and it's worth asking!  You never know what someone will do to help a fellow person in need.  

[Minke]

Thanks for the advice. I have health insurance and it's pretty good but there will be these random things that I really need that they won't cover for some reason.

[Gottwinkies]

I KNOW I am late in my comments, but I only found this a few weeks ago. Thanks for this instructable. I made a batch of this last night. Had to wait for my supplies, but worth it. I made a few changges from scoochmaroo's recipe, though (added Tapioca starch powder, rutilated T/O instead of micronized) I managed to get the color right for me....fair skin lots of freckles, lol. I got so many compliments at work today! color matched great and the coverage stayed ALL day. I more like the idea that if it doesn't turn out or I react to the scents in it, I havent spent $15+ on one more "beauty" item that I need to toss. I can twek my recipe and try again :0) Thanks again!

[Gottwinkies]

Ya! I found another site called www.diycosmetics.com and they had different items for fillers, and after doing a bit of research, I decided that I wanted to try the tapioca starch. It is VERY fluffy and mixes well with the items, plus I could use it in creams, which I have already done :0) Good alternative for talc, from what I read....I got my minerals at pvsoap.com but a few things at the other site, since their mineral supply was pretty limited.

[scoochmaroo]

Tapioca starch powder? That's awesome!

[Gottwinkies]

Note to self...Too much Tapioca starch is a BAD move, LOL.....It makes the makeup NOT stick to your skin! But easily fixed by upping the other ingredients and testing as you go :)

[Silver Buttons]

I didn't know it was possible to make your own powdered makeup. Very useful to know for anyone who has allergies or just doesn't want to use store-bought makeup that might be harmful to the skin. I wonder, could this recipe have other pigments added to make eye shade in different colors? Maybe add a bit more oil to give it more sticking power on the eyelids.

[MichelleW]

I found a site that has instructions on making eye shadow. The ingredients are

Powdered Base

1g magnesium stearate

2g cornflour

3g talc

5 drops jojoba oil

Powdered cosmetic colours suitable for eyes such as Micas, Oxides, Pigments and Ultramarines
I havent tried it, but it looks good. wed site is www.cindyfullerhome.co.uk

let us know if you like it.

[Minke]

I wouldn't put talc on me, it's a common irritant is very dangerous:
http://www.preventcancer.com/consumers/cosmetics/talc.htm

[scoochmaroo]

Totally! I didn't buy the colors to make cool eyeshadow shades, but they're readily available, and the recipe is similar. You can use the same stuff to make rouge as well!

[bbritain]

Where do you get the colors to make eyeshadow and rouge?

[scoochmaroo]

You can get all of these things from the Ponte Verde Soap Shoppe!

[AFEcoMom]

Nelore...I think Coastal Scents has parabens in their products. To me defeats the purpose of DIY makeup...if I want chemicals in it, Ill just buy it that way. I LOVE their palettes but I hate their ingredients, its hopeless! :)

[Nelore]

Coastal Scents has all of the ingredients, except for Vitamin E oil and the mortar and pestle. :]

http://www.coastalscents.com

[Lisica]

If you don't add the oils, are there any problems with the finished product adhering to skin or looking chalky? I know the risk of microbial contamination in a formula like this is low, but since there aren't any preservatives I'd like to cut out the oils to make it even lower.

[rookie1]

Thank you. Thanks for the offer to find a recipe.

[rookie1]

Great instructable. I don't wear make up because of allergies to the things they put in. My biggest problem is with mascara. My lashes are very fine and thin and if I use even the stuff that is supposed to be hypoallergenic My lashes end up looking like porcupine quills because my eyelids swell up. Could this be used as mascara? Being close to the eyes, I really want to be sure of it. I remember seeing old movies with lash darkeners in blocks. Water was applied to the brush and then the brush was wiped on the block. Again, great instructable.

[scoochmaroo]

Yeah, I've seen mascara like that, but I doubt it was very hypoallergenic. I'll look into finding a recipe that might be delicate enough for your eyes, but no, I wouldn't recommend using this stuff on your lashes.

[prunedanish]

this is amazing! I so want to do it...but I live in south america and can't imagine where I would begin to look for these ingredients. i like that it has an spf factor. do you suppose I could find any of this stuff in a pharmacy?

[marcela]

Where in South America do you live? Usually these kind of products can be found in the old fashioned "farmacias" that used to be more of chemists and mix the ingredients for you than in the regular chain stores. I'm from Buenos Aires, Arg, and that's where you'd normally go to find them. Good luck! And let me know if you had found them. Cheers!

[prunedanish]

Hi Marcella, I'm currently living in Buenos Aires also. i have a local farmacia who helped me track down quajo en polvo and borato de sodio. I would just have to figure out how to say most of these things in spanish...

[marcela]

Look in your yellow pages for your local "drogueria" There used to be a few in Centro (downtown) that I remember and also in San Telmo. But best is to look around the yellow pages. What neighborhood are you in? Did you try going one by one with the dictionary? Usually chemicals and minerals go by a very similar name. I'll look up at the ingredients and try to help out.

[prunedanish]

Any guidance is appreciated (and its so cool that other people in BA are on here reading this exact same instructable). i live in zona norte and work in palermo soho. I recently found one around the corner from my office. He's definitely gonna look at me funny when I go in with my list: trying to figure out which are the most important base components to start with. I guess zinc oxide and pigment...

[scoochmaroo]

Best to check online. And check out other commenters' remarks on substitutes they've used!

[enigmaticfille]

This sounds amazing, But i live in India..... where am i gonna go looking for these things

[kikkoman7347]

I am thinking of amking this for the wife but, have a simple question. I assume that in high humidity area this would be prone to running/smearing?

[mcadwell]

I have purchased the commercial type and it doesn't run or smear when sweaty. The skin seems to absorb it enough so it stays put (except in a raining downpour)