Heather has a hunch: I’m fed up with paying even drugstore prices for make-up. I’m ready to put on one of those scary little Michael Jackson surgical masks,some latex gloves and an herb grinder and make my own face paint. As you can tell, I’m cheap. I spent all weekend trying to find the most ingredients for the least money. Mica pigments seem to be the one thing I need the most variety of, but I find that mica from art supply websites are much cheaper by the ounce than from a cosmetic supply site. Would they be just as safe to use?
The Right Brain replies:
You’ll need more than a scary Michael Jackson mask to protect you if you’re going to unsafe ingredients! Remember, other industries don’t have to adhere to the same safety standards as the cosmetic industry .
Safety first
For example, for cosmetic grade mica, the FDA limits the amount of trace heavy metals they may contain:
Lead (as Pb), not more than 20 parts per million.
Arsenic (as As), not more than 3 parts per million.
Mercury (as Hg), not more than 1 part per million.
Mica used in art supplies does NOT have to conform to these specifications. Therefore, you may be making cosmetics with unsafe levels of metals and you’d never know it.
Furthermore, on at least one occasion, the FDA has raised concerns that certain processes used to create mica pigments can lead to undesirable chemical residues. In such cases, the FDA instructed the manufacturers that their products were not safe for use in cosmetics. But there’s nothing to stop manufacturers from using these contaminated micas in arts and crafts products.
The Beauty Brains bottom line
We’re all about do it yourself cosmetics, but you’ve got to put safety first. Buying ingredients not approved for use in cosmetics just because they’re cheap is not a good approach. Being rich and beautiful doesn’t do you much good if you’re dead.
Do you like to make your own cosmetics? What steps do you take to ensure that the ingredients you’re using are safe to put on your body? Leave a comment and share your safety secrets with the rest of the Beauty Brains community.
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Via Says:
I would love more information as to how to make my own cosmetics! I enjoy spending time cooking at home - I wouldn’t mind spending a little extra time in the kitchen cooking up some make up recipes.
Steph Says:
http://www.brambleberry.com
http://www.makeyourowncosmetics.com
http://www.lotioncrafter.com
http://www.cosmeticsformulator.com
these are just a few of the companies online that can teach you how to make your own cosmetics. It’s a lot of fun!
Steph2 Says:
My experience is that it’s more expensive to make your own cosmetics than to buy them except for a few things like Vitamin C serum, which has refrigerated shelf life of a few days. You may only need a pinch of an ingredient for your recipe, but you have to buy a larger quantity, which is pricey and will take forever to use it up. I don’t undertand the problem–you can get the price of mineral makeup down to $5 with coupons and sales.
The easiest way to save money on cosmetics is to do a lot of sampling and online comparison shopping, make the right purchase and not buy another until you’ve used that one up.
Jan74 Says:
It is cheap to make stuff like body oil (sesame oil mixed with a bit of sweet almond oil with your favorite essential oil for fragrance) and body butter (2 parts coconut oil, 1 part sweet almond oil, essential oil for fragrance and a pellet or two of beeswax), but for makeup, just buy some Wet’n'Wild. It is cheap and it is good quality. The foundation is… not so good, but buy it and mix it with moisturizer in your hand for tinted moisturizer.
Chic Clicks: The Best Of This Weeks Beauty Blogs | The Beauty Brains Says:
[...] Feeling artsy? Be careful! The Beauty Brains warn us about a dangerous way to make your own cosmetics. [...]
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[...] Feeling artsy? Be careful! The Beauty Brains warn us about a dangerous way to make your own cosmetics. [...]
jenney Says:
I love
brambleberry.com and
thesage.com
for cosmetic and bath supplies. They are reputable companies who sell food and cosmetic grade micas, colorants, and other beauty product additives.
Be especially careful on ebay. Read the feedback carefully. I’ve seen bad sellers peddle inferior products by falsely labeling their packaging with a reputable company’s name.
Rod Newbound, RN Says:
Interest post.
So if the FDA controls the quality of makeup ingredients in the US, it might be wise to check the country source for a cosmetic purchased online.
The same could be said for herbal supplements and even prescription medications.
Thanks,
Rod
Outstanding Art Supplies Says:
Fine art supplies are difficult to find, and even more difficult to find online, that is why along with the fine art supplies and art brushes we offer online.
SeenON! Blog » Blog Archive » SeenON! Weekly Web Roundup August 22, 2008 Says:
[...] The Beauty Brains Feeling artsy? Be careful! The Beauty Brains warn us about a dangerous way to make your own cosmetics. [...]