How to Make Homemade Makeup- Recipe and Tutorial- All Natural and Cheap

Me wearing homemade makeup- blush, lip
gloss, eye shadow, and eye liner
(sorry, my exhaustion showing through)

A friend asked me if I had  any suggestions as to how to make homemade makeup posted on my blog. I did not, and that is surprising, because about a year and a half ago, I did this whole long experiment with various items I had around the house, making my own makeup for an article I was writing for my magazine column I had at the time, and I had planned on writing up something for Penniless Parenting as well.
But you know how things are- sometimes you get distracted and such plans get forgotten, until a long time passes without having done what you'd originally intended on doing.

But thanks to my friend who reminded me, here's how to make homemade makeup. I'll admit, this is just revamping the article I'd originally written for the magazine- I'm a little overwhelmed with some things in my life and not able to spend as much time writing now... But it's still the same great info.

Full disclaimer though- I still prefer my store bought makeup, as it stays on better and longer, and I like the colors better. And no, they're not all natural makeup, they're chemical filled stuff. Maybe one day I'll switch to natural stuff all the time, either store bought or homemade, and I'll be glad to have this info filed away for that date.
If nothing else, though, this was a fun experiment.

And if you currently don't wear any makeup because of the health concerns and frugality reasons, then I guess today is your lucky day!




The quest for beauty can put a strain on the pocketbook, and the cost of makeup is no exception. Makeup can cost a lot of money, and makeup free of dangerous chemicals is even more pricey. Cheap makeup can be even more dangerous to use than regular makeup, as cheap makeup is often made in China away from regulations ensuring no especially dangerous chemicals were used.
The solution to both keeping down the cost of makeup and guaranteeing that you're not putting yourself at risk for various diseases because of your beauty routine: make your own homemade makeup out of all natural, frugal ingredients that you likely will anyhow have around the house.

What You'll Need
Coffee grinder
Food processor
Kitchen knife
Cheesecloth/cloth napkin
Bowl/large container
Many small containers, like a bunch of disposable cups
A few sheets of white paper
A lighter/matches
Aluminum foil
2 syringes
Potato/corn starch/tapioca starch
1 Beet
Cocoa powder
Cinnamon
Powdered sugar
Oil (olive oil, baby oil, or regular cooking oil)
Rosemary or lavender essential oil
Vaseline or coconut oil
A wide plate
Q-tips
Eyeliner brush (optional)
Blush brush (optional)
Eye shadow brush (optional)


What To Do:
The first thing you need to do are make your pigments (your colors) for your makeup. The different pigments you use will be based on beet juice, paper ash, cocoa powder, cinnamon, powdered sugar, and potato/corn starch.
Making gray pigment:
Set down a large piece of aluminum foil. Rip a sheet of white paper in half, place it on the aluminum foil, and set it on fire. Let the entire thing burn up. Repeat with all the paper until you have a pile of gray ash. Place the ash in the coffee grinder to chop it all up to ensure it is all powder with no larger chunks. Put the ash in a container.
Making beet juice:
Peel and chop your beet into smallish pieces and grind in the food processor until really fine.
Put your cheesecloth/cloth napkin over a bowl, fill it with the ground beets and pull together the edges of the cloth napkin to form a pouch. Twist the ends together and squeeze out all the beet juice. This is your beet pigment. (You can also use it in place of food coloring in various recipes.)
Making pink pigment:
Put some powdered sugar or corn starch in a container. Add a tiny little bit of beet juice to the white powder and mix well. If you see clumps forming, and it isn't turning into a uniform pink, put it in a coffee grinder and grind until all the color is uniform. Add more or less beet juice depending on the final color you want.

Getting the right color:
Once you have all your pigments made, you'll be mixing and matching them to make the ideal color for you for eye shadow, blush, bronzer, eye liner, and lipstick.
Blush: Corn starch or powdered sugar with beet juice works well as a good color for a pinkish blush. If you want a more brownish blush, add a little bit of cocoa powder or cinnamon until you get the ride shade. Cinnamon adds a more yellowish brown hue while cocoa powder adds a darker brown hue.
Bronzer: Mix cocoa powder, cinnamon, and powdered sugar or corn/potato starch.
Eyeshadow: For gray, use ash. For pink, use the beet based pink pigment. For a greyish lilac, mix the beet pink pigment with ash. For brown, use cinnamon or cocoa or both, possibly mixed with some potato/corn starch or powdered sugar.
Eye liner: You can use ash to make a pretty silvery gray, or use cocoa to make brown.
Lipstick/gloss: Use beet juice and possibly cocoa powder or cinnamon.


Making the makeup:
Blush: Take the pigment, put it on a plate, and add a few drops of essential oil, and mix it together. Add enough essential oil, bit by bit, until it starts clumping together somewhat and isn't completely powdery. Use a blush brush to apply. Alternatively, rub straight beet juice onto your cheek with your finger, massaging it in well so it isn’t splotchy. If desired, put a touch of cinnamon or cocoa powder on top.
Bronzer: Put pigment on a plate, add some essential oil drop by drop until it starts clumping together. Apply with a blush brush.
Eyeshadow: As with blush and bronzer, add essential oil drop by drop until it starts clumping together. To apply, use an eye shadow brush or your finger to put on the eyelid. Use a darker color than you think you'll need as the eye shadow will be lighter than you expect. The eyeshadow will stick better if you first put a tiny little shmear of vaseline or coconut oil onto the eyelid.
Eye liner: Mix pigment with a drop of water at a time (use a syringe to help you add the water slowly) until you get a paste, and apply with either a q-tip or an eyeliner brush. You can do the same with oil, also adding it drop by drop. Or you can add a few drops of water and even less oil and combine with pigment until you get a workable paste, and apply with a q-tip or eyeliner brush. If it is separating into clumps when applying, add more pigment and more water. (Too much oil will make it clump.)
Alternatively, mix a lot of pigment with a tiny drop of vaseline or coconut oil and mix it very well until it is uniform. Apply with a q-tip or eyeliner brush.
Lipstick/gloss: For a clear gloss, use plain vaseline or coconut oil. To get colored gloss, mix a drop of beet juice with a tiny bit of olive oil, and add enough powdered sugar until you get a good consistency. If you want a slightly different color, try replacing a bit of the powdered sugar with a drop of cinnamon or cocoa powder. For airbrush makeup machines you may need to add more liquid and ensure that there are no clumps of makeup.

Some of these ingredients may cause skin issues for people with sensitive skin. Try on a small patch and wait to see if you react before using on your whole face.

Just a note- homemade makeup is a bit more finicky than regular makeup and needs to be put on with care.


Are you a makeup wearer? When you buy makeup, what is your first priority? Price? Natural ingredients? Or do you look for specific types of makeup, specific colors or brands, with less concern for the cost or the ingredients?
Do you think you'd ever try out making homemade makeup like this? Does it look like a fun experiment? Do you think you'd actually wear it once you made it?