I’ve started making my own cosmetics. That’s because I know what goes into women’s beauty products. It’s not pretty.
A class of compounds known as parabens are added to a wide range of cosmetic and personal care products. These chemicals mimic estrogen. So there’s growing concern they can potentially stimulate estrogen-driven cancer. It’s even believed parabens may be a contributing factor in the current breast cancer epidemic.
Mascara has a particularly ugly side. In the United States, it’s legal to add mercury to the mix. That means women apply small bits of mercury to their eyelashes, day in and day out. Flakes of mercury-laden mascara then fall on their face, right on the sensitive area around the eyes.
Can You Make Your Own Mascara?
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Fortunately, more people are waking up to the fact that some cosmetics are potentially dangerous. So a growing number of companies now sell all natural mascara, formulated without mercury. This is the kind of mascara I’ve been buying for years. It works every bit as well as the potentially toxic brands I once used. In fact, this mascara stays on my lashes much better than the conventional drugstore versions.
Since I’ve been making my own cosmetics, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how well they work. It’s possible to replace every single chemical concoction with a safer version. You can buy excellent ready-to-use formulas.
Or you can make your own. And you probably won’t be disappointed. I’ve found that my skin responds much better to homemade plant-based moisturizers than it does to chemicals. In fact, going natural has led to a huge improvement in my skin tone. I no longer feel the need to put foundation on my face.
How to Make Your Own Mascara Easy
There are various recipes for homemade mascara online. I decided to make mine with beeswax pellets because I already have this ingredient in the house. Also, I know if my readers don’t already own beeswax, and need to order it, they’ll find a lot of other uses for it, especially if they like DIY cosmetic recipes.
Beeswax is necessary if you’re using plant-based emollients, such as coconut oil. That’s because it turns liquid once the temperature hits 76-degrees F. Beeswax stops this from happening. Beeswax is also what will keep your DIY mascara attached to your eyelashes, until you wash it off.
How to Make Your Own Safe Mascara
I’m fussy about mascara. That’s because I learned that it’s perfectly legal, in the United States, to sell mascara with mercury added. This is a highly toxic heavy metal that I don’t want anywhere on my body. Putting it on your eyelashes is a very bad idea. That’s because all mascara tends to eventually flake and fall off. If it contains mercury, these flakes land on your skin. There’s really no safe level of mercury, a possible carcinogen.
Once I learned about the mascara/mercury connection, I started searching for a safe brand. Fortunately, these do exist. I ended up buying Physicians Formula all natural mascara, made without mercury. This works wonderfully. However, I wanted to see if I could make my own.
If you make your own mascara you will potentially save money. But you do give up convenience.
For one, you’ll have to play with the ingredients to arrive at a consistency you like. It may take a fair amount of experimentation. (Natural mascara is pricey. But if you can afford it you might be happier with it.)
You’ll also want to make homemade in small batches. Because I’m not sure how long it will last. I wish I could tell you. But I don’t own a lab to test for bacterial contamination.
I think two weeks would be a good guess. After that you can make a fresh batch, since you’ll already have the ingredients.
You can use an old mascara wand to apply it. (Clean it with warm soapy water first.)
You will probably want to store it in a clean jar or clean glass food storage container. That’s because it would be immensely difficult to wash, dry and transfer the mascara into an old mascara tube.
How to Make Your Own Mascara at Home
For my DIY mascara, I already had all of the ingredients in my house, except for the natural activated charcoal. This is what was needed to color the mascara black. You can use more or less, depending upon how dark you want the finished product.
Previously, I’d made all natural hand salves and lotion bars. The main ingredients are equal parts coconut oil, shea butter and beeswax. I figured this would work for my mascara, although I did need to add a little bit of green European clay for a mascara-like consistency.
How to Make Your Own Mascara Easy
I try to do things the easy way. Oftentimes, I see complicated directions for double boilers. I don’t even own one. Instead, I melt the beeswax, coconut oil and shea butter in a heavy stainless steel pan. Then I add the other ingredients. Anyway, here’s my recipe.
Be aware that you might have to play around with the ingredients a little to get the exact consistency you want. Too much beeswax and it will be hard and balm like. If you don’t like the consistency of your mascara, play with it a little. Add or subtract charcoal or clay. If it’s too greasy, add more clay. It’s a forgiving recipe. But everyone has their own preferences.
1/2 teaspoon of natural beeswax pellets (You can order them here) If you desire slighting firmer mascara, you can add a little more beeswax. You will see the consistency when it cools. If needed, you can reheat it and add beeswax or a bit more additional charcoal, if you don’t think the mixture is dark enough.
1/2 teaspoon of organic coconut oil (You can order it here)
1/2 teaspoon of organic shea nut butter (You can order it here)
4 capsules of activated charcoal (You can order them here) You can add a little more charcoal if you want a deeper black mascara. The beauty of DIY cosmetics is that you learn to work with natural ingredients. You soon develop a feel for how to make them, and how to customize the recipe. Make sure to open the capsules and put the content into the recipe. The capsules will not dissolve.
1/2 teaspoon of natural volcanic clay (You can order it here) I like to use green European clay because it adds to the color.
1 drop of lavender essential oil (You can order it here)
How to Make Your Own Black Mascara
Melt the first three ingredients over very low heat until everything is liquid. Add the clay. When the beeswax pellets have melted add the charcoal and stir. Take away from heat and quickly add the lavender essential oil. Transfer into a clean glass jar with a lid. It’s almost impossible to put this in a regular mascara tube.
But you can use an old mascara wand that’s been thoroughly washed to apply your DIY mascara. Store in a cool dry place away from heat and light. The above recipe makes a lot of mascara. So plan to give some away to a friend.
Making Your Own Cosmetics
Once you start making one type of cosmetic, you realize how easy it is to make others. Now, everything I put on my face is either purchased from a company that sells non-toxic makeup. Or I just mix something myself. If you’d like to go for that totally natural look, you may also want to try making your own face powder.
Disclaimer
These statements have not been approved by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Women who are pregnant or nursing should not use essential oils unless directed to do so by a healthcare professional.
Love this one!! I know where I’ll be getting my next mascara..thank you!!
Niki, thanks for reading. It’s easy to make. I did update the recipe to include more volcanic clay. 🙂
Your link for natural activated charcoal goes to lavendar oil. Also, what can you use to make a very dark brown mascara? I am a natural red head and black mascara looks slutty.
Thank you for telling me about this link. I will definitely fix it right away. Maybe you can experiment with a brown henna, instead of charcoal. Henna is also plant based. Just find a brand that’s pure and made only from plant material. I like Rainbow henna and it comes in all kinds of shades.
Maybe dark cocoa.
Now that’s an idea if you don’t want dark black mascara.
I have all of the ingredients except the charcoal, clay and aloe. Those items are a little pricey. So I was wondering if they keep and if you can make more batches of the mascara with them for cost savings.
Hi Stephanie, the charcoal and clay should last a long time, so they’d actually be a good investment. You can make your own toothpaste with charcoal. Charcoal is also something that belongs in our medicine cabinet, in case of accidental poisoning. (Of course, you always call a poison control center for advice.) Clay is something I never want to be without. I use it on my face and it’s amazing for softening and exfoliating. You can also use it in DIY toothpaste. I think you’d actually save money with these two items in the house. Aloe vera juice doesn’t last too long after you open it. If you’re concerned about buying it then try making a small batch of mascara and using water instead of the aloe. Hope this helps.
Hi, I’ve taken my aloe Vera gel and froze it in a covered ice cube tray. Each cube holds 2 tablespoons. So when needed I take what I need. This method keeps the gel longer.
Great idea, and great tip.
I didn’t see any alone in the ingredient list. How much do you use?
Do you mean aloe? I reworked the original recipe to not include aloe because it was just one more ingredient for people to get and the recipe works fine without it, but I suggest playing around with the ingredients to get the exact consistency you like.
What a great idea. I go through mascara like no tomorrow. I make all natural soap and lotions already so I have all of the ingredients accept for the aloe juice. I am going to replace that with a small sample of some rose water that I had no idea what to do with.
Hi Genesia, I see no reason why rose water wouldn’t work. You may have to play around a little with the quantities to get the mascara exactly how you like. But it is fun to make your own non-toxic beauty products.
Hi. Is there an alternative to the beeswax? I want to keep my mascara vegan if possible.
Hi Jasmine, you need some sort of wax to hold it all together. Otherwise it will just run off your eyelashes in the heat. Candelilla wax and carnuba wax are often cited as alternatives to beeswax, but I haven’t personally tried them. I would avoid soy wax unless you know it’s not GMO. Most soy grown in the US is GMO. Thanks so much for reading my blog.
Can you recommend a book of DIY cosmetics and skin care? I’m intrigued. Thank you so much for posting the mascara recipe. Who woulda thunk it!
Brenda, I don’t know of any good books on DIY skincare. But I should probably write one. I have a large number of posts on DIY cosmetics if you want to search through this site. Go to the search function on the right sidebar and you will be able to find a lot of posts.
Hi. Thank you for this recipe. One question. Instead of using aloe vera juice can I use fresh aloe vera when I purify ut and strain it? Since we have it growing outside where I live iy seems logical yo use fresh.
Tnx
Yes, by all means use fresh aloe juice instead. Update: I reformulated the recipe without aloe vera juice.
What could I use instead of Shea nut butter? I’m allergic to it.
I’ve seen other recipes calling for mango butter and cupuacu butter instead of shea butter. I’ve never tried these butters myself though. I hope this helps.
I just made this exactly like the directions say and it did not turn out good at all. Just turns to semihard wax and will barely attach to my eyelashes. Any suggestions? Not happy that I spent the $ for this stuff and it didn’t work.
Crissie, I’m sorry this didn’t work for you and I value your input. I want the recipe to be as perfect as possible. If it’s too hard that means there’s too much beeswax. This is the only ingredient that will add firmness. The original recipe works and so does another one I just made with a little less beeswax. Actually, it came out perfect for homemade mascara.
If you feel as if your mascara is too firm, simply heat it again and add more shea butter and coconut oil. Sometimes with natural cosmetics you have to play around with them to get the right consistency for you. You can also try adding more clay or charcoal.
What am I missing? The outer part of the capsules did not dissolve as I expected. Tried recipe again but unable to open capsules and dump charcoal in.
Oh no, you can only use the inside. I need to update this article just so no one is confused. The outside of the capsule won’t dissolve.
Hello
I just wanted to ask if this recipe has a shelf life, some i have read recommend throwing out after a week, others use some type of preservative.
How long would you continue to use one batch, before turfing it?
That’s a really good question. I cannot tell you exactly because I don’t have a laboratory to test for bacterial contamination. To be on the safe side let’s say a couple of weeks, but maybe longer. So you’ll want to make it in small batches. I’m going to update my article.
¿ Could You please put the recipe in spanish? Thank You so much.
I am not able to do this because my Spanish is a work in progress. Also, I don’t want to confuse the search engines by publishing a recipe in Spanish because the language on this site is English. But you can run the recipe through Google translate.
May i ask ?….how do you make foundation for your skin?…sheila
I haven’t done that because I don’t use foundation, and haven’t had to since switching to all natural cleansers and moisturizers. But there must be a way. There are also good companies that sell natural foundation without bad ingredients. Hope this helps.
Is it possible to use kaolin clay instead as I already have that.
I don’t see why not. I am a big fan of using what you have in the house rather than buying something new.
For the clay, could I do henna powder or bentonite clay?
I have never tried it with henna powder. Yes, Bentonite clay.
Do you know if there is a good substitute for coconut oil? I have an allergy to all things coconut and would love to be make my own mascara.
It sounds like you need to avoid coconut oil. Maybe you can try a little bit of avocado oil. This is a recipe you need to sort of play with to get it how you like it. So start with really small batches to see what proportions work.
Hey there!
I’m a makeup artist that has started developing allergies over the years to makeup so I’m trying to transition into more natural makeup.
I’m just wondering if there is a way to make brown mascara as well as the black?
I wish I knew what to tell you but I don’t know what would substitute for charcoal that you can put in the sensitive eye area.