Don’t you hate when your favorite makeup product breaks? That shimmery, perfect eye shadow that shatters as it hits the ground, or the unfailingly flattering lipstick that gets smashed in the tube? Well, here’s the good news: You can repurpose them into better products in just a few minutes.
All makeup is essentially different compositions of waxes, pigment powders, shimmers and oils. You can use lipstick as a blush or eye shadow as a liner if the brush is moistened with a little water—points to keep in mind when a product breaks.
Here are three ‘recipes’ for broken cosmetics: a lip/cheek duo, a nail polish and a cream eyeliner. You probably own everything you need to make these. For cases, wash out pans from the broken makeup, or buy little jars from craft stores.
Lip/cheek duo
Don’t be afraid to mix colors. I mixed a matte bright coral with a pale pearlescent pink to get a subtle glow. This also works if you have a lipstick that’s far too dark or light for your skin tone—just mix in a darker or lighter lipstick or even a dab of foundation.
You can play around with add-ins for this project. Add a drop of candy flavoring (available at Michaels crafts stores in the baking aisle) to make sweet scents like peppermint and cinnamon. A tiny sprinkle of edible glitter would be pretty for special occasions.
You’ll need:
Lipstick (any solid formula; no glosses)
Clear lip balm in a squeeze tube or Vaseline
Small pot (try using jars from used up sample cosmetics)
Project steps:
Slice lipstick into small rounds and place on large tablespoon (metal, not plastic). Squeeze about ¼ teaspoon of lip balm or Vaseline onto spoon. Hold spoon carefully over a candle. Using a toothpick or Q-Tip, stir lipstick and balm around to melt completely. Pour carefully into pot and let cool, about five minutes.
Nail polish
If you don’t have a broken eye shadow, this also works well with blush to make pink or red shades. You could even use powder foundation to make a perfect skin-tone polish. Remember, the more pigment you add, the more opaque the color will be. Don’t add more than one teaspoon of powder to the bottle or else the polish will be too thick.
You’ll need:
One bottle clear nail polish
Powder eye shadow
Project steps:
Crush shadow with back of spoon into a fine powder. Make a funnel out of a small piece of paper and fit it into the mouth of a nail polish bottle. Pour in crushed powder. Screw lid on and shake well.
Cream eye liner
This works especially well with dark eye shadows. Sparkle is intensified when wet, so remember to be sure you want extra shimmer before you begin. If you’re allergic to eye drops, try a few drops of purified water instead.
You’ll need:
Eye shadow
Vaseline
Visine eye drops
Small cosmetic pan
Project steps:
In a small cup, crush eye shadow into a fine powder. Add about ¼ teaspoon of Vaseline and one or two eye drops. Stir or mash into paste. If too dry, add another one or two eye drops, but only enough to moisten all the shadow—you still want a paste. Smooth into pan.
After these projects, use makeup remover and Q-Tips to clean up the edges of pans and bottles. Use paper towels for cleaning any spills—lipstick is hard to get off fabrics.
