Prior to pregnancy, my make-up line-up was entirely made up of things I bought from the store. From name brands to pharmacy brands, there was no discriminating. But when I got pregnant, concerned with how my beauty products could be absorbed through my skin and, consequently, affect my baby, I became hyper-sensitive (my mind, not my skin) about anything and everything I used. I became militant about using only products that contained natural and organic ingredients. Mind you, this wasn’t always an easy (or inexpensive) way of life. More often than not, I found myself skipping make-up to go as au naturel as possible. It never occurred to me that I could make my own make-up – out of edible ingredients, no less. Needless to say, I wished I had known about this 18 months ago! Yes, you’re reading this correctly. Make-up that’s made using (only) ingredients that you (probably already) have in your pantry! Better yet, since they’re all ingredients that we’re already ingesting, it’s got to be safe to use on our skin (in most cases). It can’t get any more natural than that, right?
The beauty of it all (pun completely intended) is that you can create an entire make-up line — I’m talking foundation, blush, bronzer, eyeshadow, lipstick, eyeliner, and even mascara — out of edible ingredients. And for the most part, it’s surprisingly easy. So let’s start with every woman’s most basic make-up essential — foundation.
What you’ll need:
Cornstarch
Cocoa Powder
Small dish
Teaspoons or small spoons
Jar with lid (for storage)
Add a couple of teaspoons of cornstarch into the dish, then mix in small amounts of cocoa powder until you reach the color that matches your skin tone. It may take a few tries before you hit the jackpot color, but that’s it. That easy. No, really. You’re done. :)
Now, there are variations to this simple formula. You can use arrowroot powder instead of cornstarch (I chose to go with cornstarch because it’s something that most of us have in our pantries), but both work well. You can also add other “hues” to create more dimension — think nutmeg, cinnamon, turmeric, and ginger powders. You could also try ground coffee, especially since caffeine (known for its anti-aging and antioxidant benefits to skin) is a common ingredient in many cosmetic products. But you’d have to ground the coffee to a super-fine texture for it to mix well. (No one wants brown streaks across their face — no matter how exotic your beans are). Cocoa powder gives off more off a red tint, while cinnamon, turmeric, ginger will give off slightly more yellow tints. Nutmeg falls somewhere in between. It all boils down to the color you’re trying to achieve. Think art class meets mad scientist meets culinary diva. It’s a lot of fun. Gives playing with your food a whole new meaning, doesn’t it?
Apply this as you would any other mineral powder: a few gentle swirls with a foundation brush (a kabuki brush would be good for this), tap off any excess powder, and gently apply in circular strokes. Because this is all-natural and there is no binding agent, the powder will have a tendency to get everywhere. So apply over a sink, and be careful during application if you’re wearing black.
And of course, no doubt that as you’re reading this, you’ve already been asking: “What about coverage?” I’ll be honest — it’s not going to be as all-concealing as your store-bought liquid foundation, and it might not cover as well as those fancy mineral powder foundations, but you will have light coverage. More importantly, you’ll know exactly what you’re putting on your skin. Win-win.
So give it a swirl. Get creative, get delicious, and have fun! Let’s see some pretty selfies in the comments section below!
*As with all things that you put on your skin, test anything you make on a small and inconspicuous area first to make sure that there are no allergic reactions. And obviously, if you have any known allergies to any of the above ingredients, omit them.*
