I have to say that while food-grade items are safer than a lot of chemicals in store-bought makeup, applying them to one's face requires caution! Obviously, don't use anything you know you are allergic to or don't tolerate well. (One of the above bloggers suggested nutmeg as a potential face powder ingredient, but after having it cause instant itchiness when making eye shadow, I decided against trying that one again.)
The next thing that is difficult about making your own powder foundation is getting the right color. It's not like making blush when one easy to create color will suit most any skin tone. My first attempt was something I came up with all on my own: arrowroot and turmeric (which I was surprised to find in an organic line at Walmart, oddly enough). I had seen this as an ingredient when researching how to make eye shadow, and I thought that if mixed with arrowroot, it would make a nice pale peach powder. Since I am extremely fair-skinned, I thought this would be more subtle than, say, cocoa powder. When mixed up and applied to the inside of my wrist it was a near-perfect match to my skin tone. Now for the real test.
It looked good on my face at first but then the powders seemed to separate and I was embarrassed to catch my reflection one day (after wearing this in public for a few days in a row! Why couldn't I have noticed that sooner?!). Unless the Oompa Loompa look is in this season I had really missed the boat! Needless to say, there is a reason none of the other bloggers out there are recommending the use of turmeric in a homemade foundation.
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| {Homemade Powder Foundation Experiments} |
Fortunately, my second attempt was much better. Cinnamon and cocoa powder were suggested by both of the blog posts I had read, so it made since to try them out. I was a bit nervous about using cinnamon on my skin, fearing an itchy reaction, but luckily that did not happen. This powder looks a lot darker and I was worried that it would look like I was trying to fake a tan, but it actually went on quite natural. It wore well, keeping shine at bay. (I am thinking the arrowroot powder is to thank for that.) It's not as great at concealing blemishes as my store-bought stuff, but overall, this worked for a powder foundation. The best part was that it smelled incredibly delicious and I half expected people to ask me where I bought my Christmas cookie perfume. (I used 1 teaspoon arrowroot powder + 1/8 teaspoon cocoa powder + 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon. Proportions can be adjusted as needed, and I suggest starting with small amounts and adding more as desired.)
Even thought that second formulation worked well, I wanted to try yet another concoction. This time, I added ginger to see if the yellow tint would tone down the overly dark cocoa powder to create a more suitable shade of powder foundation. Again, I was slightly apprehensive about whether or not there would be an itch factor, and I was relived that this was not an issue. My main complaint about the ginger, though, is that it tends to tickle my nose when inhaled, making me sneeze. (Kind of like my second blush experiment -- I ultimately nixed that version, in part because of this.) This third mixture is what I have been wearing most recently, but I am thinking that I will go back to the cocoa powder and cinnamon mixture. I am not sure that the ginger is really working for me, but I will say that this works well as a translucent powder, similar to the second variation. (I used 1 teaspoon arrowroot powder, 1/2 teaspoon ginger, and 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon. Proportions can be adjusted as needed, and I suggest starting with small amounts and adding more as desired.)
In case you're wondering, I have been wearing food on my face for the past two and half weeks and nobody has noticed -- or if they have, they have been kind enough not to mention it. (I'm especially thinking of when I realized my face was splotchy orange while out to brunch with a bunch of people from church!) I'm not sure that I have found the perfect recipe yet, but I do seem to be on the right track. If you want to save some money and know exactly what is contained in your foundation, it is possible to make your own at home. Finding the perfect match for your skin tone and type, well, that's a whole other issue!
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| {Modeling my 3rd Foundation Attempt} |
What do you think? This was a picture that I took of myself yesterday, which just happened to be my birthday. Brett informed everyone at church that I was turning "29 again." Here I am wearing a full face of homemade makeup: cocoa powder eye shadow, activated charcoal eye liner, beet root blush, beet root lip gloss, and my latest attempt at homemade mascara (more on that soon). Maybe I am delusional, but I really do think that I could pass for 29!
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