What Is Lipstick Made Of?

Lipsticks are a girl’s best friend! From natural pinks to bold reds to nude browns, something as simple as adding a bit of color to your lips can instantly change up your whole appearance. No wonder most of us have a tube of lipstick at any given time!

A lipstick is, without a doubt, one of the most important products in your makeup collection. But have you ever stopped to think about what’s really in it? Keep reading to find out.

What Is a Lipstick?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of its ingredients, let’s first define what lipstick is.

Lipstick is a solid stick or “bullet” that leaves a layer of pigment when swiped across the skin. They generally have the following characteristics:

• Hard enough that it doesn’t break when you apply force to it
• Soft enough that it will leave a layer of color on your skin when swiped on
• Applies on evenly
• Solid at room temperature
• Stays on your lips even when rubbed or when it touches water

What Are the Ingredients in Lipstick?

Most lipsticks contain three base ingredients: wax, oil, and pigment, but in different ratios and formulations.

As with any type of makeup product, the ingredients in lipsticks vary from brand to brand, the finish, and the type. For example, the ingredients in frosted lipsticks are different from cream or matte lipsticks.

The basic ingredients in a standard bullet lipstick consist of:

Wax is the main ingredient in lipstick. It serves as the base for the lipstick and binds all the ingredients together. It also provides structure to a solid lipstick, allowing it to hold its shape when applied to the lips. Most lipsticks contain a combination of beeswax, candelilla wax, and carnauba wax.

Oil softens the lipstick into a spreadable consistency so that the pigments can be easily applied on the lips. It works as an emollient that moisturizes and smooths the lips. The most commonly used types are vegetable oil, castor oil, mineral oil, and lanolin oil. Oily and fatty substances like shea butter, cocoa butter, and petrolatum are also used. The amount of oil in a lipstick formula will determine the intensity; more oil results in a sheerer application, whereas less oil gives a richer pigment.

Pigment is the substance that gives lipstick its color and opacity. Lipsticks get their color from a wide variety of organic and synthetic pigments. They include pigments and lake dyes such as iron oxide, bromo acid, carmine, D&C Red No. 7 Calcium Lake, and D&C Red No. 21. White pigments like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are added to make the formula more opaque so that the lipstick shade applies on like how it looks.

Preservatives and antioxidants help prolong the shelf life of lipsticks and ensure that they stay fresh for a certain period of time. Preservatives such as parabens and phenoxyethanol make it harder for bacteria and mold to grow, while antioxidants like vitamin E, BHA, and BHT prevent butters and oils from going rancid.

Alcohol acts as a solvent for the waxes and oils to make the lipstick creamy.

Other ingredients such as flavors, sunscreen, moisturizers, vitamin E, collagen, and amino acids are included in some formulas for added skincare benefits.

How Are Different Types of Lipsticks Formulated?

Cream lipsticks consist of more waxes than oils, whereas glossy and sheer lipsticks contain more oil to add a shiny finish to the lips.

Matte lipsticks are formulated with more waxes, pigments, and filling agents like silica. They contain fewer emollients because oils add a glossy finish, which also explains why they swipe on less smoothly than other types of lipsticks.

Frosted lipsticks contain ingredients such as mica, silica, and synthetic pearl particles like bismuth oxychloride that give them a shimmery finish.

Long-lasting formulas typically contain silicone oil, which creates a layer that seals the colors to the lips.

How Is Lipstick Made?

You might be surprised to learn that making lipstick is similar to making crayons! Lipstick is made by grinding and heating up ingredients. The waxes are heated separately while the oils and lanolin are measured out according to the specific formula requirements. Everything is combined and mixed thoroughly. The heated mixture is poured into a mold, then chilled. Once it has hardened, the lipstick bullets are briefly heated by a flame to remove any imperfections and create a shiny finish.

What Are the Harmful Ingredients in Lipstick?

Unfortunately, some lipsticks contain harmful ingredients that may potentially cause health risks.

Lipsticks may contain heavy metals such as leak, nickel, aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, antimony, and chromium. Although these toxic ingredients are not intentionally added to the lipstick formula, they can occur naturally during production, which then contaminates the other raw ingredients.

There is only a small amount of heavy metals in lipsticks, which isn’t dangerous. The issue is that lipstick wearers are exposed to these substances for a prolonged period of time from everyday wear. The toxic ingredients in lipstick can be ingested when eating or drinking. Over time, heavy metals accumulate in the body, which can result in chronic health issues like lead poisoning.The FDA has specifications for the amount of lead that can be used as a color additive in lipstick but has not set a limit for the amount of lead that is acceptable in lipsticks. Because most lipstick products contain only 10ppm of lead, the FDA does not consider the small amounts of lead in lipstick to be a safety concern.

source https://degreesofvanity.com/what-is-lipstick-made-of/