What do you think lipstick is made of?

You might know that lipstick is the first makeup ever to be used. Even though it has been around for over 5000 years now, it is more popular than ever and there is almost no woman in the world, that hasn’t used it at least once. I know that there are some, that have their reasons, like cultural or religious ones, but still, the majority of women use it and they also simply love it. This is why I think it is important to known what is lipstick made of .

One of the most important ingredients of lipstick is wax. There are three types that are usually combined: beeswax, carnauba wax and candelilla wax. The carnauba wax is a kind of plant wax that is made of the wax of palm tree that can be found in Brazil. It is the most expensive wax of the three and this is why those lipsticks that contain it are more expensive than the rest. Wax is an important ingredient because it makes the lipstick to be easily shapeable.

The next important ingredient is oil. There are several different types of oils used including vegetable oil, mineral oil, castor oil and lanolin. Along these oils Cocoa butter might also be used. The interesting thing about waxes and oils is that they represent about 60% of the total weight of the product.

Another important category of lipstick ingredients represent pigments and dyes. These are used for the lipstick to have the wanted color and shade. The dyes that manufacturers use in lipstick include bromo acid and other several chemical dyes. These can be obtained from plant or animals, but they can also be synthetically created.

Fragrance is also needed to create lipsticks, because the other ingredients might have a smell that is not quite pleasant and this is why manufacturers use a little bit of fragrance as well.

It might sound out of place, but alcohol is also used to create lipstick. You might know that alcohol is a kind of solvent and it is used to dissolve the wax and oils.

Preservatives and antioxidants are also used so that the products will keep their physical and chemical characteristics for a longer period of time.

Besides the ingredients I have mentioned up to now, others might also be used, like vitamin E, shea butter, chamomile oils, and jojba oil.

There might also be used some harmful ingredients like lead, coal tar derived FD&C coloring, carmine, lake colors and some harmful fragrances. Although the manufacturers should avoid using these ingredients, it is hard to find substitutes for them and they might be more expensive. This is why there are still some products that contain such ingredients.

Now you know a lot more about what is lipstick made of and in case you have any observations or questions feel free to leave a comment. I know that there are some other ingredients used as well and the ‘recipe’ of the lipstick is different for every product.

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