What is lipstick made of?

What is lipstick made of?

The dictionary defines lipstick as ‘a crayonlike oil-based cosmetic for colouring the lips, usually packaged in a tube.’

All lipsticks contain similar ingredients. These ingredients have to be checked and approved. This is because lipstick is applied to the lips and is ingested.

Lipstick contains the following ingredients:
Wax, oils, dyes, Fragrances, Preservatives and pearl essence.

Wax: There are three types of wax that can be used in lipstick. Beeswax, candelilla wax and carnauba wax. Candelilla wax is from the candelilla plant, native to north Mexico and the south of the United States. Carnauba wax is from the leaves of palm trees. Wax is used to hold all of the other ingredients together and to give lipstick its shape.

Oils: Oils are used to give lipstick its ‘shine’. Oils such as castor oil and vegetable oil are used.

Dyes: dyes are used to give lipstick its colour. Dyes such as manganese violet, bismuth oxychloride and titanium dioxide may be used.

Fragrances: Fragrances are used to get rid of the smell of other ingredients.

Preservatives: Preservatives are used to stop the lipstick from going off.

Pearl essence: There is a belief that pearl essence is made from pearls. It is actually made from the scales of fish. Pearl essence adds a ‘shimmer’ to the lipstick.