Make Your Own Nontoxic Mascara! (It's Surprisingly Simple)

Have you checked the ingredients in your mascara lately? If it's a conventional brand, it most likely contains harsh chemical ingredients, including parabens, PEG-40 stearate, BHT and triethanolamine (TEA).

It can be helpful to think of wearing mascara as though you're “eating” your the ingredients, because you may absorb them through your skin. Instead of giving up on mascara altogether, you can opt for natural mascara instead! You can make your own with ingredients from your local health-food store.

A 4-Ingredient, All-Natural DIY Mascara Recipe

This recipe will darken, lengthen and thicken your lashes. Charcoal stains the eyelashes with a beautiful vibrant color. It also keeps toxins including heavy metals out of the eyes. Cacao powder stimulates the eye lashes with its antioxidants and minerals. The recipe that follows yields just under 2 ounces of mascara.

Ingredients

• Clean mascara container with brush (you can also use an old mascara tube you've cleaned thoroughly)
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin coconut or avocado oil
• 2 tablespoons aloe vera gel
• 1 1/2 teaspoons beeswax, grated
• Activated charcoal: 1/4 teaspoon for light black mascara, 1/2 teaspoon for black mascara, 1/2 teaspoon cacao powder for brown

Directions

Put coconut oil, aloe vera gel and grated beeswax in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until the beeswax is completely melted. Add the charcoal to the oil mixture. Stir until completely incorporated. Remove from heat.

Pour the mixture into the mascara container. Do this with a funnel or by pouring the mixture into a small plastic bag, and then pushing the mixture into one corner, cutting a small hole in the tip of the bag, and gently squeezing the mixture into the mascara tube.

Now store in a fridge or cool place. Once it is cool, it is ready to use!

Tips

If you need more hold to your mascara, add more beeswax. If you need more moisture, add more aloe vera gel. For darker mascara add more charcoal or cacao powder. Store in fridge. Keep the lid on tightly so it does not dry out. Replace the mascara tube in six moths with a fresh new clean one.

Excerpt from The Earth Diet: Your Complete Guide to Living Using Earth's Natural Ingredients by Liana Werner-Gray. It is published by Hay House (October 2014) and is available now at all major bookstores.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock
by Liana Werner-Gray
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-21289/make-your-own-nontoxic-mascara-its-surprisingly-simple.html