Using natural plants and clays to colour make-up formulas 

Belinda Carli, 08/03/2022

There is no doubt that natural ingredients are popular with consumers – but we have been limited in some regards as how to create vibrant colours in make up just using plant extracts and clays.

While FD&C colourants have for years given the brightest options for many lipsticks, lipgloss, eyeshadows and even blush products, some consumers want to live a more natural lifestyle including the cosmetic products they use. There are also some strict regulations about inputs in products, making it difficult to formulate colour cosmetics that meet regulatory compliance in several regions.

 

Iron oxides can also create a problem for the consumer wanting truly natural products. Interestingly, and even though Organic Certifiers recognise them as suitable additions to colour cosmetics, zinc oxide, titanium dioxide and iron oxides are not actually natural. They are mined and then refined, going through several chemical processes to purify them and convert them into a suitable form for use in cosmetics.

This blog is going to provide you with vibrant, stable natural plant and clay solutions to replace synthetic colourants and even your iron oxides, in your make up formulas.

Replace iron oxides with clays in foundation

Besides smooth application and adherence to skin, the most important element when making any sort of foundation is coverage – how well the foundation conceals pimples, discolouration and freckles.

The best opacifier is without a doubt zinc oxide, as it also provides broad spectrum sun protection. Titanium dioxide is also useful, and provides a ‘whiter’ coverage than zinc oxide, but is not completely broad spectrum. They are both, however, not completely natural.

Your natural alternative is kaolin, although it doesn’t have as strong coverage as either of the above materials. It can be used effectively in BB creams and most types of foundations where a light to medium or standard coverage is required. Very high coverage foundations will usually still need zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, but you could certainly try kaolin to see if it is effective enough for your target market.

Once you’ve got your coverage – the white base – sorted, you can then focus on the colourants. Iron oxide red, yellow and black are most commonly used, and accepted in ‘natural’ products although they are not natural. If you want truly natural colourants for your foundations, use clays instead. Yellow, red and black clays can be sourced relatively easily from most suppliers, and when used with kaolin, you’ll just need a lot less colour in the weaker white base.

The other great thing about using clays is you don’t usually need to grind them. When using the oxides to colour a product, you normally need to grind them significantly so you get a smooth, even spread of colour. With clays, you can usually skip this step, as they come finely ground and go easily into your formulas.

Watch our video on using How to make SPF12 foundation using clays. While this formula uses zinc oxide to get the sun protection factor, you could replace this with kaolin and reduce the colour content to yield a very natural foundation stick with good coverage. The other great thing about this formula is that it is waterless and in a stick form – making it convenient for travel or touch ups during the day.

You can of course work with any of our natural foundation formulas, to replace the zinc oxide and iron oxides with kaolin and clays, to get a totally natural product with good coverage. Watch how to make an organic foundation to learn how to put this type of product together:

Using plant extracts for vibrant colour

Until as recently as a few years ago, plant colours yielded usually very pale, faint results in cosmetic products. They were also very hard to stabilise, and tended to lose their colour very quickly over time.

A few years ago, however, Sensient introduced their Natpure XFine range. The colours in this range are vibrant, and highly stable, and able to effectively replace the use of synthetic FD&C dyes in lipsticks, lipglosses, mascaras, eyeshadows and even blush products.

Plus, being from plant sources, they often provide the benefits of the plant to the product – providing extra skin conditioning and antioxidant benefits to the end user.

You can see an overview, and these materials in use, in our Natural Cosmetic Colourants video. You can also see how fantastic the colours can be, in our How to make natural lipstick video.

Sensient create their bright, stable colourants by first juicing the source vegetable and then trapping it onto a carrier or substrate. This ensures the colour remains as bright as the day you first make the product and doesn’t dull over time.

Their range includes: 

• Natpure XFine Potato SP313: Potato extract (Ipomeoea batatas tuber extract) for a vibrant red purple
• Natpure XFine Beetroot BR312: Beetroot extract (Beta vulgaris root extract) for the brighter pinks
• Natpure XFine Radish RR318 and RR311: Radish extract (Raphanus sativus root extract) for bold and striking reds
• Natpure XFine Spirulina SL6115: Spirulina extract (Spirulina platensis extract) for electric blues
• Natpure XFine Turmeric TU114: Turmeric extract (Turmeric longa root extract) for golden yellow

They are water soluble and oil dispersible, and come in a powdered form – making them perfect for just about any type of colour application and make up formulation whether they be water based, oil based, stick, crème or powder cosmetics.

What about sparkle?

At this point in time, the only way to get a bit of sparkle in your products is to use a titanium dioxide (or other oxide) coated mica. Even some materials with the INCI ‘mica’ may actually be synthetically produced, so be careful what you use if you want to claim your products are ‘all natural’.

If you want a bit of sparkle, you may just have to make a compromise. Using an oxide coated mica for that extra shimmer could be the difference between a consumer purchasing your product or looking for an almost natural alternative. Remember, at the end of the day, consumers love the idea of all natural products, but it is their satisfaction with their performance that leads to sharing with friends, repeat purchases, and ultimately the growth of your brand.

You can see some great ideas, and just how well sparkle can really add that extra something to your make up formulas with our Natural Jelly Eyeshadow:

Where can I get these materials?

You can contact the colour suppliers direct or if you are only after small quantities, you can search for suppliers that provide natural colourants and micas from our Small Cosmetic Suppliers Global Search List.

If you can’t find a supplier near you on that list with the required materials, you can also post in our facebook group: Cosmetic Raw Materials for Small Brands to find a small supplier near you, or post that you want to split a pack with someone near you. Don’t let sourcing be your issue with these great solutions, especially since there is bound to be someone near you hoping someone will split packs with them!

Other important elements with make-up formulas

 As with all make up formulas, no matter which colourants you are using, there are key elements that can make or break the product:

• you need to stabilise the pigment: makeup pigments, clays and even the vegetable powders are heavy in a formula – so you need to make sure they are properly stabilised in the product otherwise they will settle out over time.
• natural make up formulas need good antioxidant protection: not just the type of antioxidants that will benefit the skin, but antioxidants that will protect the formula must be used to protect against rancidity over time.
• spread is crucial: colours, whether natural or synthetic, need to be dispersed evenly throughout the product, and it needs to spread evenly over the skin during application. You don’t want a foundation that is too dry or too oily; and you don’t want a lipstick that is hard to apply or a lip-gloss that bleeds into fine lines around the lips.
• payoff is important: payoff refers to the amount of colour that can be seen to be applied with each use. Consumers will look for products that give their desired amount of payoff (colour) with a single swipe – they don’t want to rub a stick over their lips 10 times just to get some colour. This has a lot to do with the amount of pigment used as well as the spread of the product.

So now you’ve been introduced to some amazing natural colourants, it’s over to you to get playful with colour.

Happy formulating!