Can human makeup be used safely for face-ups?

Well, I know that oils and stuff are bad, which is why you're not supposed to handle your dolls to much because of the oils on your fingers. But, I'm talking about like powder based make up. Not like cream and gel and stuff like that.

Or even then is it bad?

 

Yes.

It still has oil in it.

The ONLY makeup that can be used is the "pure minerals" stuff, and that is so much more expensive than the most expensive chalk and soft pastels, why would you bother? (unless you already use it on yourself and have it on hand)

 

Most make-up, even powdery types, have oils in them. It's what makes it stick to the face of a person.

When using pastels for a doll, you'll need to use something as a sealant. There is a good tutorial in the Artists section for Natural Face-ups and that will list everything that you need. ^^

 

Actually I do. I bought 88 mineral eye shadow colors from a website called coastal scents and I was staring at my doll wondering when I could get the money for pastels when I thought about using my eye shadow palette. So I just wanted to check before doing anything that could ruin my doll.

 

If they really are pure minerals only, you can probably use them. Here are the ingredients on those:

Mica, Iron Oxides, Titanium Dioxide - May contain: Ultramarines, Kaolin, Magnesium Stearate,Rice Powder, Boron Nitride, Magnesium Myristate

I'd double-check all the ingredients are safe and make sure the doll is well-sealed first.

 

I've heard from someone at a convention, who seemed an expert at face ups, that the only human make up she would use and that she does it MAC.

However, unless you hear not to use make up from many others then I would listen to them just to be on the safe side.

 

MAC makeup uses almost exactly the same base formulations as every other makeup brand on the market. The textures may be finer, the proportions may be slightly different, but the core formulations for cosmetics don't actually vary a whole lot from company to company. Thinking that it's somehow exceptionally different from every other cosmetic product on the market (especially for powder eyeshadows and blushes, which -- I would HOPE -- are what she's talking about) is a bit fallacious.

 

I suppose you could POSSIBLY use MAC's loose pigments, maybe, or maybe their baked minerals if you double-check the ingredients; but I would NOT use any of their other makeup. Really, though, pastels are cheaper and known to be safe. Now that you've mentioned it I might check the ingredients on the couple MAC pigments I have since I have a doll coming up who could use those colors, but I'll be very careful and seal extra-well before even thinking of using them. I have Pearl-ex powder coming that'll give a similar look without risk of ruining a doll and wasting expensive pigments.

 

Given that the baked mineral blush (at least) lists jojoba oil as the second ingredient I'd give that a big fat NO. The pigments list hydrogenated polyisobutene as their second ingredient, after talc; that's a skin-adhesion ingredient and tends to show up more in lipsticks and though I'm not any kind of a faceup artist I'd be slightly reticent of using anything that's designed to keep lipsticks on my lips anywhere near resin.

*removes cosmetics junkie hat*

 

Hi guys! I also have a question: I still don't have a doll yet (for now) but i'm just doing some precaution stuff (you know....just in case) but i have a shimmery eyeshadow (grr i knew i should have read the ingredients before throwing the paper away!!!) and i was wondering if i can put it on my doll? Glittery stuff in make-up dont scratch or harm e resin in any way does it? Just wondering and thanks if you'd help!

 

i don t think it is safe to use... most eye shadows even shimmer ones may contain oils and most of them have TALC in them... in fact all the eye shadow make up i own have TALC in them and as Tez posted isn t good for resin

if you want a shimmering look you could use Pearl Ex pearlescent powder

 

There is actually no physical reason Talc isnt good for resin it is essentially rock thats crushed into a dry powder and has no oil content whatsoever, it is also a component in some pastels. The product Tez said she's avoid was actually hydrogenated polyisobutene which is a synthetic oil used in cosmetics as a binding agent and a lubricant - its also in chewing gum incidentaly So she is quite right in saying avoid it... an oil is an oil whether natural or synthetic

I thought I'd add here too that I regularly use the Mac brand loose powders (that come in the rectangular tall-ish containers with the black lids) as they are completely oil free and are a combination of dry minerals and pigments, basicly the main difference between Mac loose powders and craft specific powders such as Pearl-Ex which I also use - is they have undergone stringent testing to ensure they are safe to use on humans...

As for the pigments staining the resin, I've never had a single solitary issue whatsoever and I seal once for small heads before painting and twice with big ones *two cents worth is over*

 

Exactly. Talc is pretty inert, chemically; it's the oils that are the problem.

That said, whitewings -- are you referring to these? Just out of curiosity.

 

Hello! I know some use actual makeup for their faceups as long as there is no oil in it. I was wondering if anyone ever used the MAC pigments? I am searching for something to tell me exactly what all is in the pigments to see if they are safe. They seem like (if usable) they would be great for faceups!!!

Thanks in advance!!

Sarah

 

I don't know if they do, as I've never heard of anyone using them, but I'd definitely stay away from real makeup, just to be on the safe side. It might not be listed in the ingredients...
I'd recommend using chalk pastels, which are known to be safe to use on resin, and you can mix virtually any colour you like. They're just as easy to apply, too, with any small, soft brush~

 

Nope, I am pretty sure they contain oil. Pretty much all makeup does unless it is any of that pure mineral stuff. It is best to just stay away from makeup in general. You may feel like you are getting away with it, since the effects aren't noticeable for a while, but it will break down the resin over time. Honestly, on dolls, it doesn't look much better than pastel and pearl pigment. I put some of my make up on a junk head I cast, and it wasn't amazing. Makeup is designed to work well on skin, not plastic ^_^.

 

MAC's Pigments have hydrogenated polyisobutene in them -- it's a skin adhesion ingredient, essentially a synthesized 'oil' that's usually seen in lipstick formulations to help pigment cling to human skin. Great for dramatic effects on your face...less great for your resin. (Disclaimer: I am not a faceup artist and don't pretend to be. I am, however, a certified cosmetics wonk who tends to be slightly obsessive over ingredient lists.)

At any rate, good chalk pastels and pearl powders are cheaper than MAC Pigments anyway.

 

Actually, scootin' about the airbrush.com forums to see if any of the 'old gang' were still posting there, I saw some airbrushers advocating the use of pure cosmetic mica powders as a lower-cost sub for some of the high-end colours they use...
funny ol' world, isn't it? I think they were talkin' 'bout buying whole kilos from wholesalers, tho'.

Can you tell me anything about BE (Bare Escentuals) pure pigments? I have a few pots from sets I know I will never use on my face and it would be nice to know if they are at all viable.

 

Ha! Yeah, if you're talking wholesalers and kilos of the stuff at a time, then cheaper they may be -- but $16US vs. $3US for a teeny pot? Yeah well.

Re: the Bare Escentuals stuff -- I'm going to assume you're discussing the eyeshadows. There is, to the best of my knowledge, no reactive ingredient in there; it's bismuth oxychloride, mica, iron oxide, and colorants. Pretty simplistic (especially for what they charge). In theory, it should be all right since there aren't any oils in it, but I'd seal the unholy hell out of the head first just to be on the safe side. Bismuth oxychloride can occasionally be a skin irritant, but I don't think it'd be an issue on resin. Knock wood. *thunk thunk*

 

Yeah, mica should be fine for faceups, since it's just a powdered pigment (might stain though come to think of it...)

 

I was wondering if I could use effect powder on dolls? Because I have silver effect power and would like to use it. If not does anyone now of an alternative to use because I need silver and I don't think silver pastels exicst.

 

Just use pastels people they are way cheaper than expensive makeup. I am not using my $60 Chanel makeup on my doll head. Effect powder I do not know the ingredients but Volks sells glittery powder and it is cheap and safe for dolls. When in doubt do not use it.

 

Are the 120 color palettes any good for BJD's? Or what about the 88 color palette from Coastal Scents. Their all eye shadows. And are quite lovely with all the colors.

 

You mean this one?

Please note the ingredient listing, which -- in this case -- is conveniently located directly underneath the product listing itself. The third ingredient, as is the case in many many powdered shadows, is mineral oil. Oil-based products of any kind are not resin's friend. Just because it's a powder eyeshadow doesn't mean it's safe for use on resin. It's been touched on over and over in this thread, most recently within the last page or so. With any pressed-powder cosmetic product, there is probably an oil or oil-similar ingredient (like a silicone) involved somewhere; that's what enables the product to 'press' compactly, yet still come off easily on a brush/applicator. Powder =/= automatically oil-free. (Just to add even more fuel to that, the above-mentioned eyeshadow palette also lists lanolin as an ingredient. Lanolin = waxy greasy stuff par excellence.)

That same amount of money will get you a fairly decent set of completely safe, doll-tested, faceup-artist-approved pastels at an art supply shop.

 

i have mac multipurpose glitter and it would be the perfect glitter for my doll. i throw away the list of ingredience. i think it is safe to use, but maybe someone here knows for sure?!

 

Thank you so much! I was wondering because there so many different colors. Do pastels come the same way? (Sorry if it's a stupid question.)

 

Metallic craft powders such as Pearl-Ex tend to be less expensive and safer than cosmetics. I've yet to find the ingredient listing for MAC's Glitter product, but my inclination would be better safe than sorry as most of their products that I've had the chance to look through contain some form of skin-adhesion ingredient.

Lots of colors don't mean a thing when it comes to formulation. The base eyeshadow formula is exactly the same; it's only the pigment that changes, and that doesn't mean anything chemically. Pastels tend to come in boxes, as sets of sticks (though there are some variants; Pan Pastels come to mind). Search the stickies for brands recommended by the faceup artists here on the forum as well as the best places to get them. Just make absolutely sure you are not getting OIL pastels, for obvious reasons.

(Seriously, go look at the stickies. The top of this forum is slathered in them. They've got more information on proper faceup materials than I could ever supply; I'm not a faceup artist, I'm a cosmetics enthusiast with a deep and abiding interest in cosmetic formulations and chemistry.)

 

I use powdered pigments, iridescent & opalescent ones. They have the advantage of being without any kind of oil, which I would worry about with "human" makeup, & the color range is unbelievable. Try Pearl-Ex, you can get a huge range of colors with them; I have a couple of sets from a place I think isn't around anymore, which is a shame because they had some really incredible shades, including "interference" colors, which give off different colors depending upon how the light hits them (a lot of eyeshadows & nail-polishes contain these kinds of pigments).

If I can locate those wonderful pigments again, I'll be back to post it, but it seems that they aren't around anymore, sadly...

But Jacquard Pearl-Ex is a good place to start. You'll get the basic effect of a loose eyeshadow, & not have to worry about oils.

ETA: Nope, "magicalfaerieland" powders are sadly no longer available. I'll search for more though...

EATA: WONDERFUL news if you want really unusual & interference colors - another manufacturer who puts out similar ones to that defunct company is to be found HERE:

This brand looks to have more interference shades than Pearl-Ex, which still only sells 5 (which may or may not include their "duo"-colors). I'm going to order from them!

 

So me as a person is hyper allergic to many thing in the world include beauty products, sunlight, oils. Now i have a bunch of make up products that are 100% oil free, most of the powder like chalk pastel. Do you think i used this will it damage the doll?

 

if they truly have no wax, oil, or other such binders, they should be ok.... make sure you find out exactly what's in them. i know for you can use the bare mineral type makeups, the ones that are only crushed pigments, and the glitter shadows, that are loose powder. anything that is in a cake form, i would worry about what is binding it together.

 

Yeah, everything i have is just loose powder and i have to know what is in them, otherwise it could be a hospital trip for me!

 

Are you also allergic to sealants? MSC is intense stuff. I ask because any pigment put on an unsealed doll can cause staining.
I did my first doll's faceup partly with human eyeshadow (regular cheap drugstore stuff) over some crappy off-brand sealant (hey, I was new). There was no damage when I removed the faceup a year later. So I think you'll be ok, if you can handle spraying the sealant.

 

I should be fine, MY dad coming back t the province soon, So i will just snag his solvent mask and goggles when i spray. Wrost case senirio i have one of friends do that part for me!

 

i have a make up kit , it says tcw the color workshop
I dont know if its the brand but does anyone know if its safe for dolls?
I'd like to do the face up on my doll and my sister has this huge make up kit and i got curiosy can we use it.... i figured id ask first dont want to risk it, ofcourse if no one knows ill use other things that are safe.
thank you

 

In general human make up is a HUGE no no for use on dolls. You'd have to check the ingredients and hope there are no oils or wax or anything similar in it. But yeah basically most make up is NOT something you should use on your doll.

Water colour pencils, acrylic paints, and other art supplies without oil, paraffins or other waxes in are the things you really want to be using on your dolls. Oils will eat away the resin, or can do and then your doll would be ruined.

 

i have put human makeup on my doll. didnt cause any damage but didnt work ....
it dont stick on the doll so well and when i put the clear on after it kinda... disapear :/
use pastel instead

 

Any true mineral eyeshadow and/or glitter is fine to use. If it's mineral makeup it should have ingredients like this: Mica (CI 77019), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), May contain: Iron Oxides (CI 77499, CI 77491, CI 77492), Ferric Ferrocyanide (CI 77510), Ferric Oxide (CI 77491), Tin Oxide (CI 77861), Tin Dioxide (CI 778161), Calcium Aluminum Borosilicate, Silica

Or less, but usually not more unless there's ultramarine colors, which might be a good idea to stay away from when using on your doll.
I like to use mineral eye shadows for glitter/shimmer, because I already have the eye shadows and it's basically the same as the shine or pearl powders.

 

Yeah i have some Mica powder i wanted to use. I know it go invisable when, but the glitter is alway viable. I use to using while making orniment masks.

 

*sigh*
Alright. I know. It's probably been asked before. I was wondering if I could try eye shadow on my doll instead of pastel. I've tried pastel once, but it just didn't get dark enough. Anyway, I my reasoning for using eye shadow is because it's made of mica, an all-natural mineral that, to my knowledge, has no oily properties what so ever. Is it safe?

Also, I have an idea I want to bounce of you ladies (gentlemen?):
I'm sending Aaryl out for a new face up along with Taffy (the newest addition) once Taffy arrives late July- early August. So, I'm itching to try my hand at a face up and I'm thinking that since she'll be rescued in a few months anyways, would it be a bad idea to give it a shot? I've been reading/watching tutorials like crazy, and I think I'm leaning towards experimenting....

 

I am not sure about the eyemakeup. Some one may have better knowledge on it but I say probably not a good idea. You could try it on a sealed headcap first tho if you really want to.
As for faceupping your kids yourself, go ahead. Just make sure you dont accidentaly stain her. I practice all my faceups on my own dolls even when I know I am gonna send them off to be painted, because for me it helps me get a feel for what I want for them. And even when I already know what I want, I love doing faceups so I just do random stuff on them untill it is time to send them off. It would be fine for you to try your hand on her.

 

Dunno about the eyeshadow. But as for the other...
MSC her before you start, but I'd say go for it! You can't really ruin her since faceups are removable. Unless you scratch her to death or something >>

 

Here's an in depth thread about using human makeup on dolls

Short answer though: Carefully check the ingredients in whatever you use to make sure no oils are in them or they will stain the resin ^^

 

Sour_Dotz: Thanks! That link really helped! That's what I thought. Now I have a question about sealant that isn't MSC. I have some BLAIR no odor spray fix in matte used for pencil/pastel drawings. I've read of people having mixed results. My question is actually about the date... my gramma found it in her basement and gave it to me, like, three years ago. God knows how old it could actually be. I was wondering if anyone knows if the age would have any adverse effects? I've used it on a charcol drawing and it seemed to work fine....

 

I wouldn't suggest using something that old on a doll...

 

That old it is probably worthless. Fixatives age, clump, and start to change properties. Also, in all of the threads that I have seen regarding alternatives to MSC, no one has mentioned Blair.

Let me ask this: why are you wanting to use human makeup and an ancient and dubious can of fixative on an expensive doll? Why take the risk of ruining it just to save a few dollars? Human makeup can and does stain dolls permanently; bad fixative has been known to melt resin. This is a little like getting fabulous silk for a dress, cutting out the fabric with kindergarten scissors to no pattern and trimming it with plastic beads.

 

Well goodness, didn't mean to offend. I just had a few questions. And I wanted to use makeup because I like the look and feel of it. That's all.

 

At least once to three times a week someone comes on here and wants to use cheap materials to do faceups "to save money" because "MSC and pastels are so expensive." Every single time we patiently explain why this is a bad idea. There are HUNDREDS of threads that are virtually identical, all on this same theme. There is a thread with the word "mythbusters" in the title of someone who tried virtually every single fixative on the market, with some truly horrifying results.

We use these things because they work and will not damage the doll. The cheapest BJD that I have ever seen was a $60 Felix Brownie at 11 cms tall. The cheapest MSD is $130. The cheapest SD is around $200. I honestly don't get why people will take the risk of ruining these dolls forever just to save $5 on a can of MSC and $3 on a set of good pastels. It is exactly like spending a fortune on silk material and then turning around and ruining it because you wanted to save $5 by skipping using a pattern. Perhaps, when you realize that people are not searching the forums and asking the same thing over and over and over you can understand why the rest of us are getting a little weary of it.

Here is something to keep in mind. Pastels will not give you deep color in a single application, which is a very good thing. First, they often darken after spraying, which will leave you with a clown-makeup effect (and the same thing is likely to happen to human pure mineral makeup) and this will make you unhappy. Second, this gives you the opportunity to layer, carefully, so that you do not end up with the clown-makeup effect. It is a LOT easier to add a little bit at a time than it is to take off when you have overdone. And remember to stop before you think you have finished, and doublecheck what you did in natural light. You may find that your working light has made things look lighter than they really are, and that last spray will probably darken what you put there.

 

To be fair, she didn't say anything about wanting to use those products so she could save money. I took it as her wanting to use them because she has them and just wanted to try doing a faceup before actually sending her dolls off for more professional work.

Just because other people want to use cheap products to save money doesn't mean everyone does. Additionally, other people have already kindly linked her to information that will help her, so the attitude was a little unnecessary. Nobody else seemed that irritated by the questions. Only you. When I read things like this, I can understand why people who are newer or less experienced in this hobby might be afraid to even ask questions.

 

You can actually duplicate the look and feel of a lot of eyeshadows via powdering pastels before using them. Pretty much the only eyeshadows that would be workable on resin (and I'm pretty sure I said this in the other thread but hey, nothing wrong with saying it again ) would be the pure mineral ones with no trace of oil whatsoever.

Just to toss a fast elaboration onto what Sour_Dotz said above -- "oil" is really relative when it comes to cosmetics. Not every pressed eyeshadow is going to have the nice big "mineral oil" in the ingredients. A lot of the higher-end ones use oil-similar silicones and other synthetic ingredients designed as skin-adhesion ingredients with better blending and staying-power properties than plain ol' mineral oil. The loose shadows aren't necessarily immune either. For example, MAC's Pigments -- loose shadows that appear to be pure mineral and therefore potentially safe -- contain hydrolyzed polyisobutene. That's a skin-adhesion ingredient, generally more often seen in lipsticks and the like, and something I personally would avoid. In general, unless you have the very pure mineral shadows with no binders or skin-adhesion ingredients whatsoever, the best rule of thumb is to avoid them. (And frankly, I find the loose mineral shadows to be messy as hell to work with on the human face. If I tried to use them on a doll I would bet you cash I'd make a smudgy mess out of everything. )

(Disclaimer: I am neither a chemist nor a faceup artist. My knowledge comes from having an almost obsessive interest in cosmetics and cosmetic ingredients and the disturbing habit of reading and researching ingredient labels for fun and being downright psychotic about knowing what goes on my face. Yes, I freely admit I'm a little crazed.)

 

What is in human makeup is often as much guess as anything else. Makeup companies routinely (and are allowed to) leave ingredients out of the label as long as the FDA considers it "inert." This assumes you still have the package that lists the ingredients on it.

Most of the reason that this question has so few respondents is because it has been asked so many times.

That is just the most recent.

 

shou-kun thank you.

Tez I tried 'grating' my pastels and it worked beautifully. And I know! Stuff people put on their faces can be pretty disgusting! I was just wondering because I make all-natural mineral make-up that's basically straight mica powder with a bit of a carrier. Thankies!

 

Pastels do work better than mineral eyeshadow tho, unless you want glitter. ;p
I use mineral eyeshadows for the shimmer or glitter, but they don't give a whole lot of color and it's difficult to get it smooth, but it hasn't harmed either of my dolls what so ever. But I use pastels for bright color, it works better.

 

What about human fake eyelashes? Can they be cut to size and glued on a doll? Any information on something like that? Because I see some face-ups that include eyelashes that are not painted on, and I always wondered if i could reproduce something like that...

 

Kandi_Slave, yes you can use trimmed fake lashes on dolls. I wouldn't recommend cutting the length of the lash-hairs, instead mount the lashes further inside the eye-socket to get the length that suits the scale. Of course you might want to trim the length of the lash-strip itself so that it fits along the upper (or lower) eyelid.

Some human fake lashes already have glue on them, but I believe they are made to go over the top of the lashes on a human, so for a doll the glue would be on the wrong side. Ideally the original glue should be wiped off and some white glue and a toothpick used to apply on a doll.

 

<quote> Of course you might want to trim the length of the lash-strip itself so that it fits along the upper (or lower) eyelid.</quote>

That's actually the trimming I was talking about. :3 But thank you for the info, I never expected such a quick response! X_x Lol, your comment has been safely saved in my wordpad-document of BJD knowledge. ^__^

 

a general question, has anyone tryed with any success using human makeup for faceups? as I have so many beautifull eyeshadows or will this damage the doll?
pictures welcome.

 

I think human makeup might be ok as long as there are no oils in it. But I have no experience in that so I can't say for certain :Y

 

No, No, NO, NOOOOOOOO!!!

Most human makeup contains oily materials - even eyeshadows. They could seriously damage and stain your doll even through layers of MSC. Generally - anything that's good for your skin is BAD for your doll. There are a few human makeup things that happen to contain no oily or other harmful (for dolls) ingredients, but they are very scarce, and you always run the risk of them still containing something non-doll-safe. So it's better to just stay away from human makeup period.

(though this has been discussed in numerous threads in detail before. Just try the search function with "human makeup" as a keyword )

ETA: Pastels make great eyeshadow, and you can mix the color you want easily. And if you want to replicate the metallic-shimmery colors of certain human eyeshadows, just use Pearl Shine (from Volks, Luts etc.). Totally dolly-safe, and looks just like the human eyeshadow

 

Here's the thread Smaug was referring to - this question comes up quite often, and if you read the stickies at the top of this subforum you'll find tons of great information

 

how bout vinyl? You guys think that make-up could stain vinyl heads?