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What beauty products have you repurposed?


What beauty products have you repurposed? (Like lipstick as cream blush.) Share!

Eyeshadow as blush, eyeliner as lip liner, mascara as eyeliner, lipstick as blush, cream blush as lip color.

Thanks to reader Tigerlilly for today’s question idea Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.

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Rachel R. Avatar

Lipstick as blush, eyeshadow as blush, eyeshadow as face highlighter, blush as eyeshadow, cream blush as lipcolor, eyeshadow as brow powder, eyeliner as lipliner, lipliner as eyeliner, cream blush as lip color, bronzer as eyeshadow, eyeshadow as eyeliner, eyeshadow to tint clear nail polish, mineral eyeshadow and blush over lip balm or mixed with gloss for lip color.

Erin Avatar

My favorite product to use in multiple ways is the Maybelline Master Hi-Light bronzer, which I own in Light Bronze. It works as a sort of basic, natural bronzer and then doubles as several eyeshadow shades thanks to the way the tones are separated out into a pattern. It’s always in my travel bag.

Ammara Avatar

How did you convert mascara into eyeliner?
I think the only one I’ve done is use Revlon’s Mischievous matte balm as a cream blush. It’s such a great, light texture and at least doesn’t settle into any lines like it does on my lips.

Erica Avatar

I’m NC50 and I tend to use blushes as eyeshadow and cream blushes as eyeshadow or as an eyeshadow base. I use one of my favorite Mac blush Format as blush and eyeshadow. I also use Mac’s cream blush Tea Petal as a cream eyeshadow base under pink eyeshadow. It’s somewhat too cool toned for my complexion as a blush, but I love it as an eyeshadow base. Like most people I also use eyeshadows as eyeliner or brow fillers.

xamyx Avatar

Way back, before we had eyeshadow primers (at least on the mainstream market), we used concealers on our lids. I *still* do, LOL!

I’ve also done pretty much everything else mentioned in others’ posts, but I have sooo much makeup that unless I need a particular shade that doesn’t exist in a specific product (ie, red lip liner as eyeliner, black eyeliner as lip liner…), or I’m away from home and have forgotten something.

I do like to “repurpose” brushes, though! For example, those teeny brushes that used to be included in the Kat von D palettes are great for lips, and I have a lip brush that came with an Elizabeth Arden GWP that is too large/floppy for lips, but is perfect for crease work. I also tend to buy random brushes that catch my eye, although I don’t always know what I’ll use them for at the time, but the shape is interesting/unique.

Jane Avatar

I use TheBalm’s Cindy Lou-manizer for everything. It’s an eyeshadow, it’s a blush, it’s a contour, it’s a highlighter… If it’s something you can do with a powder, I’ve probably tried it with Cindy Lou…

I’ve also used eyeliner pencils to fill in my eyebrows when going for more dramatic looks

Sarah Avatar

My main one is using bronzer or golden illuminators as eyeshadow for those lazy just a wash of neutral colour days. As a darker skinned girl these provide the me-but-better look, especially bronzer. I haven’t done this in awhile though, happy to say I’ve been rocking actual eyeshadow looks, yay!

Eileen Avatar

Eyeshadow as highlighter on cheekbones, lipstick as blusher, and in a pinch, mascara as eyeliner.

I’d like to caution everyone to be careful, though, when using lip and cheek products on the eyes. Be sure the colorents are safe and have been approved for use in the eye area. MUFE is very good about indicating which products are safe to use near the eyes, but not all companies are so helpful and there are a lot of tutorials online by self-proclaimed gurus that use products unsafely. When in doubt, keep it away from your eyes unless it has been specifically tested for safety.

xamyx Avatar

The thing is, a brand may label a product as “unsafe” in one country, but safe in others. For example, MUFE lists the Flash Palette as “not safe for eyes/lips in the US”, but labels them safe everywhere else. The same ingredients are used, and I’m quite certain we don’t have different skin, but we have different “regulations” here. Besides, even products “designated” for specific purposes can cause issues. I had to return some Anastasia shadows a while back due to *extreme* reactions, while nothing else has done it, and they work on so many others. That said, as hygiene is an issue, I never use the same pencil on my eyes as on my lips, and have them labeled appropriately (the mouth is the most bacteria-laden part of the body…).

Eileen Avatar

Hi Xamyx,
I agree with everything you say, but I also beleive (having suffered from a severe and painful reaction to a blusher that an MA once used on my eyelids–a reaction that went far beyond an allergic one) in the old saying, “Better safe than sorry.” Consequently, I’d still strongly advise anyone contemplating using a product anywhere near their eyes to make sure that the product has been deemed safe for that purpose; whether its safety has been determined in the US or some other country is irrelevant. The pertinent question is, is the product safe to use in the manner the person wants to use it? There are a number of reasons why a product might meet approval in one country but not in another. As you mentioned, perhaps it is because the product simply wasn’t tested for a particular use in a given country, but there is also the possibility that the country importing the product has more stringent standards when it comes to certain ingredients. So, determining why a product has not been approved for a particular “off lable” is also important. Most women simply won’t go to that much trouble. For those women, a simpler and more prudent course of action would be to use only those products in the eye area that have been approved for that use. Please note, in my original comment I did not say to never use lip or cheek products in the eye area; I said to make sure what you are using is safe. Have an enjoyable and relaxing evening, Xamyx.

Kat Avatar

Just today I used eyeshadow as blush!

Mine aren’t so creative: I’ve used lipstick as blush, foundation as concealer, mascara as eyeliner, eyeshadow as brow powder, eyeliner as eyeshadow base, eyeshadow as highlighter, and in a real pinch I’ve used Chapstick as “treatment” moisturizer.

Kerrie Avatar

I feel like if I were a makeup artist or something then I would probably repurpose products more but since it’s just me and my collection is so vast…I feel like I’m wasting if I don’t use things for their purpose! Lol! It’s like…why use lipstick for blush when I have 100 blushes in this drawer! I guess if I were in a pinch I would repurpose but then I have so many “all in one” palettes like the Lorac pro to go or Too Faced holiday…there doesn’t seem to be a good excuse.

Candice Avatar

I don’t normally re-purpose beauty products… Once you have a good collection there isn’t as much need to be creative!

But I have no actual products made only for brows – I use eye shadow or eye liner to fill them in all the time. I’m often tempted to try cream blush on my lips because I love the products they marked as lip and cheek colour/stains, but I haven’t, just for fear that it’s not as safe to be injested.

Áine Avatar

I’ve tried just about every possible way to repurpose a product, but mascara as eyeliner is my favorite. I’ve used Maybelline Great Lash in So Very Berry as a liner who knows how many times, I’m just so in love with the color.

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