Sometimes, after you’ve seen more than your fair share of frog gonads filled with eggs, you just might begin to feel a bit paranoid. You may find yourself making your own shampoo because, yeah, you happen to think future generations of men should get to have descended testicles and stuff (thanks a lot, parabens!)
You may stop by the market to pick up parmesan for this ridiculously satisfying creamed spinach and realize the store is out of organic, grab your smart phone and Google every brand until you find one you’re comfortable with.
Then one day, in the hullabaloo of a local fair, you might decide to just let go. When the hubs mentions there’s face painting you say, “Let’s do it!”
You will not google it. You will not wipe them down immediately. You. will. CHILL.
And then when you get home, you will tuck your littles into bed, crack open your laptop for a little Facebook fix only to immediately come across an article by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics reporting that 10 out of 10 face paints tested positive for lead and 6 out of 10 tested positive for other toxic heavy metals (source 1, source 2).
Perfect.
Well, at least now you have a good reason to have a little fun at home with these easy DIY face paints! They’re safe enough to eat, though I can’t say they taste very good.
Not interested in making your own?
I’ve done quite a bit of research, and this non-toxic face paint is my favorite pre-made option.
You might even decide to paint your own face, because why not? 🙂
How To Make Face Paint With Natural Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch (preferably non-GMO) or arrowroot powder
- 1/4 teaspoon refined white flour (yes I had to go buy some!) plus extra for dusting the face so that it is not ooey gooey OR for a gluten-free option 1/2 teaspoon kaolin white clay
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon water
- Natural food coloring*
- Activated charcoal for brown or black
* Some colors, such as yellow, may not show up well without base makeup. See instructions below for mixing base makeup.
Method:
- Mix kaolin clay/flour and cornstarch/arrowroot together in a small bowl
- Add honey and water
- Divide mixture into several cups, then add a few drops of food coloring to each cup until it has reached the color intensity you desire
- Paint on your design using a generous amount of paint. It sets better if painted on thickly.
- Optional: Let it set for about 20-30 minutes, then take a makeup brush and dust a little cornstarch/arrowroot powder over your face to create a matte finish. As mentioned above this is optional – we didn’t do it – but I did test it to make sure it would prevent smearing in little ones who are likely to touch their faces.
A few notes
These paints are more like a thick gloss than watercolors.
My “blue” from India Tree was really more of a green. I could never get a true blue out of it. Also, for dark brown or black, mix a smidge of all the colors together and add a little activated charcoal. It’s very non-toxic (you can actually find capsules of it in the supplement aisle because it’s used for detoxing.)
Some colors (like yellow and pink) will not show up well without white base makeup. To whip up your own, mix non-toxic lotion with a little non-nano zinc oxide, or buy some organic diaper cream at the store that contains non-nano zinc. (Wondering what the heck non-nano zinc is? This article may help). Wait until the mixture dries before applying other paints.
And finally, here’s a little color chart you might find helpful:
Yellow + Blue = Green
Blue + Red = Purple
Red + Yellow = Orange
Pink = Just a couple drops of red.
Do you have a source or brand for a non-GMO cornstarch?
I use Rumford – the label has “Non Genetically-Modified” in giant letters on the front 🙂
I read that your skin absorbs around 60% of what you put on it or swim in so I wonder if there is a way to make it without flour … or even if flour would be absorbed?
The flour would be absorbed so it is not recommended for anyone with a wheat sensitivity. Unfortunately the flour is what “holds” the color to the face and it is basically translucent without it. I tried it with coconut flour but it was too gritty. A flour made out of ground navy beans might work but I haven’t tried it. Sorry I can’t be more helpful!
How about rice flour? It’s very fine and is available at most Indian/ Chinese stores.
I tried using a few gluten-free flours with little success, but I did not try rice flour. Maybe it will work!
I’ve tried it and it works great!!!!
Chickpea flour might work!
Hi! I know this is 2 years to late, but maybe a future reader might find it helpful: Use a lotion you’ve deemed safe instead. It will help it adhere to the skin.
Candice, Have you ever heard of Einkorn flour? Most grocery store are carrying it, or you can buy it online through Vitacost (or other sources). It is the ONLY flour made from wheat that is NOT hybridized or altered. It’s the exact same wheat as it was thousands of years ago and comes from Italy. Most gluten sensitive people do not react to it, and even several Celtic people I know can use it. Mind you, it does have a learning curve when baking with it, but it’s been wonderful to have on hand in addition to my gluten free and paleo flours.
Cute Heather! 🙂
Heather you are too funny… we are all right there with you!! every time I try to “chill” it smacks me in the face and gives me a few tosses and turns before I sleep and then I think about your epi-genetics aticle ..
I was giggling as I read this because that is me to a tea! I must admit I do get REALLY sick of having to be so watchful all the time…and why should we have to???? Why can’t we trust the products we eat, breathe, apply to our skin NOT to kill us, or alter us for the worst? It is truly ridiculous. That said I did find the mirror you held to me quit amusing – thanks for the giggle and HUGE thanks for the recipe!
I know you already know this, but your kids are adorable! 🙂
I love the idea of DIY face paint. I would think arrowroot or cornstarch would work in place of the white flour for someone who didn’t want to use flour.
Thank you, Tiffany! Unfortunately, the arrowroot/cornstarch doesn’t hold color very well so the flour is pretty essential. I tried glycerin, lotion and just about everything else to avoid using flour (since I know there are those that can’t) but could never get the color to set. I did have some success with coconut flour but it was pretty gritty so I didn’t work with it much 🙂
My little guy sets up a little table and paints faces at our farmers market as part of our Sprouts program which is designed to get kids into the entrepreneurial spirit of the market. We wanted him to make his own face paint but were at a loss. This is great!
LOVE the idea of a Sprouts program, Jenny! I can’t tell you how many times this year I’ve regretted not having anything to sell at our market just so Katie could have the experience of helping out. I think I’ll mention this to our coordinator and see what she thinks!
While I think it is great there are safe home made alternatives for mom’s to use the articles sited do not list the paints they tested and sound like they really only looked at the cheap stuff you buy in the seasonal section of any store at Halloween.
Please know that the major professional face paint companies have put a lot of effort into the safety of their products and Snazaroo which can be purchased at your local Micheal’s and possibly other craft stores has done quite a bit of research to ensure the safety of their product which can be found here. http://www.snazaroo.us/safety.htm This being said before you purchase face paint at a fair be sure the products they are using are safe for you and your child. Some people still use craft paints on kids and some professional paints include ingredients such as coconut oil.
The list of tested brands and products is on page 8 of the sources document. Snazaroo is listed with a lead level in the mid-range of those tested.
Snazaroo was listed with the lead level being in the higher range in this article: https://www.safecosmetics.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Pretty-Scary.pdf
I was just considering going to the local store and buying some face paint with my eyes closed (knowing full well that if I googled it, there would likely be awful, undisclosed ingredients). I often think, “What could go wrong? We only want to wear it once (when in fact, they’ll likely want to paint themselves every day for weeks after).” No, I am glad I re-read what I already know–lead in products, no matter how small, should not be put on kids’ skin. No thanks! I’ll make it myself!
Heather—this is so appalling. Thank you for shedding light on this matter.
Amy—I want to gently ask you if you checked out the report? I thought the same thing you did, until I opened the actual report. I only had time to glance through it, but perhaps you should double-check it. They tested a face painting kit by “Snazaroo” which you mentioned in your comment (see page 8 of the 36 page document).
Have fun and be safe everyone :0)
Thanks! This worked great!
Do you think this would stay good in the fridge for a couple of days? Or should it be made and used up right away?
Lindsey, it would likely dry out and wouldn’t be easy to spread.
How would you make white face paint? Thanks.
Hi Elizabeth, here’s a quote from the post you may find helpful: Some colors (like yellow and pink) will not show up well without white base makeup. To whip up your own, mix non-toxic lotion with a little non-nano zinc oxide, or buy some organic diaper cream at the store that contains non-nano zinc. (Wondering what the heck non-nano zinc is? This article may help). Wait until the mixture dries before applying other paints.
This recipe makes a tan color using the clay and cornstarch so not even close to white or a good consistency. Honey does no good. It also does not stick at all to the face. I ended up wasting a lot of ingredients trying to figure out a different recipe. Just mixing cornstarch, water and some sticky lotion WILL make white face paint. Adding a capsule of charcoal makes grayish black but not super black.
Thank you for this. I have used the charcoal for black. Since this post, I remember coming across some new safe face paints on trusted resources…I thought I pinned them for this yr & guess I didnt. I did find this–http://www.achildsdream.com/natural-face-and-body-paint-kit/ I wonder if this is safe? Although can be fun, it would be nice not having to make everything from scratch.
http://www.naturalearthpaint.com/2013/07/07/introducing-our-natural-face-body-paint-kit/ …Does anyone have any experience with it or know if it is safe?
Hi Heather,
My brother is playing Mowgli from “The jungle book”. Mowgli’s skin is dark. So can these pace paints be used foe this purpose??
For a chocolate color I would probably just dab on some cocoa powder 🙂
Thankyou!!!!.I I will try That!!!!
i ordered facepaint from Elegant Minerals (ElegantMinerals LLC) – they have a web site and an Etsy shop – haven’t used them yet but will let you know how they work out (my first facepainting gig is in two days)
thanks for the great info – i might try making the black homemade face paint (i have activated charcoal) just to make sure i have enough! below are two links to Elegant Minerals… wish me luck! TJBuckley
https://www.etsy.com/shop/ElegantMinerals
http://www.elegantminerals.com/
Hi! Thank you for sharing your recipe with us. =) I am worried about using honey since my son is less than a year old(i’m probably a little crazy =P), since the skin is absorbent. Do you have any other substitutes for the honey?
I don’t know of any, so sorry! Maybe someone else will have ideas 🙂
I know this is an old comment, but wanted to chime in anyway. The concern about honey is botulism and underdeveloped digestive and immune systems. One is just the age they decided that it should be fine to give them honey but I haven’t heard any reports of botulism in honey lately. It can also be in canned foods, especially meats. I do not think it would cause harm to apply honey to skin as it does have healing properties. I would feel comfortable using it over 6 months. Vegan cooking alternatives to honey are agave syrup and maple syrup. Agave is the thicker of the two.
Great article! I’m wondering if you tried any of the clays as a base instead of white flour? Or, was there any other flour or base you found was a fair substitute for the white flour? Gluten intolerance is the issue here. Thank you again for your exploration and creativity in the search for safe face painting!
I’m doubtful that clay would work, but arrowroot flour might!
I’m trying a completely different recipe that has nothing to do with this, but I am having trouble with glycerin drying 100%. Do you know anything I can add to the mix as a drying agent? Either I use a bit too much and it won’t dry, or I don’t use enough and pigments clump and turn to porridge. thank you
Is it so that if you leave out the food colouring it will just stay white when it’s applied to your face
I am wondering about this too. Instead of lotion n non nano zinc oxide. Can we make white if we leave out the food colorings? Thx
wow you make buying some cheese sound really stressful… luckily i’m too poor for organic food and a smart phone…
Can this facepaint be used around eyes or mouths?
Ex: I am helping some friends of mine do some cosplay, and one of them is cosplaying as Gamora, so her skin should be green. Would this work?
How long does the paint last? Can they harden and be used later like store bought face paint?
I have always mixed up a fresh batch when needed so I’m not sure, sorry!
Ok so maybe I’m wrong but this is a huge concern of mine. So I’m dressing as gamora for a costume contest and her skin is green so if I do it all over my face and hands won’t the food dye stain???
My question is, how long does it take for each paint to dry on the skin? I intend trying out face painting to make extra cash on the side. My family and I went to a function where face painting was an option and within 5-10 minutes I had a beautiful multicolored butterfly covering half of my face with glitter… Also is it possible to make face paint multi colored cakes with this formula?
Thanks for the recipe, I am keen to try it. What is the shelf live of these face paints? Also, what is the approximate quantity of flour and corn starch in the paste? Thanks in advance!
Black face? As a person of color I find this highly offensive!
I did thi and it was great! Would have never thought to use honey. Brilliant.
Do you think I could use coconut flour instead ?