Recently I decided to depot all of my MAC lipsticks, I did this because of two reasons. One, they were taking up so much room in my MUA kit and two, by depotting them it meant I could get 7 free MAC lipsticks (praise the lord for Back-2-MAC). I posted a picture of me depotting my lipsticks on Instagram and a lot of you said you'd love to see a tutorial, so here it is.
If you're debating on whether to depot your lipsticks, I'd say go for it because it saves so much room and you're also getting your money's worth as you can scrape out every last bit of lipstick. A lot of people worry that depotting a lipstick will change the colour, consistency and finish of it but it really doesn't, the lipstick remains exactly as it did in the tube. People also worry about application, the most common question I get asked is 'how do you apply lipstick from a palette/pot?' and the simple answer is a lip brush, you can also use your finger if you want a wash of colour. Another thing you should know is that you can depot any lipstick you like, it doesn't matter about the brand, finish or colour, you can depot any, it doesn't have to be a MAC lipstick like many people believe.
If you'd like to know how to depot lipsticks using heat, keep on reading.
What you will need...
You Will Need:
- Tissues - These are primarily used when sanitising equipment as you'll pour IPA onto a tissue and then clean a piece of equipment. They are also used to remove lipstick off the spoons, knife and disposable.
- IPA - IPA (aka. Isopropyl Alcohol) is used to sanitise equipment (e.g. palette, knife, spoons, and disposable) as it will kill any germs or bacteria.
- Palette - You can depot your lipstick into anything you like (e.g. a palette, pot, container or pill case), I use the connectable pill cases from Muji as I find these are the best. They are connectable meaning you can move/re-arrange the lipsticks, they are easy to store, they don't take up much room and each pot has its own lid meaning when you're using the palette, you're only getting air to one lipstick and not all of them.
- Matches - These are used to light the candle. Obviously.
- Candle - Without the candle, you'll be setting alight thin air. A candle and matches are essential for depotting lipsticks using heat.
- Knife/Spatula - This is used to chop the lipstick into small pieces.
- Teaspoons - One is used to place the lipstick on, the other is used to scrape off the excess lipstick.
- Disposable - This is used to scrape out the lipstick from inside the tube, you'd be surprised at how much lipstick is actually left within the tube. You don't have to use a disposable, you can use anything you like (e.g. a cocktail stick, cotton bud, spatula) you just need to make sure you use something small and sturdy. I always use the end of a disposable as you can wipe them clean, sanitise them and then re-use them.
- Scissors - These are used to cut the labels to the correct size.
- Sticky Labels - These are used to identify what lipstick it is. I always write the brand, lipstick name and finish. It's important as an MUA to know everything about a product just incase a client doesn't like a certain finish or is allergic to a certain brand. It's good to write down the name of the lipstick for when you run out and need to buy a new one.
- Pen - This is used to write down information about the lipstick (e.g. brand, name, finish, tone, colour).
- Sellotape - I place a small piece of sellotape over the label just to protect it. If any liquid/substance was to land on the palette, the labels wouldn't ruin.
Method
1.) The first thing you need to do is place the candle on a plate, then light the candle using the matches.
2.) Using the knife, cut the lipstick into small pieces and place on one of the teaspoons. I would recommend melting the lipstick bit by bit rather than as a whole. If you melt the lipstick as a whole, it'll take a longer to melt and spillages may occur.
3.) Hold the spoon over the candle and you'll notice that the lipstick will start to melt within a few seconds. Some lipsticks may take longer to melt than others and this is purely down to the finish of the lipstick, matte lipsticks take a while to melt whereas frost/shimmer lipsticks take seconds to melt. It's also important to know not to hold the spoon too close to the flame as you could burn the bottom of the spoon or boil the lipstick (something you don't want to do!)
4.) Once the lipstick has melted completely, give it a stir with the end of the disposable as this will get rid of any lumps and bumps.
5.) Pour the lipstick into the pot and scrape off any excess using the other teaspoon. I will warn you that this step is tricky and it does take a steady hand.
6. Repeat step 2.
7. Repeat step 3, 4 and 5.
8. Using the end of the disposable, scrape out the lipstick from inside the tube and place onto the teaspoon. Again, place the spoon over the candle and melt the lipstick.
9. Pour the last bit of lipstick into the pot and leave to set. If should take around 5 minutes to cool down and set completely.
10. Cut a sticky label to the correct size.
11. Place the label on top of the lid.
12. Write down information about the lipstick. Include as little or as much as you like.
13. Place a piece of sellotape over the label.
Video Tutorial
I hope you found this helpful and I hope it was easy to understand. If you decide to create your own lipstick palette, tweet me a pic as I'd love to see.
My MAC Lipstick Pallettes
I've also thought I'd show you my MAC lipstick palettes as I thought this would give you an idea of how to put lipsticks in order. I know a lot of people struggle to put lipsticks in colour order so I thought that showing mine would help. If you just remember colour (light/medium/dark) and tones (red/purple/pink/beige etc) you can't go wrong. Another way of putting lipsticks in order is by their finish, for example, matte, satin, amplified, cremesheen, glaze, frost and lustre.
Nude Palette (Pink Toned)
Left to Right:
'Please Me', 'Overtime', 'Creme Cup', 'Hue', 'Innocence Beware', 'Mlle', 'Myth', 'Fleshpot'
Nude Palette (Beige Toned)
Left to Right:
'Midi-Mauve', 'Kinda Sexy', 'Honey-Love', 'Blankety', 'Marquise D', 'Frou', 'Tanarama'
Orange/Coral Palette
Left to Right:
'Good To Go', 'Hibiscus', 'Watch Me Simmer', 'Costa Chic', 'Ravishing', 'Ever Hip', 'Viva Glam Nicki'
Coral Palette (Red Toned)
Left to Right:
'Insanely It', 'Party Parrot', 'Impassioned'
Pink Palette
Left to Right:
'Pink Pigeon', 'Candy Yum Yum', 'Behave Yourself', 'Pink Nouveau', 'Pink Friday', 'Naughty Sauté',
'Saint Germain', 'Viva Glam Gaga'
Purple/Dark Pink Palette
Left to Right:
'Cyber', 'Rebel', 'Strong Woman', 'Up The Amp', 'Girl About Town', 'Quick Sizzle', 'Lickable', 'Love Forever'
Red Palette
Left to Right:
'Media', 'Hang Up', 'Diva', 'Unknown Pleasures', 'Runaway Red', 'Russian Red', 'Must Be Red', 'Lady Danger'
Thanks for reading and I'll talk to you soon!
Mucho love,
Cole
x
