Natural Makeup

Until very recently, I'd never heard of Sante, an organic makeup and skin care brand from Germany that's just launched in the US. The brand is BDIH certified, which means that it uses natural materials and considers the biological impact of its products, and it's also got a nice, low price point. I especially like the Eyeliner Pencil in Metallic Blue ($10). I use it to waterline my upper and lower rims when my eyes are bloodshot from staring at the computer screen, and it's just the right shade to brighten without being conspicuous the way white liner is. Their Lip Duo Contour & Gloss ($12) is also a winner—it's a matte neutral red liner with a matching metallic gloss. The only product I dislike is the Soft Cream Foundation ($17). The texture is lovely, but the pump dispenses too much product, and it's highly fragranced, which the Bella team, after much sniffing, unanimously disliked.

Ever wonder what's actually in your makeup and how it's made? Then you've come to the right place, especially if you're curious about what, exactly, is in that wondrously effective mineral makeup of yours, and how it's put together. It's actually extremely simple, and easy enough that you could make it on your own if you felt like it. So to find out what goes into making mineral makeup, just read more

As promised, the other night I made my own eyeliner from a recipe given to me by reader Little Pepper. It sounded pretty simple; just burn an almond and use the soot to make eyeliner. Turns out, things require a bit more prep than that, but the results were lovely: a highly pigmented carbon black that was very smooth and not at all irritating. I modified the recipe a little bit and created this light winged look with it, which I found basically indistinguishable from something created with a regular black liner. For a cosmetic that costs basically nothing and took me 10 minutes to make, I'm pretty impressed. To see how to do it at home, just click through the tutorial gallery below.