Monday, September 3, 2012

Blush Breakage

Happy Labor Day everyone! I hope everyone is out celebrating and being with family and friends safely!
    Today's post is another one of our own. So I LOVE my blush from ULTA and when it broke I was heartbroken :( I remember having seen something on Pinterest about being able to fix broken eyeshadow, blushes etc. and when I said something to Marquette about it she said she had seen a pin about it! Perfect! So here is our test!

The Original

Here are the original directions:
Fix your broken makeup. So easy. Add a few drops of alcohol to the broken makeup and form a paste. Let it set overnight for the alcohol to evaporate. And there you go...fixed :)

The Pinstrosity

So it isn't exactly a disaster, but it isn't picture perfect like the original. Here's why:
  

A lot of it had already fallen or stuck to the brush or what not, so this is all I had left :(

If I had had the entire container full, it would have looked more like the original picture.
The directions for this project were written right under the pin, it was uploaded by a user so it had no link up to a blog or tutorial unfortunately, but the link below the picture is where we got it.

We started by breaking up the larger pieces with a wooden skewer (it has a pointy end, and we could just throw it away when we were finished), this allowed for an even paste for later.


Then we added a few drops of 70% alcohol, the directions said to use a couple drops max, that did absolutely nothing, it soaked right in so we used quite a bit more. You have to be careful here because if you use too much, it becomes a soup...so we just dripped it into the container until we felt it looked wet enough.
The original directions said to then make it into a paste, here is our paste:


It was still somewhat clumpy, so we crushed more, added a little more alcohol and the paste was perfect, so then we took a plastic sandwich bag and pressed it firmly into the container, and tada! We did let it dry for 24 hours before using, and now it is as good as new.
 I read one tutorial that used a piece of old t-shirt material and a coin to get the surface nice and smooth, that is always an option as well.
The tutorial for that is here:

So, no it isn't pretty, but it is fully functional, which is all I really needed in the first place, anyone had any success, or fails with this? Let us know your tips and tricks! Happy Monday!

                                                 -Emilee

14 comments:

  1. I saw the same thing on Pinterest and used it when my daughter got into my makeup and broke one of my eye shadows. I crushed it into bits, added a few drops of alcohol, but then, when I pressed it in, I used a paper towel. This helped to absorb some of the alcohol (and only a little pigment) so that it would dry more quickly and evenly. I pressed pretty hard, too, to make sure that it was flat and even. It actually is better now, because the eye shadow had worn down to where it was only along the edges, and now it is right in the middle where I can reach it again :)

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    1. awesome. I have a few shadows where it is just around the edges. If it worked for you I might have to try it :)

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    2. Oooh that's a really good idea for my older products!

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  2. I have done this and it does work. The key is to find the highest alcohol content rubbing alcohol you can I found. When I used my 90something percent one it worked a lot better. I also realized I should have mashed the broken bits better for a smoother finish but I'm not picky when it comes to saving a discontinued favorite product :)

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  3. I broke my MK blush and I used this method to fix it, and it worked a miracle! It went from a cracked mess to functional blush again! I didn't use plastic or paper towel, I just used my finger, but I bet the other method will be less messy.

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  4. This also works great with gel eyeliner pots. They tend to dry up fast if you don't put the lid on it after dipping your brush. My checkbook learned the hard way. After 2 expensive dryouts on gel eyeliners, I decided to try the rubbing alcohol trick. 1 to 2 drops and let it sit for a while. You do not want to use it right away, believe me, your eyes will be screaming more than your mouth. I've done the drops about once a week and sometimes smashing the gel a couple of times to get it totally moisturized. I was able to use it for about 3 more months. It does weaken the stay on factor and the color in the long run, but it's sure does help your liner last longer.

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  5. OK, so I've seen the pins about salvaging your powders as well - I've tried it on eye shadow,& it worked wonderfully. THEN, I went to fix my blush - the color changed so much that I had FITS trying to use it. It went from a deep rose to a complete, total PINK! Being the cheapie that I am, I still used it - I just put it on under my mineral foundation & buffed the color down that way, but it changed the way I did my makeup in the mornings. Not such a success.

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  6. A friend recommended a few drops of contact lens saline solution to fix up my dried out MAC paint pots, worked like a charm. Not sure, but it may be a pain-free rejuvenator for gel liner as well? Has anyone tried?

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  7. I've had wonderful results fixing my broken eye shadow singles! You get better results if you pulverize the entire thing and add a really little amount of alcohol to it (the first time I used too much and it cracked when the moisture left the mix). However... I tried to use this method to recycle a single eye shadow pan and put a loose pigment eye shadow in it and it did not stay solid. Oh well!

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    1. I think with the loose pigments you have to use a pressing agent (at least that's what I see them doing on all the make-up tutorials I check out on youtube)

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  8. I do this with eye shadows often, usually I am making a pressed powder from loose powders as I am too heavy handed to work well with loose eyeshadow. I use enough alcohol to make it peanut butter consistency and then tap it fast so it settles. I let it dry for an hour or so and then use a Ziploc bag, a quarter, and a vice grip to add pressure and really press the powder hard. I leave it like this for a day or so - depending on the weather and then I am all set with my new pressed powder!

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  9. My nephew loves getting into my makeup and ends up breaking most of it. So when I found the pin I was very happy, however the one time I was going to use it I couldn't find it. I ended up just using a little water and it worked like a charm.

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  10. I've used this technique for years to repair a broken eye shadow or create a new one using pigments. I generally clean two quarters with rubbing alcohol, add drops of alcohol to shadow tin, place one quarter over shadow (paper towel, wax paper, or clean cloth CAN BE used in between) then I add another quarter underneath the pan, last I'd use pliers to press firmly. Allow to dry overnight and use as usual.

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  11. Highest content alcohol..Vodka?
    Funny, Cook's Illustrated says to add half water/half Vodka in pie crust for the same reason: evaporation.

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