How to Make Your Own Lipstick at Home (Using Crayons!)

Often, despite your favorite makeup mecca's rows and rows of endless colors, applicators, and brands, it's hard to find the perfect shade of lipstick—especially one at the price you want. Rather than resorting to what's available in stores, turn to your stovetop and a box of crayons.

YouTube user Kelsey Bobian offers an easy step-by-step guide on turning those waxy rainbow-colored crayons into the perfect shade of wearable lipstick.

Step 1: Gather Your Supplies

The process begins with a few necessary supplies. You'll need:

Crayons in the color of your choice
Coconut oil
Plastic containers to both create and set the mixture
Wood craft sticks for stirring
½ teaspoon measuring spoon

You'll also need a pot and small glass bowl (or smaller, heat-resistant plastic containers) to carry out the process on the stove.

How to Make Your Own Lipstick at Home (Using Crayons!)

Dig through your box of crayons, and choose whatever colors you'd like to turn into lipstick. As Bobian suggests, don't be afraid to mix and match shades if Crayola doesn't offer a blend you like. You can custom-create any lipstick you'd like by combining different crayons in one mixture. It just takes a little experimenting.

Step 2: Get Boiling

The next step is to create your own homemade double boiler to add some heat. Fill your pot with water (Bobian uses two cups), and place the glass bowl or plastic containers inside. Turn your stove's heat on low, and allow the water to warm up.

Step 3: Ready Your Crayons

In the meantime, start unwrapping your crayons. Remove their paper covers, and, if you'd like, write down the color names to keep track of what you're creating for future reference.

Step 4: Mix Your Ingredients

Once your water is heated through, it's time to add ½ teaspoon of the coconut oil to the glass bowl or container sitting inside.

Allow the coconut oil to melt, and then drop in about ¾ of a whole crayon.

Let the crayon melt, stirring as it does. If you'd like to create multiple colors at once, Bobian suggests using smaller containers to fill the pot, and adding your oil and crayons to each individual one to save time.

Make sure to keep your measurements exact throughout the process, as you want to achieve the creamy yet easy-to-apply consistency of true lipstick. If your batches are too liquid, or too solid, they won't apply easily.

Step 5: Let Your Lipstick Set

Once all of your new colors are perfectly melted to an even consistency, it's time to remove them from the heat. Pour each color into a new container (Bobian uses leftover and empty wax melt trays) and allow it to solidify once again.

Step 6: Try Them On

Don't be afraid to get wild with your color choices. Crayons beyond the usual reds and pink can, as Bobian shows, turn out to be a fun, temporary choice. Even the wildest colors can look great.

Is Crayon-Based Lipstick Safe?

According to Bobian, children's crayons are completely safe to use as a DIY makeup method because they are made of paraffin wax and non-toxic pigments.

Yet you may not want to add these crayon-based beauty items to your daily regimen, according to the official Crayola website. Though the company's crayons are safe and non-toxic, they don't suggest using the product as a beauty product. Whereas makeup products are rigorously tested, crayons are only tested to a certain extent. They are safe for ingestion, should it happen, but they aren't tested for skin issues like the clogging of pores or allergies.

As Babble writer Tamara Floyd mentions, the Consumer Products Safety Commissions considers crayons safe and toxin-free. Yet crayons weren't intended or created to place on your skin, so if you're prone to skin irritations and allergies, it's best to stay away from the DIY method.

Ultimately, this method is best used sparingly, only every once in a while and not as a replacement for your everyday beauty products. When you want to create the lipstick shade of your dreams, go for it—but don't aim to ingest a lot of the crayon-based creation.