How eyeshadow is made

A pan of eyeshadow is about a third crushed mineral filler, and the shimmer is mostly mica.

stations: 5
things upstream: 41
raw sources: 16
steps from the ground: 6

The short version

Eyeshadow is a balance of fillers, pigments, binders, slip agents and preservatives. Fillers such as mica, talc or kaolin clay make up about 30 percent of a powder. The blend is mixed and pulverized, then pressed into metal pans, usually with a silk ribbon between the die and the powder to keep the surface matte.

Weigh the fillers

Mineral fillers such as mica, talc and kaolin clay give the shadow bulk and texture. They make up about 30 percent of eyeshadow powders and 25 percent of cream shadows.

Goes in
Mica Kaolin
Bind and add slip

Binders such as silicone or paraffin wax help the shadow stick to skin. Slip agents such as silica and nylon powders let it glide on smoothly, and preservatives keep bacteria out.

Goes in
Silicone Paraffin wax Nylon
Add the color

Mica powders, iron oxides and clays supply the color pigments. Color and pearl both depend on how long and how hard the batch is mixed, since too much work breaks up pearlescent particles and dulls the shimmer.

Goes in
Pigment
Pulverize the blend

Hammer, pebble or air mills break the blended powder down. The batch should go on to pressing straight away, or be stored in airtight containers.
Press into pans

Air, hydraulic or cam presses compress the powder into pans of steel, tin or aluminum. Pressures usually run from 300 to 2000 psi, and eyeshadow is pressed harder than face powder but softer than rouge.

300 to 2000 psi

Goes in
Aluminum

End of the lineEyeshadow

Worth repeating

A ribbon of silk is usually laid between the die and the powder before each press, to keep the surface of the cake matte.
Press too hard and a powder becomes a hard tablet that barely transfers to a brush, press too soft and the cake crumbles.
The earliest direct archaeological evidence for eye makeup, in predynastic Egypt, shows green malachite and black galena as the pigments.