Are you tired of your makeup not staying put during the day? Are you fed up with spending tons of money on gimmicky beauty products that are full of harmful ingredients? Making your own diy makeup setting spray is incredibly easy. DIY natural setting sprays contain easy to find, skin loving ingredients that not only keep your makeup in place, they also deliver moisture and improve the look of cakey makeup. It’s an incredibly simple recipe that take seconds to make with only 4 ingredients. Plus, this diy setting spray doubles as a hydrating face toner!
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Dewy skin equals healthy skin in my eyes. A dewy complexion indicates well hydrated, plump and radiant skin. Makeup can make skin look stiff, dry and unnatural. Most of us want makeup to give the illusion we aren’t wearing any! Using a setting spray can combat the downside of wearing foundation and help give you a glow people will notice.
No matter what your makeup routine is, this natural makeup setting spray is effective and works for every skin type!
Let’s make a DIY makeup setting spray that will give your skin a dewy appearance while keeping your makeup looking fresh all day long! Believe it or not, it’s beyond simple!
Making your own setting spray is simple, quick and cheap. Plus, it’s just as effective as the brands you’ll find in a store but our homemade version contains zero questionable ingredients.
Many store bought setting sprays contain mostly water and still cost a pretty penny. They also do nothing for the health of your skin. In fact, some setting sprays, when used daily, are downright harmful.
If you use a setting spray, this natural recipe is a good idea to add to your daily routine!
Why Use a Makeup Setting Spray?
I used to think setting spray was just another frivolous beauty product no one really needed. However, a makeup setting spray’s main purpose is to prolong the wear of your makeup.
Makeup setting spray also improves the look of your makeup. It can add a dewy, healthy look and soften matte foundation. Some foundations appear to sit on top of the skin but a good setting spray can give the illusion that the foundation is your skin.
I find a setting spray especially helpful if you use amineral powder.
Why Make a DIY Makeup Setting Spray?
Let me address that over the counter setting sprays that contain unpronounceable ingredients are meant to hold your makeup in place for longer on top of creating a more cohesive and less cakey look.
Most makeup setting sprays are formulated with chemical adhesives to help them stick to the surface of your skin. These adhesives are notorious for clogging pores. Many brands also use aerosolcans which is very harmful since you’re not only breathing in small amounts of the product, you’re also breathing in the aerosol chemicals. Both can have serious consequences for your overall health.
Anotherissue with conventional setting sprays is that they contain alcohol. Alcohol is a prominent ingredient which can be extremely harsh, drying and irritating to most skin types. It does get the job of “setting” your makeup done but everyday use of an alcohol based product is a bad idea especially for dry and sensitive skin types.
The most popular branded makeup setting sprays are All Nighter Setting Spray by Urban Decay, Cover FX’s Illuminating Setting Spray, and MAC’s Prep + Prime Fix +.
To give you an example of what an over the counter setting spray contains, Mac Prep & Prime Fix + setting spray has quite the interesting list of ingredients:
Water / Aqua / Eau, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Tocopheryl Acetate, Caffeine, Panthenol, Arginine, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, PPG-26-Buteth-26, Fragrance (Parfum), Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol.
Making this simple DIY setting spray takes seconds and you are guaranteed all natural ingredients.
Does a Homemade Setting Spray Actually Work?
My answer is YES! I love using this DIY setting spray and feel it definitely prolongs the life of my makeup. There is an obvious improvement in how my makeup looks at the end of the day when I use my own diy makeup setting spray. My favorite thing is how it leaves my skin looking so fresh and dewy!
I created a different but very similar setting spray years agoand had several comments about how well it helped prolong makeup during the day.
Common Ingredients That Help Set Makeup:
Aloe Vera Gel is most commonly known to soothe a sun burn. However, it is so much more than that. Aloe is a fantastic moisturizer all on it’s own for oily skin types. Aloe is an incredibly gentle moisturizer that also helps speed up healing in the skin. It acts as a barrier over the makeup, sealing it in place.
Vegetable Glycerin is a common ingredient in conventional makeup setting sprays because it keeps makeup in place for longer. It actually helps the makeup adhere to the skin. It acts as a barrier for your skin, which makes it the main makeup-setting ingredient.
Glycerin, like honey is a humectant which means it binds hydration to the skin.
Glycerin is what gives your skin that dewy finish!
Witch Hazel is a common ingredient in a toner. Witch hazel helps tighten pores, is cleansing as well as hydrating. It is suitable for all skin types.
Witch Hazel helps to keep any extra oils at bay without drying out your skin. It’s a great alternative to alcohol because it won’t irritate your skin or dry it out.
Rosewater, also known as rose hydrosol is one of my favorite ingredients to add to water based DIY beauty recipes like toners and serums. I use it as the base for my Wrinkle Defense Hyaluronic Acid Serum as well as my Rose Hydrating Spritzer. It’s and easy ingredient to find plus it smells so amazing.
Rosewater helps to control oiliness and is anti bacterial. It also helps reduce redness and inflammation. Like witch hazel, rose water is an astringent and also can be hydrating.
I don’t use it in this recipe because if your goal in making your own setting spray is to keep your makeup in place, water can derail that if you use too much of it. I wanted to let you know that if you have it on hand and want to ditch the Aloe Vera Gel, a hydrosol (floral water) would be a suitable alternative. You could call it an honorable mention.
Adding Essential Oils to Your DIY Setting Spray:
Essential Oils are perfect skin boosters to add to your homemade setting spray. From normal skin to combination skin types, there is a perfect essential oil for you!
Roman Chamomile is one of the gentlest essential oils. It reduces redness, irritation and can relieve skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. In fact, it’s probably the most important ingredient in my DIY eczema cream recipe.
Ylang Ylang helpsbalanceexcess oil production making it perfect for oily skin! Additionally, ylang ylang is also a powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial oil. It has a sweet, floral scent. Only use 1-3 drops per 1 ounce because it’s scent can be overpowering.
Tea Tree Oil is perfect for acne-prone skin. It has actually been compared to benzoyl peroxide but is nowhere near as harsh on the skin. It has a very fresh, yet medicinal scent.
Lavender oil is my choice for best essential oil for all skin types. It smells incredible and while being hydrating for the skin, it is also antibacterial and it calms the skin and reduces redness as well. Lavender oil is perfect for dry skin, sensitive skin and even acne prone skin types.
Carrot Seed Oil is a fantastic essential oil to incorporate in your fixing spray due to it’s ability to regenerate skin cells! However, it has a very strong scent of carrot so 1-2 drops is all you need. Add lavender essential oil to cut the carrot smell.
By combining different essential oils, you can achieve a different scent depending on which oil you choose. I love a combination of 1 drop ylang ylang oil and 4 drops lavender oil. Lavender also pairs well with tea tree oil and can tone down the medicinal scent of tea tree. The duo is light and refreshing and excellent for combination and acne prone skin types.
Where to Get the Best Essential Oils:
I prefer to get my essential oils from Plant Therapy. I love their quality and I love that they offer organic oils at a very reasonable price. Plus, they offer free shipping and they ship fast.
I also love Mountain Rose Herbs organic oils and have many in my collection. However, they ship slower and I often need ingredients quickly which is why I found Plant Therapy.
What You Need to make a DIY Setting Spray:
- 2 ounce spray bottle
- Small funnel
- Glycerin
- Aloe Vera Gel
- Witch Hazel
- Essential Oils *optional*
- Preservative (Leucidal Liquid) *optional*
DIY Makeup Setting Spray for Dewy Skin
Yield: 2 ounces
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Are you tired of your makeup not staying put during your day? Are you fed up with spending tons of money on gimmicky beauty products that are full of harmful ingredients? Making your own diy makeup setting spray is incredibly easy. DIY natural setting sprays contain easy to find, skin loving ingredients that not only keep your makeup in place, they also deliver moisture and improve the look of cakey makeup. It's an incredibly simple recipe that take seconds to make with only 4 ingredients. Plus, this diy setting spray doubles as a hydrating face toner!
Materials
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a 2 ounce glass spray bottle and shake.
Notes
*Lavandin Hydrosol is optional. Any hydrosol will work. You can even use distilled water. Rosewater is a fantastic alternative.
*Roman Chamomile is pricey. If you have it on hand and haven't tried it with lavender, you should-it's a lovely scent. It is not required in order to make this setting spray effective.
*Leucidal Liquid is a natural preservative. If you opt not to use it, store your setting spray in the fridge and use within 2 weeks.
Did you make this product?
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What to Keep in Mind When Making a DIY Setting Spray:
Choose a glass bottle over a plastic bottle if you plan to add essential oils. Essential oils can degrade plastic compromising your bottle as well as leaching harmful compounds into your spray. For convenience, I linked a glass bottle from Amazon in the above recipe but I really prefer to get my bottles from Specialty Bottle. Their 2 ounce glassatomizer works well with thicker formulations.
If you don’t plan on using the preservative (leucidal liquid), make only a little bit of spray at a time. I would make a fresh batch at least every 2 weeks. The shelf life with a preservative is around 2 months.
Keeping your setting spray in a beauty fridge can help prolong the shelf life as well as reduce inflammation and redness.
Steer clear of citrus essential oils. Many citrus oils can make your skin photosensitive.
Distilled water, bottled water or filtered water are a suitable alternative to Aloe Vera Gel or rose water.
Be careful not to add too much glycerin-it will make you sticky!
Give your DIY setting spray a good shake before each use. Essential oils will seperate from the other water based ingredients.
How To Use A DIY Setting Spray:
- After completing your makeup, spray 1-3 sprays over your face at least 6 inches away.
- Make sure your mascara has fully dried before spraying a light mist over the skin..
- Carry it with you and use it throughout the day for a refresh!
- One light spritz at a time is all it takes!
I must also mention that I took this DIY setting spray on vacation with me this summer and used it as a toner as well as setting spray. It’s an awesome double duty DIY that is not only safe, but also beneficial to your skin! It worked like a charm in the humidity and heat of Florida!
Whether you’re on a tight budget or looking to reduce harsh chemicals in your skincare products, this homemade makeup setting spray is a great way to accomplish both motives.
xx, Jenni
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