You may be in the middle of your makeup routine and then realized that you ran out of concealer or didn’t pack concealer in your makeup bag.  The good news is that you can quickly make concealer from other makeup products that you may have.

The best way to make concealer from other makeup is to mix lighter coverage makeup (like liquid foundations and BB creams) with powder makeup (like eyeshadows and compact powder). The powder helps to thicken the liquid makeup, making it more suitable to be used as concealers. 

In this post, I will share a few easy methods to make concealers with liquid foundation, BB cream, eyeshadow, and compact powder. I’ve also included a quick way to make concealer without powder.

These methods work best if you use products that are lighter than your skin tone. The idea is to create a mixture that is thick enough to cover facial imperfections and that the shade is light enough so that it won’t bleed through into your foundation when you wear it over top.

How to Make Concealer with Eyeshadow

Note that the procedure below also works if you are looking to make concealer with compact powder. Just use a compact powder foundation instead of eyeshadow.

What You Will Need:

• Facial Moisturizer – Facial moisturizers that are designed to be used on dry skin work best because they are usually thicker which can give you better coverage. Choose one that is non-comedogenic so it won’t clog your pores.
• Eyeshadow – Choose one that is closer to or lighter than your skin tone. Avoid dark eyeshadows.

What You Need To Do:

1. Using a mixing bowl, add 1 teaspoon of moisturizer.
2. Chip out a small chunk of eyeshadow from the container and break it down into smaller pieces. You can do this with the back of your makeup brush. Try to break it down as much as possible. Make it powder-like if possible.
3. Mix the eyeshadow with the moisturizer in the mixing bowl. Mix the products together until it has even consistency. If you see small pieces of eyeshadow in the mixture, use your makeup brush handle to break it down more and keep mixing until you see even consistency.
4. Repeat steps 2 – 3 if you feel more eyeshadow is needed to darken the shade or to make the mixture thicker.
5. Make sure that your final mixture is thick and opaque enough to serve as a concealer. The opacity of the mixture is important because this will help you concealer trouble spots better.
6. Test your created concealer on your skin. Dab a small amount on a trouble spot like an acne mark. If the mixture doesn’t conceal well, wait for the first layer to dry and then add a second layer. If the coverage still isn’t satisfactory, repeat steps 2 -5 to try to make your concealer thicker.
7. Once you are satisfied with the result, add a layer of foundation on top. The foundation should be the same shade as your skin tone. Blend in the foundation with your fingers or beauty blender for a flawless look.

How to Make Concealer with BB cream

BB creams are tinted moisturizers that are usually too thin to be used as a concealer on its own. However, they can be “thickened” easily. Your BB cream may already be in the same shade as your skin tone which makes it ideal for converting into a concealer.

Note that the procedure below also works if you are looking to make concealer out of liquid foundation. Just use liquid foundation instead of BB cream.

What You Will Need:

• Powder Foundation – same or lighter shade than your BB cream
• Your BB cream – BB creams that are made for dry skin work great here because they are usually heavier and thicker.

What You Need To Do:

1. Using a mixing bowl, add 1 teaspoon of BB cream.
2. Using your fingers, slowly sprinkle small amounts of powder foundation in your BB cream.
3. Mix the mixture together with a brush. Push down on any clumps of powder foundation in order to get an even consistency.
4. Your mixture is a thickened version of your BB cream. Test a small dab on your skin. Is it thick enough for your needs? If not, repeat steps 2-3 and test the new mixture on your skin each time to ensure that it can cover your troubled spots.
5. Once you are satisfied with the thickness of the mixture, apply it to the facial areas that need concealing. Blend lightly with a brush or sponge.
6. Add a layer of foundation on top. The foundation should be the same shade as your skin tone. Blend in the foundation with your fingers or beauty blender

How to Make Concealer Without Powder

If you don’t have powder or don’t want to use powder there is a way to make concealer without it using other makeup.

What You Will Need:

• Liquid Foundation – Use one made for dry skin as these types of foundations tend to be thicker. A full-coverage foundation would work great here.
• BB Cream – If you’ve got one for dry skin then use that. If not, have a facial moisturizer handy (see below)
• Facial Moisturizer – Facial moisturizers usually come in the color white and they are great “thickening agents” for your makeup. However, mixing your facial moisturizer with your foundation alone will lighten your foundation too much. If your BB cream isn’t one designed for dry skin, you can mix it with your facial moisturizer to darken it.

What You Need To Do:

1. Using a mixing bowl, add 1 teaspoon of  liquid foundation
2. Add 1 teaspoon of BB cream (ones made for dry skin) OR Add 1 teaspoon of facial moisturizer and 1/2 teaspoon of BB cream
3. Mix everything together until the mixture has even consistency. As you will be applying a layer of foundation over top your concealer, the shade of your concealer doesn’t need to be a perfect match to your skintone. It just needs to be close enough so that it wouldn’t lighten the foundation layer that goes on top. What’s important is the thickness of the mixture, add 1/2 teaspoon of facial moisturizer if you think the mixture is still too thin.
4. Once you are satisfied with the thickness of the mixture, test it on your face. Blend lightly with a brush or sponge.
5. Apply a layer of foundation on top and blend in the foundation with your fingers or beauty blender