Lip Samples to Lip Pots

You know those cute little lipstick samples that comes in magazines?

Well, since I used to hoard magazines on a monthly basis the past few years, I'd already collected a few of this cuties but have never had a chance to use them.  For one thing, the little things were pretty fragile in my opinion in the first place.  A huge part of the product is exposed while only a tiny fraction is held by the bottom holder. There was absolutely no way you could use it the same way you would a regular full size lipstick.  Any extra pressure exerted on the creamy tip would result in it breaking off! I was not much of a lip brush person (unless for gloss maybe) and thus the task of testing out these cute freebies tends to be cumbersome.

But then again, I was thinking, what a waste! A perfectly good lippie gone to waste simply because of it's packaging shortcomings.  Clearly some of the choice of colours given away as samples would not be my conscious choice to purchase at the store.  But since I already have them, it would such a pity to just chuck them in my makeup case collecting dust so to speak.

So it got me thinking, there has to be a way around it. And of course there is! So for those of you out there who, like me, have these cute mini lipsticks stashed somewhere amongst your makeup collection, why not transform them into lip pots instead?

Basically, what you'll need are:

• 
  
  Lipstick sample
• 
  
  Cosmetic jar(s) and plastic spatula
• 
  
  Vaseline (or any other petroleum jelly product) *optional*
• 
  
  Plastic toothpick
• 
  
  Hair dryer

TIP: Instead of a hair dryer, get a bowl of hot water to heat up the lipstick in the cosmetic jar.

First you need to make sure that all your items and hands are clean. You might also want a tissue box nearby because it can get messy. *smiles* You start by scooping a decent amount of Vaseline into your cosmetic jar with your plastic spatula. Cosmetic jars are widely and easily available.  I got mine at Watson's for RM7.20 for a 4x15g stackable jar.  Don't worry about the amount of Vasline at first.  You can always add on more later if you think it's not enough.  Then, break the lippie sample into the jar already containing the Vaseline and scoop out the excess from the base of the holder using a plastic toothpick.

TIP: Skip the Vaseline if you want the colours to be more intense and true to the lipstick's original texture. In this case, use a smaller jar as these samples don't contain a lot of product.

NOTE: The more Vaseline you mix in, the more sheer the colours will be but it will retain more moisture and act as a tinted lip balm instead.

Mix well with the spatula until the lipstick and Vaseline are one. Now, take your hairdryer and heat up the mixture in the jar and the excess on the spatula so the mixture melts a bit. Scrape off the now thick liquid on your spatula into the jar. Put your spatula aside and continue to heat up and tap the jar so the mixture smoothen out. Once the mixture has smoothen out, put it aside to cool and set into place. Once the creamy mixture hardens and has return to room temperature, screw the jar lid on and your pretty much done.

NOTE: If you're using hot water to heat up the mixture to a more liquid consistency, dip the jar into the hot water (a'la double boiling method in baking) until it's melted enough to tap and smoothen out. Then follow the steps above.

If you noticed, the samples come with these little round stickers on them with the name of the lipstick with the lip colour number and name. What I've done is take these off the sample's base, and stick them on the bottom side of the jars like this:

Now isn't it easier to make use of those cute lippies? Use a lip brush (or a clean finger tips) for application on it's own or as a light gloss.