How to repair broken eyeshadow in 5 steps

As gorgeous as eyeshadow is on the eyes, its soft and delicate nature makes it exceptionally prone to breaking, whether that be from turbulent trips away or even just being accidentally dropped in use.

The good news is, the method of how to repair broken eyeshadow is just as easy once you get the hang of it and chances are, you probably already have the materials you need to do so.

How to fix broken eyeshadow is as simple as five easy steps.

Keep on reading to find out how to repair broken eyeshadow!

What you will need:

• Toothpick or something similar such as the back of a makeup brush or spoon
• Rubbing alcohol (as close to 100% as possible), micellar water or setting spray
• Dropper tool or empty spray bottle
• Paper towel, tissue or plastic wrap
• A flat-surfaced object like a spoon or coin
• Q-Tip or makeup wipe

Steps to repair broken eyeshadow

Step one: Assemble – Put as much of the broken product as possible back into the eyeshadow pan.

Step two: Crush – If your eyeshadow was cracked into larger pieces, gently smash them up into tiny pieces as a powder form will be easier to work with. To do this, you may use the back of a makeup brush or spoon, a toothpick or similar item.

Step three: Reassemble – Now we need to reassemble the product with liquid. The most common item used for this is rubbing alcohol (as close to 100% as possible) but you may also use micellar water or setting spray. Using a dropper tool or spray bottle, wet your eyeshadow with the rubbing alcohol, micellar water or setting spray to ensure that it is damp, but not soaking.

Step four: Press – Carefully press and smooth your eyeshadow back into shape. You can do this by laying a paper towel, tissue or plastic wrap over it and pressing down with a small spoon, your finger or a flat-surfaced object such as a coin.

Step five: Dry – Once your eyeshadow is pressed back together, leave it open to air dry.

(Optional) Step six: Clean – Clean the edges of the eyeshadow with a Q-Tip or makeup wipe.

Alternative options

Turn broken eyeshadow into a loose pigment – If you don’t want to use liquid, you can always turn your eyeshadow into a loose powder. Place your eyeshadow into a small container and crush it up with a spoon or a toothpick until it becomes a fine powder. 

Turn broken eyeshadow into a cream eyeshadow – Since your eyeshadow is already broken, you might as well use this opportunity to turn it into a cream eyeshadow. Place your eyeshadow into a small jar and crush it up with a spoon or a toothpick until it becomes a fine powder.  Then, mix it with Vaseline or a white, unscented lotion that is approved as safe for use around the eyes.

Moving forward …

Now that you know how to fix broken eyeshadow should the misfortune occur, you may be wondering how you can prevent eyeshadow from breaking in the first place, specifically when traveling.

To stop your eyeshadow from breaking when travelling, you can wrap your eyeshadow palettes in bubble wrap or between your clothes or towels to stop them from bumping into other items during transit. You can also place a powder puff, cotton pads or cotton balls inside the palettes before closing to provide extra cushioning. This also works for pressed powder, blush, bronzer,highlighter and other products of that nature.

If you want to avoid the annoyance of a broken eyeshadow powder altogether, it may be worth switching to cream or liquid eyeshadow. Here are a few of our favourites:

Click here to explore our entire range of eyeshadow

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