A lipstick's basic scaffolding is made up of natural or industrial oils, which make it creamy and moist; waxes, which will make up its core structure and help the colour stick to the lips; and antioxidant chemicals to prevent fading. "We mix these ingredients together in a 200-gram beaker, heat them to 85°C, and wait until the formula goes back to room temperature," says Sanzanni. "That helps us check whether the ingredients blend properly, or if instead, they stratify."
Lipstick may be a symbol of beauty, but making it takes hard science and sophisticated machinery. "This is, essentially, a scientific laboratory," says Lucia Sanzanni, 30, a technician at Ancorotti Cosmetics. Founded in 2009, Ancorotti specialises in lipstick, mascara and moisturiser. It manufactures them in its facilities in Crema, Italy and Baddi, India and has a turnover of €72 million (£61m).
Each product begins as a mixture of oil and wax. It is developed and tested for up to a year before being prototyped. The formula is then produced on an industrial scale by a machine that churns out 625 to 750 lipsticks an hour, or 5,000 to 6,000 a day.
The next step is adding colour. The formula and coloured pigments are poured together into a three-cylinder machine that stirs them to create a homogeneously coloured mixture.
"Sometimes fragments of pearl are added to the formula to give the lipstick a glossy look," Sanzanni explains. The blend is then transferred back to a beaker and heated on a burner, all the while being stirred by a magnetic mechanism.
After cooling down, a small amount of the blend is moved to a device that checks the product's melting temperature. "We call it 'the drop point machine'," Sanzanni says. A small quantity of the formula is placed in the machine, which heats it up by two degrees every minute – up to a maximum of 50°C. When the blend starts dripping, it has reached its melting point. "We have to establish that in order to market the lipstick to different countries," Sanzanni says. "Knowing the melting temperature is essential when we start its industrial production."
Following a "pilot trial" – in which five kilograms of blend are produced and tested again for stability, colour and reaction to heat – the lipstick can enter industrial production. Ancorotti's industrial machines heat up 25 kilograms of product to a temperature 10°C above its melting point- causing it to flow into the silicone or metal molds beneath. "The whole process is automated," Sanzanni says.
The most popular type? "That all depends on the country and trends", says marketing manager Erika Romeo. "Currently, customers prefer long-wearing, matte lipsticks." Good to see an industry in the pink.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
