You Will Need:

• Refillable Powder Brushes
• White Mica Powder
• Cosmetic Grade Glitter

Directions:

• That's it! Just mix the mica and the glitter together in whatever proportions you wish depending on how shimmery or how glittery you want it. Fill the refillable clear chamber on the brush (the end cap screws off for easy filling). The mica has an opalescent look, and with some of the pink glitter mixed in it looks beautiful thru the clear body of the brush! Great for applying a dusting of shimmer on your shoulders, arms, legs or where ever for a sexy romantic look for adults, or a fun sparkly look for teens! This would be a great countertop item to push for Valentine's Day, and a great gift for guys to buy their sweethearts!


• I measured how much mica powder the brush chamber will hold. I filled one up to the line where the threads for the screw on end cap start (you wouldn't want to fill it to the very rim cause it can spill over and be messy):
  
  They hold approximately .15 oz by weight on a scale.
  By volume it was about 1 tablespoon or 3 teaspoons or 15 milliliters which is about the same as about .5 oz by volume (not same as weight).
  
  1. Our 1 oz jars of mica powder are sold by weight, not volume. So I calculate that a 1 oz jar of weighed mica powder should fill around 6 to 6 and a half brushes. So since the mica is $4.95 per jar, that makes your powder cost only an average of about .80 cents per unit. So with the cost of the brush at $3.75 that's only $4.55 per finished unit! You can easily triple your money on these
  
  
  2. I found the easiest way to fill the chamber was to put the mica powder in a paper dixie cup and pinch it so it pours like from a spout. Then carefully tap the cup to get the powder to spill into the brush chamber. It literally took less than a minute to fill one of these... talk about easy labor! One thing to remember, the powder may settle a little after sitting for awhile, so you may want to top them off a bit. Also remember, different types of powders will weigh out differently, so the measurements I calculated above are not going to be the same with all powders. I just wanted to give you all a good starting point or a general idea.
  
  
  3. You can also use these brushes with cornstarch or other body powders in them, including edible powders such as Honey Powder or Vanilla Powder! That's another great idea... make Kama Sutra edible body powders! A sure-fire Valentine seller! These brushes can also be used with the ever-popular mineral make up powders... great for purse & travel (I keep one in my purse myself with face powder in it!). These brushes are a hot item and are selling in trendy upscale retail cosmetic stores such as Sephora for $18.00 filled with face powder! And I've seen them filled with other powders and micas on various retail websites and in other cosmetic shops for as much as $30.00! Ours are only $3.75 each, or if you buy a dozen they are only $3.50 each! Plus there are even more price breaks for larger quantities (see our shopping cart for details). You can even sell refill powders and get repeat business!

Tips:

• Packaging: I suggest shrink wrapping them for a real professional look. But make sure to leave one opened so people in your shop can try it out and see how they sparkle!
• Pricing: I've seen the filled brushes exactly like ours selling for anywhere from $15 to $30 in retail shops, so how you price yours would depend on your area really. Don't be afraid to go for it... you can always lower your prices later if necessary, but it's much harder to raise them. Your labeling & packaging will help set the price too... the more classy and professional it looks, the more you can justify charging.
• Marketing: These will sell year round... not just for Valentine's Day! There are all kinds of creative ways to market this item... fill with gold or copper micas to make summer time bronzer powders! Or try making Confetti Shimmer Powder for New Year's Eve or other party events!
• Labeling: I experimented with label sizes on these, and I think the 2 & 5/8 x 1 inch rectangle size fits just perfectly on the black part of the brush right above the clear chamber. I tried it on the brush cap, but it looks better on the body of the unit. I think it would look awesome with the Kraft Brown labels on the black! Or if you have labels professionally printed, clear with silver print, or silver foil with black print would look great too! You could also put the label on the shrink wrap, or on the cap if you prefer. Or you could do a printed paper band around the brush instead of an adhesive label! That way your customers can easily remove it if they wish.
• FDA Labeling: This is a cosmetic, so you must list the ingredients in proper order and by their INCI name. We have the INCI names for all of our glitters & mica on our website. Here is an example of what your ingredient list should look like:
Mica (&) Titanium Dioxide, Polyethylene Terephthalate and Acrylates Copoloymer.