How to Make Kajal (Surma) at Home| Kan-Mai Preparation

Any makeup for women will be incomplete without applying eyeliner. We call this traditional eyeliner kohl/kajal/ kan-mai. Though I am not a person who loves makeup, I love to apply eye kohl. In fact most of the time, it will be my only makeup. Making kohl/kajal at home has been done for centuries in India and I am sure most Indian women would have seen or at least heard of homemade kohl/kajal.

This homemade kajal made with castor oil, really keeps the eyes cool and bright. If you are a person who are allergic to chemical based kajals, then please try this homemade kajal. Homemade kajal can be made with either clarified butter or castor oil as a base. I chose castor oil, as it has a very cooling effect on the eyes and I used clarified butter to mix the soot. You can try with both and choose the one that you prefer.

The quality of the kajal depends on the quality of the oil you are using, so try to best quality castor oil you can get. To make this homemade kajal, fill a small lamp with castor oil and light it up and place it between two bricks. I used a small diya, but you can use any lamp that you prefer. Place a clean plate on top of the bricks in such a way that end of the flame touches the plate.

Traditionally a silver plate was used, but you can use a copper or an ever silver plate too. Use a very thick wick for burning the diya, as it needs to burning for at least 40 to 50 minutes to get the soot. After enough soot has been collected, carefully remove the plate with a help of a cloth, as it will be very hot to touch.

Let it cool completely, then scrape the soot that has been collected with the help of a knife into a clean cup. Now add required amount of ghee/clarified butter to make it into a thick paste. Please make your own ghee/clarified butter, as most of the store bought ghee has got additives. Mix it with your hands to make it into a paste and fill it into a small airtight container and your kohl/kajal is ready!

How to Make Kajal (Surma) at Home

METHOD:
1. Take a small diya and fill it with good quality castor oil and light it.

2. Place it in the middle of two bricks. You can use two big boxes of same height, if you don’t have bricks.

3. Take a thick plate and place it over the bricks. Make sure the end of the flame touches the plate.
After 40 to 50 minutes, enough soot would have collected. Carefully remove the plate and let it cool.

5. This is how the soot looks like.

6.Scrape the soot onto a plat or a bowl with the help of a knife.

5. Mix with enough clarified butter to make it into a smooth paste with your hands. Transfer the paste to a small airtight box.

NOTES:

• Using clarified butter or castor oil is your choice.
• You have to wait patiently for at least 40 to 50 minutes for the soot to collect.
• Since we are using it for our eyes, make sure to wash the plate and knife thoroughly before making kohl/kajal.
• Use only homemade clarified butter/ ghee to mix the soot.
• When you are mixing, you hands and nails do get black. But if you wash your hands twice with soap it will go away.
• Use an eyeliner brush to apply the kajal on your eyes.