Custom Printed Makeup Boxes for Kits, Sets and Single Items

The first is a kit box: a rigid box with a flat-opening lid and an insert cut to hold every item. The pink box in our photos holds a palette, four brushes, a sponge and a tube that way.

The second is a plain carton for one item, such as a pressed powder compact or an eyeshadow palette. It is a folding box with tuck flaps, printed to match the rest of the range.

Both are made to the products you put in them. For single lipsticks, glosses or foundation bottles, the full makeup packaging range has a page for each container.

A starter kit with a palette, a brush and a sponge sells to someone who does not want to pick each item.

Makeup academies and bridal artists order kit boxes for students and clients. Subscription and gifting companies use them for limited runs with a seasonal insert.

Single compact cartons go to pressed powder brands and blusher and bronzer makers. Anyone selling a palette through a retailer needs one too, for the barcode.

• Makeup brands bundling a palette, brushes and a sponge
• Bridal and special occasion artists with a client kit
• Makeup academies issuing a student kit on day one
• Pressed powder and blusher brands in round compacts
• Gifting companies running Mother's Day and Valentine's sets

Leave about 8 mm between items, then measure the outside of the group. That is your insert size.

The tallest item sets the box depth. A palette is often 15 to 20 mm thick, but a brush handle or a tube can be 25 to 30 mm. The box follows the thickest piece.

The table shows typical kit layouts. Compact cartons are simpler: measure the compact, add 4 mm each way and 3 mm to the depth.

The magnets also keep the lid closed in a bag.

A lid and base box costs a little less and feels more like a traditional gift box. It needs two hands to open and the lid can be lost, so it suits a box that stays on a shelf.

A folding carton is right for a single compact or palette sold in numbers. It is cheap, flat and quick to pack. Our guide to cosmetic box closures explains each one in more detail.

Card inserts are cut from the same board as the box, with a slot for each item. They can be printed in a second colour.

Foam inserts grip each item more tightly and suit heavier pieces such as a glass foundation bottle. They are available on request and we confirm the foam on the quote.

A few rules help. Cut brush slots slightly narrower than the handle so the brush presses in. Give palettes a finger notch so they lift out, and keep the sponge in a well rather than a slot.

That is what gives the black and gold box in our photos its sharp edges. The lid and base are built separately and the magnets are set under the wrap.

Folding cartons for compacts use boxboard around 350 gsm. That is enough for a palette that is lifted and shelved but not dropped.

Textured or linen paper on the wrap is an option that reads well in a flat-lay photo. Other wraps and board weights can be quoted when you ask.

The colour comes from the inside, where the insert and the lid lining can be printed in a brighter shade.

A mirror panel in the lid is an option on rigid kit boxes. It turns the open box into a dressing table set, which is why bridal and travel kits ask for it.

Inside print is available on both rigid and folding boxes. A guide to how foil, spot UV and embossing sit on each board is on our beauty box print finishes page.

The risk is the corners of the box itself, which take knocks in a courier bag.

Post rigid kit boxes inside an outer mailer with a few millimetres of padding around them. Never ship them loose in a poly bag.

Folding compact cartons are lighter and go several to a mailer. We cut mailer boxes for beauty parcels to hold a kit box snugly with no loose space.

A mirror lid doubles the effect under shop lighting.

For gifting, a sleeve or a ribbon around a magnetic box is enough. It keeps the lid shut in transit and gives the buyer something to remove.

Seasonal runs at Valentine's, Mother's Day and Halloween work well as a change of insert colour and lid artwork on the same box size. The structure stays the same, so the quote stays close. Larger hampers and multi-brand sets are covered on our cosmetic gift boxes page.

Quantities are quoted per order, from £0.25 per unit for folding cartons, and the written quote confirms the figure for your box and insert.

You then approve a free proof showing the lid, the insert cut and any inside print. Production takes 4 to 6 business days after that, and free tracked delivery to your UK address follows in 2 to 3 business days. Problems reported within 10 days with photos are reprinted or refunded. The makeup box quote form has a field for the kit contents.

1. Photograph the kit items laid out as you want them in the box.
2. Measure the group outline and the thickest item in millimetres.
3. Choose magnetic lid, lid and base, or folding carton.
4. Decide on a card or foam insert and whether you want a mirror panel.
5. Sign off the free proof showing the lid and insert, and production starts.