Mary Kay Cosmetics manufacturing plant

If you've ever wondered how lipstick is made, you're in luck - you can find out during a tour of the Mary Kay Cosmetics manufacturing plant. Even if you've never wondered such a thing, the answer might be more interesting than you'd think.
At the 275,000-square-foot Mary Kay plant, you can watch the process in action as assembly-line workers, conveyor belts and giant-size vats go to work. Various creams and foundations are mixed in kettles so tall that cranes are needed to pour in the ingredients. Empty bottles parade past on conveyor belts as steel nozzles move up and down like carousel ponies, filling each container as it rolls by. After a perfume bottle is filled, the sprayer has to be put in by hand, and then it's tightened by machine.
The lipstick line might remind you of the I Love Lucy episode in which Lucy and Ethyl attempt to wrap factory candies. Here each "bullet" that comes down a conveyor belt has to be put into the tube by hand. The belt moves so quickly that it's amazing the workers don't get behind.
Guided tours of the factory are free, but space is limited, so make reservations at least 72 hours in advance. Children under 10 years old must be accompanied by a parent.
- DEBORAH VOORHEES AND GUIDELIVE STAFF

- See also: Mary Kay Cosmetics Building and Museum