For many women, mascara is the go-to beauty staple for adding length, volume and curl to lashes.

But have you ever wondered how the popular makeup buy is actually made?

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: How mascara is really made.

Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today

In a resurfaced Science Channel’s “How It’s Made” YouTube video, people around the world were stunned to discover the four main ingredients used to create the formula.

The basic ingredients include wax, water, pigment and binders.

The narrator explained that formulations vary depending on the manufacturer but claimed that “every” mascara contains an oil soluble phase and a water soluble phase.

To prepare the oil phase, a technician combines four types of waxes - carnauba from a Brazilian palm tree, candelilla from a plant that grows in parts of Mexico and Texas, beeswax and glyceryl stearate - an emulsifier which “helps ingredients blend well”.

The technician then adds vitamin E, which conditions the lashes and gives the mascara a “smooth texture”.

For waterproof mascara, a chemical compound called Pelemol D-2000 is included to make the formula water resistant.

The technician heats the oil phase of the formulation to mix the ingredients together.

Once the waxes begin melting, the ingredients are blended to create a thickener.

“This calculated combination of four different waxes produces a semi-liquid gel that coats lashes with a shiny film,” the narrator explained.

Next, the technician prepares the water-soluble phase of the formulation separately.

“First heating up cold water then adding an emulsifier - this will bind the water and oil phases when they’re combined later on,” he said.

“Without an emulsifier, oil and water soluble would naturally separate.”

To make the mascara black, the technician adds a cosmetic grade pigment of iron oxide to the mixture, then blends.

“Then she adds an organic compound to balance the mascara’s pH level so that it isn’t too acidic or alkaline,” he said.

“Next she adds a cosmetic powder to make the mascara silky and a chemical to provide additional water resistance.”

In her final step, she completes the formulation by adding the oil phase to the water phase.

“Heating the mixture while blending prevents the waxes from solidifying,” the narrator said.

Before packaging, the factory runs quality control tests to make sure the formula isn’t runny or gooey.

The video has been viewed almost 320,000 times, with many saying they were always curious to know the ingredients that went into making mascaras.

“Was literally wondering how mascara is made... This is neat,” one woman said.

Another suggested: “This is just so interesting.”

One said: “Me a fourth year med student with a lot of work to do: Randomly feels the urge to find out how is mascara made.”

While another added: “It’s kind of nice to just know random things.”

For more engaging lifestyle content, visit 7Life on Facebook.