A kit (18) for preparing a customized cosmetic (11) includes at least one of five cosmetic bases (26, 28, 30, 32, 34). Each of the five cosmetic bases (26, 28, 30, 32, 34) corresponds to at least one of a plurality of primary categories (20a). The kit (18) additionally includes at least one cosmetic active ingredient (24) for admixing with the at least one cosmetic base (26, 28, 30, 32, 34). The at least one cosmetic active ingredient (24) corresponds to at least one of the plurality of primary categories (20a) or at least one of the plurality of secondary categories (20b).
