Review: Bare Minerals Original Foundation

'What MAKES bareMinerals so special?

We use only the finest quality ingredients in our products to give you everything you want without anything your skin doesn't need. Our proprietary bareMinerals formula represents the ideal mix of makeup and skincare; problem-solving cosmetics that perfect and pamper the complexion. It's makeup so pure you can sleep in it®

And because that's how we think, you'll never find anything that's not healthy, natural or good for you in our products. What's not in bareMinerals is just as important as what's in them. Less is more.'

Bare Minerals

Until recently I had never tried any mineral make up.

However when Boots bought their £5 off No7 vouchers I picked up the Mineral Perfection Blusher and loved it!

I loved it so much I bought it in both colours and then decided to give the Bare Minerals range a go as they are best known for mineral make up.

I bought a set of Bare Minerals products, which I blogged about.

I use shade 'fairly light'.

To apply the foundation I use the 'flawless face brush' and the 'max coverage concealer brush'.

Bare Minerals advise that when apply your foundation you:

1. Empty a small amount of product into the lid
2. Swirl your brush in the lid with the product in. The swirling action helps to collect as much product as evenly as possible.
3. Tap off any excess product.
4. Buff into the skin and repeat process to build coverage

I've tried to swatch the product as best as possible to demonstrate the consistency.

I prefer to wear foundations with a light coverage but find buildable formulas perfect for 'bad skin days'.

In this picture the foundation is applied lightly to my face.

I find that it takes away most of the skins natural shine without being at all drying.

This picture demonstrates a fuller coverage (about 3/4 layers of product).

Personally this not a look I like to wear.

Close up the skin looks powdery but not overly 'cakey'. However from afar I have no problems with this method of application/

One of my favourite things about the Bare Minerals foundation is how blusher and bronzer look when applied over the top.

With every other foundation I own my blushers tend to 'sit' on top and it takes alot of blending to get a natural healthy look.

I also want to use this picture to demonstrate the coverage of the foundation. At the moment I have a few blemishes on my skin and you can hardly notice the spot on the side of my chin here. It is still visible but I have used no concealer and find that the foundation has not left a 'cakey' or 'crusty' finish around the affected area. This is a great plus for me as I'm not a huge fan of concealer.

I have used No7 Mineral Perfection Blusher in 'soft damson' and Bare Minerals bronzer in 'warmth'.

I love the blush! This is such a subtle and demure colour.

I am not a great fan of the bronzer, for my skin tone I find it too dark. In the one picture above and picture below I have used it very sparingly. It's great if you are after a heavily contoured look, or have a darker skin tone, but I find it hard to work with. However it blends well over the mineral foundation (not so well over other foundations).

Top: Soft Damson / Bottom: Warmth

Overall I am very impressed with this foundation. I find it great for a matt look foundation which provides a multitude of coverage options. As for how this foundation wears throughout the day, I am massively impressed. It does not budge easily. Even in the mini heat wave England experienced recently this baby stayed put all day!

What I love the most is how comfortable it is to wear. Honestly I don't feel as if I'm wearing make up at all. It sits so well on the skin and I feel like it does good for my skin.

I have a strange skin combination, mainly I have dry/normal skin which is sensitive but often I have an oily day (weird right?). I don't have combination skin, it's one or the other.

For dry skin: It feels extremely nourishing and creates a barrier against the weather.

For oil skin: This takes away the shine produced throughout the day. It sits in place perfectly and does not slip on oily complexions.

Just to give you more insight into this product I'm going to tell you about how much my sisters love it. We are all different ages, have different skin types and different preferences in make up.

I was first introduced to this product by my eldest sister Carol. She is in her 30's and prefers a full coverage foundation and has oily skin.

Carol swears by this foundation and bought 8 pots of it on her recent trip to America! (It works out about £8 cheaper in the U.S). Carol uses this product daily and never deviates, it carries her through from winter to summer and day to night. Having a well paid jobs means Carol can enjoy higher end make up and often wears Channel and Clinique. She tried several high-end foundations before falling in love with Bare Minerals.

Just 2 weeks ago I introduced Laura (3 years older than me) to Bare Minerals. In the kit I bought there were 2 foundations and the darker one was a match for me and the lighter a match for Laura.

Now where I have been blessed with manageable skin and never suffered from acne (I never get more than 2 spots at a time!) Laura is the complete opposite. As a teenager she suffered with bad acne which was painful and covered most of her face. Since she was 14 (almost 10 years now) Laura has been back and forth to the doctors seeking help for her bad skin. She has tried multiple steroid creams and tablets in order to get her skin under control. Laura is also prone to Impetigo and eczema on her face. It has only been n the last 12-18 months that she has found a skin care routine that works for her (which is mainly made up of prescription goodies) and her skin has really settled down. 

Because of these reasons Laura is SOOO careful with the make up she uses. She switches her make up every 6 months to prevent bacteria festering on her products and only uses foundation and concealer when she is going out rather than in the week to work. Laura swears by Benefit products (her whole make-up kit is Benefit products bar 4 items) and has always declined when I've asked if I can try some new make up products out on her. However when I explained what Mineral products were and how good they were for your skin she agreed to let me use some on her. After I had finished with her make up I nearly jumped for joy1 She looked so beautiful and her skin was glowing! I used no concealer on her but all of her acne scars and the few spots she had were hidden! 

She is now absolutely in love with the foundation I gave her and started to do some research on mineral make up. She even asked her dermatologist's opinions on it. He told her it was one of the best make up formulas for her skin and now she won't stop thanking me for introducing her to it!

Laura & Carol

Laura wears shade 'light'

Carol wears shade 'fairly medium'

If you've made it to the end of this extremely wordy post, then you must have a very numb bottom now!

I apologise for the amount of writing but I really love this product and wanted to give you and in depth review of it, as well as illustrate how versatile it is for different people.

I'd love to know if you have used any mineral products before and which brands and products you would recommend, if any?

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