Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals Foundation Review

I hate to wear makeup and I have never in my life worn it regularly. Even in high school when all the other girls were wearing makeup, I would only try it occasionally for grins. I usually don't like to wear makeup because my eyes burn and get irritated whenever I put anything on my face besides the most gentle, non-irritating lotions. No matter how careful I am, somehow the products burn my eyes. Not just eye products either. Foundations, powders, blush, they all make my eyes burn, even if the makeup is brand new and the manufacturer touts it as being "hypoallergenic". But I had heard good things about Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals Foundation from friends, so I decided to try the product on my own.

About Bare Escentuals and Bare Minerals SPF 15 Foundation
Bare Escentuals began in 1976 in Los Gatos, California. They make several lines of beauty and skin care products, of which Bare Minerals makeup is just one. Bare Minerals is made from 100% pure micronized natural minerals and is free of preservatives, oil, fragrance and talc, as well as anything else that might irritate your skin or in my case, eyes. This product is relatively expensive for its size. A .3 ounce jar of the foundation can run between $23 - $27 depending upon the retailer.

I purchased Shade #1.2, fairly light, because I have fair skin but didn't want something that would make me look as pale as Shade #1 might. You can mix different foundation shades together to achieve the exact shade you want, if none of the existing shades suit you. The following shades are available:

• Shade #1.0 (fair)
• Shade #1.2 (fairly light)
• Shade #2 (light)
• Shade #2.3 (medium beige)
• Shade #3 (medium)
• Shade #4.53(tan)
• Shade #5.2 (medium tan)
• Shade #5.0 (dark)
• Shade #8.0 (deep)

Using Bare Minerals Foundation
Because this makeup is so fine and because it is so costly, you use very little of it at a time. Bare Escentuals recommends that you use a small application brush to apply the foundation as a concealer, then going over your face with a large application brush to apply more foundation all over your face. Total time to put it on: maybe two minutes.

How Well It Works
The coverage that this foundation provides is extremely sheer and light. I noticed when watching the television infomercials as well that the women don't really change how they look so much after they use this product, so much as that they enhance their natural appearance. In other words, guys you know those women you would go out with on a Friday night and they looked really, supremely hot? And then you'd wake up next to them on Saturday morning after they took their makeup off and Egads! an entirely different bare-faced looking woman was staring back you? Yeah Bare Minerals foundation doesn't cover like that.

Even though the coverage was light, it did a very good job concealing the small broken blood vessels that have popped up thanks to my rosacea. And my undereye circles and freckles also disappear. Basically everything that I hit with the small brush is well concealed, and the rest of my face has a very even tone.

But if you were to look at my face, you honestly couldn't tell I have foundation on. After I used this product the first time my husband said to me, "You look really nice." I said, "Thanks, I put on some makeup." He peered at me suspiciously and said, "No you didn't." I assured him that I had. At the time I was only wearing Bare Minerals foundation, warmth and mineral veil. He really couldn't tell I had anything on at all and continued to be suspicious until that night when I was removing the makeup and I showed him the makeup on the washcloth.

This foundation is definitely different. My skin looks better and much clearer, very much unlike the few occasions when I wore foundation previously. Before, I had always worn a light liquid foundation from MAC and it left my skin looking almost too perfect. You could hardly see pores after I applied it, and my skin always felt like it had some awful residue on it. Not to mention my eyes would of course start burning in twenty minutes. With Bare Minerals you don't end up with that unnaturally covered Joker-mask face that you get with some other foundations. And it doesn't feel like I'm wearing makeup either, which is very nice.

I love that I can wear Bare Minerals and not feel like I'm wearing makeup. And I love that this product doesn't irritate my skin, or more importantly my eyes, in any way, shape or form. But I know that this kind of super-light coverage isn't for everyone. I know women who have worn makeup for so long that they would feel naked with coverage this sheer.

Where to Buy Bare Minerals Products
The toughest part of choosing to buy some Bare Minerals products was figuring out where to purchase them. One thing is for certain, the folks at Bare Escentuals don't seem to be interested in making their stuff readily available to the public. I found kits available at my local Ulta cosmetics store, but they only had Shade #8.0 (dark) in stock. I ended up going to QVC. I ordered a small four piece kit that included the foundation, Bare Minerals Warmth and Bare Minerals Mineral Veil for $25 + shipping. There are also a handful of Bare Escentuals storefronts. If one's local to you, you can try and purchase their products there.

Cat's Bottom Line
I like this makeup a great deal and I prefer using it over other foundations. What it really comes down to for women making the decision of whether or not to try this product, is what degree of coverage makes you the most comfortable. If you're the type of person who loves to wear makeup and loves how they look when they're all done up, then I will bet that this foundation won't provide nearly the coverage you're looking for. But if you're the type who doesn't like wearing makeup, or has a tough time wearing makeup, this foundation may be just the solution for you.