mineral makeup letdown...am i not doing this properly?
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free skin care · Fri Jan 19, 2007 11:45 pm

I did a search and checked out 'MMU for dummies' and other threads, and i see many raves on MMU and various brands, but not a lot of "how to's".

I bought a beginner's kit from Sephora called Bare Minerals by Bare Escentuals, it cost $60 and came with :

-Skin rev'er upper
-2 brushes
-2 powder foundations SPF15 in "light" and "fairly light"
-All over face colour in "warm"
-Mineral Veil
-how to DVD

And even after following the instructional DVD, I am just not seeing anything!??? Qu'est-ce qui se passe?

I mean, i put these powders on, and it's like air on my face. I saw absolutely nothing different. And I went right back to my regular makeup !
I must admit, the DVD was so loooong, that i gave it about 20mins and then fast forwarded through the rest of it, but I got the general idea.

I need under-eye coverage, and also to cover a bit of redness around my nose. Will MMU accomplish this? I get the impression that MMU is for the "overall" complexion look. I really like the idea behind it, and the natural sunscreen in powder form. I had really high hopes for this.

But, hm. What am i doing wrong? Why can't i see anything? Am i not using enough product? I tried using more, but these pots are so small that i would go through all of it in no time.

EDS ladies, pls help!
Rolling Eyes

free skin care · Fri Jan 19, 2007 11:55 pm

Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news here, but I'm afraid when it comes to mineral makeup, you got pretty much the worst of the bunch, IMO. I know there are some BE fans on the board so I mean no disrespect, but I've tried so many MMU brands, and BE was definitely at the bottom of the heap! Too shiny, lousy coverage, and terrible color match! So, I don't think you're doing anything wrong, I think you just got the wrong MMU--- if it doesn't grow on you, you might want to take that sucker right back to Sephora.

In the meantime, if you want to enjoy the airbrushed effects of MMU along with sun protection, you might want to investigate some of the higher quality MMUs that get raves here at EDS. My HG is Alima--- it's fabulous stuff, and for $60 you could get foundation, blush, eye shadown, and blushes that blow BE's brushes out of the water. Uglogirl is also very high quality, and I haven't tried Lumiere yet but it's been getting a lot of raves here too. The best thing about these three MMUs is that they are so easy to use! BE makes things so complicated, and all that buffinf irritates a lot of people's skin. With the higher quality MMUs there's no need to buff--- just dust em on and go.

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 12:03 am

thank you manslayerliz! Gotta dig up that receipt....
Darn.
Should have known when i broke a nail with their bloody packaging! LOL
I will give other brands a try.
mille grazie

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 12:07 am

I think it really depends on the brand too. I had tried one (Pur Minerals) years ago and hated how it looked on my skin. Then last year I tried Amazing Cosmetics (which was pretty good, although I think it turned a bit orange on me) and my recent favourite Everyday Minerals. I find EDM goes on easily and looks very natural (I like both the matte and semi-matte). I have very dark circles under my eyes though and I like to use a liquid foundation under my eyes (with a regular creamy concealer) and then the mineral foundation over the rest of my face. I have an order for some Alima samples as well after hearing Manslayerliz rave about them!

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 8:06 am

I've been using BE for a year, and I love it. It all comes down to preference-- I think it's a quality product. MMu takes awhile to get used to if you've always used a liquid makeup. I recently bought my mom some BE and she made the exact same comments you did (she always used liquid). What I did in the beginning was I used a liquid concealor first, then buffed on the BE. But now I just use BE.

May I ask, what is it that the BE doesn't cover that you want covered?

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 9:54 am

Did you get the correct BE colors for your skin?? In my opinion, mineral veil is garbage..it didn't work for me. If you don't like the kit, and still have the receipt you can always take it back. If not...
I bought a BE kit in tan a couple of years ago, I have since switched to Pure Luxe foundation. They have great colors and the customer service is great. I still have a little of my BE foundation left, I use it occassionally to darken my PL foundation, especially in the summer when I'm out in the sun. I still use the BE brushes that came with the kit and would purchase the same brushes again!

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 10:32 am

manslayerliz wrote:

Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news here, but I'm afraid when it comes to mineral makeup, you got pretty much the worst of the bunch, IMO. I know there are some BE fans on the board so I mean no disrespect, but I've tried so many MMU brands, and BE was definitely at the bottom of the heap! Too shiny, lousy coverage, and terrible color match! So, I don't think you're doing anything wrong, I think you just got the wrong MMU--- if it doesn't grow on you, you might want to take that sucker right back to Sephora.

In the meantime, if you want to enjoy the airbrushed effects of MMU along with sun protection, you might want to investigate some of the higher quality MMUs that get raves here at EDS. My HG is Alima--- it's fabulous stuff, and for $60 you could get foundation, blush, eye shadown, and blushes that blow BE's brushes out of the water. Uglogirl is also very high quality, and I haven't tried Lumiere yet but it's been getting a lot of raves here too. The best thing about these three MMUs is that they are so easy to use! BE makes things so complicated, and all that buffinf irritates a lot of people's skin. With the higher quality MMUs there's no need to buff--- just dust em on and go.

I couldn't get a match with the BE Minerals either...but I do like the mineral veil well enough..I have had decent luck with Amazing Cosmetics' minerals...the foundation works well enough but I'm so pale and some days it looks a tad orange..I too, might check into some of Manslayer's suggestions since I haven't found my HG mineral line yet....Definitely go back to Sephora...they'll probably want to give you a mini-makeover to show you how to use the minerals before you return them...I'd take the mini-makeover if possible -just in case they have some tips or something (you're thinking "Yeah, WHATEVER" Rolling Eyes

)

Pudoodles

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 11:34 am

violetanne wrote:

May I ask, what is it that the BE doesn't cover that you want covered?

Yes, I found zero coverage with it. However, I just tried it again with the smaller, flat brush it came with, and it was a bit better, meaning, that I could actually SEE something. I would agree with some of the above comments, where I will use my regular concealer (i use NARS...I'm on my third stick and I hardly ever rebuy the same thing, so i must like it!) on areas like under eyes and around nose, and follow through with the BE on the face.

Is it possible with those big brushes like the Kabuki brush, that the product just gets lost in it? How much "buffing and rubbing" is required before you're all red? And has anyone noticed the hair majorly falls out of these brushes? Does this happen with all brushes? I'm new to the big brushes thing.

I only ever wore a TintedMoisturizer before, so i wasn't looking for full-on coverage, but was just looking for ...you know...something new, something that would hide a few little broken capillaries and make my skin look good and glowy.

I will retry it again today with the smaller flat brush, and see if i get better at it. And i will definetly experiment with other brands in the future.

Thanks everyone for the updates and the help. Smile

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 12:44 pm

Steffers, if I were you, I would take advantage of Sephora's return policy and get rid of the kit. I use BE as well, and I've always had problems with the hairs in the brushes falling out. I am constantly picking out the hairs off my skin. The color selection is very limited, and the closest match is Fairly Light. It's weird, because the color matches, kinda, but I the tone looks a little weird to me... almost corpse-like. I don't know how to explain. I get decent coverage for my acne if a layer. However, I wouldn't want anyone to get near me because close-up it makes my 27 yr old skin look old and crinkly.

I am just using it until I find a better one. I got some Alima samples a few days ago, so I'm going to try them out.

free skin care · Sat Jan 20, 2007 12:48 pm

Hi steffers - If you are looking for something that is easy to apply, I would recommend jane iredale pressed powder. I have never worn makeup before, only tinted moisturizers. I recently tried the pressed powder on my derm's recommendation, and to my surprise I love it. It truly is idiot proof( I am totally inept at makeup Very Happy

) takes two seconds to apply - just dust on with a brush - and then you are done. It evens out my skin tone( I have rosacea so I can be red and blotchy) and covers red from old acne scars, but looks really natural. I am pretty light handed with it because I want to look natural, but I bet you could get more coverage if you applied more.
HTH

free skin care · Sun Jan 21, 2007 8:11 pm

I bought that same kit from Sephora. The BE foundations made my skin look older and gave it a wierd shine. But I don't mind the mineral veil (in very small doses). I just (about 30 mins ago) bought the Jane Iredale pressed powder base (foundation, concealer, powder and SPF all in one). I had a gift certificate from another spa and decided to try this out since it wasn't going to cost me anything.
Ok this is a pet peeve of mine. I have dark olive East Indian skin, and whenever I ask an SA anywhere to match my skin, they immediately go to the darkest shades they have with pink undertones, but I have cool undertones.

The girl who tried the shades on me today was soooo off for the first 4 shades she picked, and then she got a little b**chy when I reccommended a shade that would be closer to my skin tone.

Well I'm not sure If I really walked out with the right shade, I will have to see tommorrow!
But from what she tested on my I really liked the texture and feel of the makeup. It was $60 CAD, but it is cheaper on EDS.

CG

free skin care · Mon Jan 22, 2007 1:32 pm

Ok I am utterly dissappointed with the JI pressed poweder base.

Pros: Good coverage, easy to apply
Cons: Makes you look "made up" and takes away your natural glow.

The shade was actually ok for my skin- "riviera" but it made me look dull and kind of sick. It was still the same shade as my skin, but had no glow, it made me look kind of dirty..... This is going back immmediately!

free skin care · Mon Jan 22, 2007 4:38 pm

Double Post :

Okay, I was a toal ID BE follower until last Friday when I attended a make event sponsored by Glo Minerlas at my local spa. Wow! I love their satin finish foundation. It is a liquid foundation that totally matches my skin color and gives a fuller coverage than ID. I like it for going out or for a change. Also, it dries more matte and looked more even but I think it still looks more natural thanreg make up. I love it! I am sorry to admit this but it looks better on my winter skin than ID. I probaby would go back to ID in the summer but here in the winter with these recent Cali "cold" temps and wild winds, I think my skin has been refreshed by the liquid of Glo Minerals. They sell several forms of the make up: a pressed powder, a loose powder, a liquid, and something else.? Anyway ladies, I highly suggest you try and this is coming from a girl who woships Ms. Leslie from ID. I think overall, Glow gives me amore satin, polished look whereas, ID gives my complexion a more shimmery luminosity. I'm not sure which one looks better but they both look damn good. It just depends on your preference or what u want to portray that day. HTH

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