Mineral Powder Foundations

Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals Kit
Available Color Combinations:

Buy Dark/Deep

Buy Medium Beige/Medium

Buy Fairly Light/Light

Buy Tan/Medium Tan

US $60

Jane Iredale "PurePressed" Pressed Minerals SPF 17

US ~$20 Buy Now

Sep. 13, 2004

Recently I decided to investigate the hype over all of the new mineral powder foundations. For all of you just tuning in, mineral powder foundations are the latest in natural makeup with skin saving sun protection. The miracle behind this "breakthrough in cosmetic technology" is that it's a powder, concealer and foundation in one, and the product is "weightless" on your skin. Incidentally, the breakthrough in the technology is that there is no technology ... just minerals, which is a good thing!

So, I started with a sample of Jane Iredale's Neutral Suntan Pressed Mineral Powder. Oil free, talc free, fragrance free, FD&C free, synthetic preservative free with SPF 17, it is easy on the skin and perfect for sensitive and temperamental complexions; moreover, the mineral powder is simple to use and has a nice finish. The fact the product is a pressed mineral powder made it mess free. Overall, the Jane Iredale's mineral powder is an excellent product. If you like super-simple, Jane Iredale is for you.

Then I experimented with a kit from BareEscentuals Bare Minerals that included three brushes and four loose powders: Mineral Veil, Bare Minerals Foundation in Medium Beige 2.3, Bare Minerals Foundation in Medium 3, and Warmth. Boy, did I have a great time with these four pieces. These four products from Bare Minerals allow me to conceal, camouflage, contour, highlight and control shine by buffing-on tiny amounts of these loose powders. The more you buff the better the finish. You can even put Warmth on your eyelids, accentuate eyebrows and add to lip balm as a lip color that lasts for hours.

Using the Bare Minerals kit takes a moment or two longer than the Jane Iredale pressed mineral powder; however, the airbrush-like finish of the Bare Minerals is amazing. Because Bare Minerals are loose, there is a little bit of mess with the flyaway powder and the SPF is 15 (as opposed to the SPF 17 Jane Iredale's pressed mineral powder offers). Yet I feel the versatility and superior finish in the kit is worth a minute more of my time; although, the pressed mineral powder of Jane Iredale is great for touch-ups.