makeup..

[Mannequin]

Lulu,

I took some before/after pics this morning. I will post them later today and you can see the difference. The buffing is really not all that bad, it only takes a little practice.

 

[rainbowtrout]

I took before pics this morning only to find that my cat has absconded with my makeup brush (well, technically my mother''s cat that we are taking care of).

THe brush is nowhere to be found...so no after pics yet!

 

[aljdewey]

I have to chime in - I started wearing this makeup in late May, and I''m completely sold on it.

I have VERY pale skin, so it''s tough to find something that doesn''t create the dreaded line.

The buffing is really quite easy, and Lulu, you can get the instruction DVD that comes with it. Honestly, though, there are so many darned infomercials airing on this that you could really just watch one and get the hang of it.

It''s the most natural looking makeup I''ve ever worn. It evens out blotchiness and reddish patches, and it''s quite good at evening out freckles as well.

 

[Mannequin]

RT - Did you find your brush?

LOL Bad kitty!

Okay, Before and After pics from this morning. No flash, bathroom lighting tend to be on the yellowish side. I have a scar over my right eye, just so it isn''t misinterpreted as a buffing problem.

Before: EWWWWWWWWWW. After: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAY.

Compare and notice:
*shiny areas, i.e. nose
* redness and acne (PMS is so not my friend)
*undereye circles
*bronzing/warming effect
*overall color
*soft-looking skin with more of a matte finish

Sorry we don''t have better subject matter for this photo shoot.

I started my school year this week on Wednesday, and our first day went roughly due to a former student''s suicide. We''ve been doing crisis control and such all week, not to mention I''ve been worrying about my uncle and desperately trying to cram in more wedding planning and getting my classroom ready in the last two weeks.

Hopefully this helps some of you who are considering a BE makeover?

 

[rainbowtrout]

I did indeed...Chen had somehow hidden it UNDER the bathmat. *shakes head*


Pics in a moment, but first some gratuitous cat and FI cuteness (I can''t help myself!)

 

[Mannequin]

LOL! The cat''s face in that picture is so cute...

 

[rainbowtrout]

allright, here are the firs-thing-in-the-morning roll out of bed shots.


First one from the side, you can see the redness under and on my nose, freckles...

 

[rainbowtrout]

this one shows the undereye circles I have always had and just uneven skin tone.

 

[rainbowtrout]

this one shows my face after. These pics were taken at night, after a full day of the makeup being on...I did touch it up a little though.

I hate the full on view of my face, but maybe it will help you see the smoothing out of the undereye circles.

 

[rainbowtrout]

from the side, can see less redness and freckles. Meh, upon looking at these I am not seeing as much of a dramatic difference as I think there is in person. Maybe it''s just not photographing well...

 

[Christa]

So, I guess I''ve been under a rock, because I have NO idea what the "buff and tap" method is. Can someone give me a quick explanation?

By the way, I ordered the Everyday Minerals free sample even though I know nothing about it except that a bunch of people here think it''s great . . . I''m such a follower.

 

[eks6426]

rainbowtrout....Your pictures just totally freaked me out. You are a spitting image of my mother when she was younger. So weird!

 

[Mannequin]

Christa-

The BE "swirl, tap buff" method is just that simple: swirl your brush around in the makeup powders to load the brush, tap the brush on the lid to remove excess powder, then buff it onto your face in circular motions. You don''t want to buff so firmly that you cause discomfort in the application, just enough to blend the powders in well.

Start to finish:
I put moisturizer or the BE Rev Up Lotion on my face. I alternate sometimes because the lotion itself is sometimes too drying for me. I use a pot of Summer Bisque BE powder as my pre-concealer and I brush that on over any acne or reddish spots and my undereye area. It has a bit of yellow in it and it works well with my skin tone to reduce and conceal blemishes and unevenness. Next, I combine my foundations (Fairly Light and Light) and buff them all over my face. I follow the foundation with a few swipes of the bronzer Warmth along my nose and cheeks and chin and forehead, and I buff a bit of the Beauty blush on the apples of my cheeks with just a dab on the nose and chin. Mineral Veil is my final BE product and I use the baby Buki brush to buff that all over my face. I also have a small compact of the Mineral Veil that I carry with me all day in case I need a quick touch up somewhere. I usually do a touch of eyeshadow and mascara with my BE, but I don''t always use BE products for that. I have a great BE eyeshadow called Envy - it''s a light lime green color.

 

[rainbowtrout]

I forgot to add that in the second photos I am also wearning the "Wearable Browns" eye shadow trio. These are truly fanstastic, love them.


I don''t use any pre-concelaer, I wet a concealer brush and dip it in the foundation and apply that to acne or red spots. Then I turn the firmly closed foundation upside down and swirl and tap with only what is on the lid of the compact. I find I get too much powder if I dip it right into the compact itself. Then like Eqistrienne described, you move the brush in little circles all over the face, followed by a similar procedure with the Mineral Veil.

Keep in mind that I don''t like a lot of coverage, so this is probably too little of the powders for most people.

 

[Christa]

Thanks for the clarification, Equestrienne! I found a mini-informercial online, too, so I''m a little less confused now.

 

[Mannequin]

Date: 9/1/2006 10:56:31 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady

You''re such a pretty lady.. I am seriously looking into this make up.. I use a powder foundation now, but have to re-apply it many times a day because it wears quickly. Very pretty.. ok now.. big question.. what''s the cost for everything you have to buy and how long does it last, both in daily hours and weeks or months?

Hugs~
Mimi

Awww, thanks!

I don''t wear the BE products every day. I do skip it on days I am not working just to give my face a break. On the average day, I put my makeup on at about 7 am and I remove it in the evening with an OLAY face cloth. I still have quite a bit on me at that time, though if I touch or rub my face or blow my nose, it does take the makeup off a little. I reapply Mineral Veil sometimes during the day, just to fill in any spots I may have removed. I am still using the original foundation powders from my $60 kit purchase back in January. I have had to use less and less BE as my skin gets better. I repurchased a pot of Mineral Veil in between then and now, and I bought one additional face brush to use so I could have one for foundation and one for blush and bronzer.

 

[Sundial]

Equistrienne and Rainbowtrout you guys are both so cute! I have been following this thread because a good friend of mine has really been after me to try the Bare Escentuals makeup. Now I am quite a bit older than you guys, but my skin is still inclined to be oily with occasional breakouts. Based on what I''ve read and seen here I''ve decided to give it a try. I ordered the starter kit from Sephora and can''t wait to get it!

 

[galeteia]

You girls convinced me.

My mother has raving about her mineral makeup for a while, but after seeing what it does for your skin, Equ, I'm sold. (You girls look great!) I called my mother to ask what company she uses, and she told me I could get samples so I could find the colour that suited my skin tone best.

Their website is Monave.com and I clicked on 'Samples' and from the sets of four (woot! four powders to try!) I picked the 'Light' set for a grand total of... $10!

Much easier for me than shelling out $60 to try it out... I just can't afford it. I'll get a brush, too, which will be more expensive, but I'm more concerned with matching my skin tone at this point, since I'm pretty sure I'll want invest in this kind of makeup. I've got oily skin with frequent break outs and small pores from hell... everything clogs my skin.

Anyway, just wanted to let you ladies know about the $10 samples, for those of us wanting to dip a cautious toe in.

(Did I mention I got a new job? Yay for cash flow!)

 

[rainbowtrout]

Thanks SDL

I still think my mom is lying when she says I never broke my nose as a child--I mean how did it get that crooked otherwise??

That''s great about the new job Galateia! I hope the samples work out. Apparently if you ask them in Saks or Sephora they will give you free little samples as well. I pass them on the way to work and eventually figured this out..


Equ, I cannot *believe* how well the BE works on your face! I am thinking the Bisque might be a good idea to get for weeks when I have acne issues (usually after plane flights or travel...I don''t know what it is but a solid flight will ALWAYS kick it off).

 

[bookworm21]

I just went and bought a another face brush for myself yesterday to use with the BE foundation and mineral veil. I''ve found that the Heavenly Face brush actually feels better on your skin and provides more even coverage. If you decide against getting the kit, or find that the Kabuki is a bit awkward (I did), try this brush. One of the makeup people there recommended it over the Kabuki, and I agree; I hate using the Kabuki brush because the bristles are so rough.

 

[Mannequin]

Thank you Sundial and Galateia! Can''t wait to hear how you ladies like your mineral makeup. I swear, you''ll rave about it too!

Date: 9/2/2006 11:13:58 PM
Author: Cinderella
I just went and bought a another face brush for myself yesterday to use with the BE foundation and mineral veil. I''ve found that the Heavenly Face brush actually feels better on your skin and provides more even coverage. If you decide against getting the kit, or find that the Kabuki is a bit awkward (I did), try this brush. One of the makeup people there recommended it over the Kabuki, and I agree; I hate using the Kabuki brush because the bristles are so rough.

I agree, Cinderella, the Buki is kind of tough before it''s well broken in. I use the concealer brush with my Bisque, the Baby Buki only for Mineral Veil, and the other face brush for everything else.

I was just at Sephora this weekend and I treated myself to the Wine Country Glimpse set, yay!

 

[Mannequin]

RT - Today I almost got the brown eye trio you are wearing in your adorable photos, but I went with the wine because I love purple.

I really like the Bisque. It was something used at my original consultation at Sephora and I like using it as concealer. It has SPF 20 and sometimes I use only the Bisque on my face. Other times, I use the Bisque as the concealer and then use the other foundation powders over it. It's got a good yellowish color for those undereye areas that I have trouble with. It's worth a try in my opinion.

 

[Sundial]

Let us know how you like it SDL. My starter kit is on its way from Sephora. I don''t live close to anyplace where I can purchase BE locally.

 

[decodelighted]

Was at my Mom''s house this weekend and she did a little "makeover" on me with her stuff & sent me home with two products & two brushes. I haven''t figured out what I have yet .. but I''ll report back when I do!

I know I still have to get the "veil" stuff ... and maybe the little concealer & brush?? I feel like I need an advanced degree .. or to watch shopping TV more???

(That''s how my Mom got hooked! & all her "info")

Turns out my younger sister used this stuff for her wedding too (via a makeup artist) - and her pix look amazing. She has a SERIOUS redness & shininess problem ... but you''d never know from the photos.

 

[Mannequin]

Yay, more BE converts!

I love that little brush too, SDL. It''s fabulous. I use that to apply some Bisque over any problem areas before I put on the foundations, and I usually apply those a touch more heavily than when I had my first trial.

Are we getting any pictures of you new BE lovers in your new makeup?

 

[Christa]

I tried my Everyday Minerals samples for the first time today--has anyone used EM? Is is basically the same as Bare Escentuals? I'm not sure what I was expecting, but so far it's not changing my life or anything. I have a few different combinations to try still, so we'll see if I like it better after a few days.

 

[Sundial]

Date: 9/6/2006 11:54:17 AM
Author: SanDiegoLady

Date: 9/5/2006 10:24:05 PM
Author: Sundial
Let us know how you like it SDL. My starter kit is on its way from Sephora. I don''t live close to anyplace where I can purchase BE locally.

I FREAKIN LOOOVE IT.

I put it on this morning, and liked better how I applied it versus how the gal at Sephora did it. It covers beautifully and I wish I''d found it prior to my wedding. Your skin really does look glowing and I have already made a ''shopping list'' of products I want now!

Wow it is encouraging to hear that you like it so much already, can''t wait to get my kit!!!

 

[coda72]

I use Everyday Minerals, and I really like it. But if you don''t have a lot of blemishes to hide like I do, then you might not like it as well. My husband really likes it because it looks like I''m not wearing makeup at all. (He''s not a big fan of makeup.) I decided to try Everyday Minerals because it''s much cheaper than BE, but if you aren''t too crazy about Everyday Minerals, maybe you''ll like BE better.

 

[chrono]

I've been using BE for the past year for special occasions (I usually go bare skinned with only sunscreen) and am very happy with the results because it is natural looking. However, I've noticed that I actually break out a little at the end of the day, or the following day.

Does that mean that I'm allergic to something in it and should stop using it? It'll be a shame because I like the ease of application and the wonderful non-madeup look (which still hides the uneven skin tones). Would Everyday Minerals then be a better choice?

 

[coda72]

I think Everyday Minerals has less ingredients in it than BE, so you might want to try out free samples of Everyday Minerals to see if it doesn''t make your face break out.