When it comes to Sephora, BareMinerals is the most generous with providing samples to the store. I remember many years ago when Sephora opened a store in KLCC and there was a BareMinerals READY Foundation and brush deluxe sample redemption. I redeemed mine successfully even at that time I wasn’t their White Card member. Fast forward to 2014, a few years after the first Sephora store here in KL, BareMinerals foundation and brush deluxe sample is the most given out GWP by far.

I never went back to purchase the highly raved BareMinerals powder foundation because the deluxe sample doesn’t work for me. The powder is sheer and the mini brush which is suppose to bear the same bristle as the retail size brush is so scratchy and flare out. At that time I couldn’t understand how or why everyone like it. How could anyone replace liquid foundation with mineral powder foundation that sheer? I soon learnt why.

It all started with me watching From Head To Toe YouTube video on how to apply BareMinerals foundation. That’s when I was sold. Of course I have some reservation as well because Jen’s skin is flawless compare to mine. I think it was about 2-3 months later I finally gave in and went to Sephora to purchase the Customizable 6-Piece Get Started Kit.

Previously the kit was a 7-piece kit with an extra concealer brush. They should really include the concealer brush back to the customizable kit because spot concealing is necessary when it comes to powder foundation. This Customizable 6-Piece Get Started Kit is not cheap. It cost me RM244, foundation being RM119 and the kit being RM125. What’s even shocking is that the MATTE Foundation still bears the manufacturing date of June 2012! I only check the code against Check Cosmetics after a few weeks so exchange is out of the question. My only advantage is that this is a powder so it won’t go bad fast.

BareMinerals Customizable 6-Piece Get Started Kit comes with the following. You get to choose what type of foundation you preferred. I had my eyes only on the MATTE Foundation. Another best option is the ORIGINAL Foundation.

1. SPF 15 Foundation. I chose MATTE Foundation Broad Spectrum SPF 15.
2. Mineral Veil® Finishing Powder.
3. All-Over Face Color in Warmth (bronzer).
4. Full Flawless Face Brush.
5. Flawless Application Face Brush.
6. Prime Time Foundation Primer.

Prime Time Foundation Primer

I was given a 4.5ml of this primer a few years ago and it is by far the best primer I’ve ever used. It’s 99% similar to MAKE UP FOR EVER All Mat Face Matifying Primer but this BareMinerals gives me a better mattifying result. You can use this primer to smooth away fine lines, enlarged pores, uneven texture, flaky dryness and remove excess oil on the face. So far I’ve not used any other primer to pair with BareMinerals foundation because I feel that their foundation works better with their own primer so why bother to change right?

I notice that when I pair this primer with BareMinerals powder foundation, not only my makeup lasted from 6.30am to 9pm, my face is not even oily and that I never blotted once. I can see a little shine peeking through but that only makes my skin dewy. The makeup remains flawless. I even walked under heavy rain once. I rushed to the washroom thinking my makeup melted but nil. Nothing budge at all. There are several occasion where I’ve forgotten to apply the primer and my face is so oily that I needed to blot several time throughout the whole day. If not, I don’t need to be worry about my face at all 🙂

MATTE Foundation Broad Spectrum SPF 15, All-Over Face Color & Mineral Veil Finishing Powder

There are three powder product in the kit. Only the powder foundation is full size whereas Mineral Veil is a miniature and the bronzer is a deluxe.

Despite the ORIGINAL Foundation being the best among the lot, I still prefer something matte. So I chose MATTE Foundation. The shade I chose is Fair, a shade for fairest porcelain skin with pink undertone. Now, I don’t have fair porcelain skin nor do I have pink undertone. Foundation oxidize on my skin no matter how much the brand claim that their foundation never oxidizes. It will on me eventually. So I always make sure I get the fairest foundation available. In fact, the second lightest shade Fairly Light, which is for neutral undertone suits my skin tone by description but Fair look so much better on my skin 🙂 . I love the Click, Lock, Go™ sifter but there is still a little powder escaping through the gap in the sifter.

The least excited in the kit for me is the All-Over Face Color in Warmth. It is said to be a complexion boosters that infuses radiant light into the skin but the dark chocolate shade on the jar freaks me out. After using it several time, I have to say this is a product that I will not skip whenever I’m using BareMinerals. The shade is quite forgiving on the skin and somehow everything blends together when my face starts to oil up a bit.

Mineral Veil® Finishing Powder is also said to be one of the star product for BareMinerals. I got to know from a girl in YouTube who is working with BareMinerals at US saying that this powder is the key product that will hold and seal everything together. I agree with her. It’s not just a finishing powder. It’s like a glue that keep everything on all day long. There is a day where I’ve forgotten to apply Mineral Veil and my makeup is not as flawless as it’s suppose to be. It took me a while trying to figure out what went wrong. I foresee that I will be repurchasing this if I ever ran out.

Full Flawless Face Brush & Flawless Application Face Brush

The kit also comes with two retail size brushes. This is what makes the kit so much worth it. As I know the brush is not cheap. It is recommended to use BareMinerals brush to apply the powder foundation. What I like about BareMinerals foundation is that I can choose the type of coverage I want. Full Flawless Face Brush is to obtain medium-to-full coverage while Flawless Application Face Brush is to obtain light-to-medium coverage. The smaller brush is also for the application of All-Over Face Color and Mineral Veil Finishing Powder.

Prepping the skin

This step is not necessary but it is necessary for me as I have out of this world large pores. After applying Prime Time Foundation Primer, I like to use Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream to fill in the pores on my forehead, nose and both cheeks. The downside of using BareMinerals MATTE Foundation is that it doesn’t cover or ‘fill in’ the pores nor does it minimize the appearance. I think it’s the flare out brush that causes it. The first few times I actually apply Bourjois 123 Perfect CC Cream over the powder and that works fine but I figure it would be better if I were to prep the skin prior.

The reason why many people didn’t go back for the full size after trying the deluxe sample is due to the lack of knowledge on the application technique. This is not ordinary foundation. If you’re just using it as normal, it won’t work. I remember feeling nervous before using BareMinerals powder foundation as I’ve tried before and it doesn’t give me the needed coverage. So I search for tutorial video on YouTube and stumbled upon Shelbey Ashburn. Thanks to her in-depth explanation and step-by-step demonstration, I FINALLY got it to work on me. The key is the signature Swirl, Tap, Buff® application technique. It’s very simple. Just dispense some powder on the lid, Swirl the brush in the lid, Tap off the excess back to the lid and Buff onto the skin in circular motion.

Honestly I do find using BareMinerals powder foundation to be extremely time consuming. The use of this product require a lot of time and patience. This is why I don’t use it to work. I learnt that less is more with this product. The product is great and it’s the repeating application that bothers me the most. The most misconception of this product is to dispense a lot on the lid, apply and off you go. No you don’t. Application requires section by section. Each section I only used this much.

As I have larger pores on the center of my face and the powder doesn’t fill in, I like to start with my nose and inner cheeks by using dabbing motion. This is the only section I don’t buff the powder in. Then I repeat the process on my forehead, left cheek, right cheek, chin by using the Swirl, Tap, Buff technique and using the same amount of powder for each section. For the whole face, I would repeat at least 4-5 times to get a near-full coverage. That’s a lot right? It is. It’s so time consuming that I feel like fainting. But at the same time it’s fun putting on makeup.

Here’s the Before and After using MATTE Foundation, before spot concealing. It’s ahhh-mai-zinggg!

I struggled with concealing dark spots at the beginning. I’ve tried applying concealer prior and it disappear with the buffing. I even tried applying concealer after the powder and it’s patchy. In the end, I follow what Jen (From Head To Toe) did. I use a small angled flat brush, dip into some MATTE Foundation and dab onto the spot that I want to conceal. At first it appears white-ish, after a while it was all fine. Concealing too take a few repeat application. Oh God.

All-Over Face Color is to be applied right after foundation with Flawless Application Face Brush. The shade is dark but easily sheer out using the same brush as well. I would apply on my cheek bones, bringing it up to the temples and hairline.

Now, to seal everything in. Using the same Flawless Application Face Brush, I will then lightly dust Mineral Veil Finishing Powder all over the face. Buffing is not necessary. At this point, the powder will sheer out All-Over Face Color earlier. I don’t skip this powder unless I forgot. This powder helped to control sebum as well.

I learnt by experience that the powder doesn’t look as flawless as I expected it to be immediately after application. It is only when the face starts to oil up a little bit that the foundation fully set and blended with the skin. That is when it turns to be the most flawless and beautiful foundation of all. And somehow the foundation sets to full coverage too at this time. Just compare the photo on top and the closeup photo below. Below photo is when shine starts to peek through.

BareMinerals MATTE Foundation has quickly become my most favourite base makeup and it is obvious why. Having said that, it is not my preferred foundation to use on daily basis due to the time consuming application method. Beginner should get the Customizable 6-Piece Get Started Kit first and repurchase the foundation when needed. The foundation itself is not pricey as you only need to use a bit so a full size jar can last a long time. I’m not sure if you could purchase just the kit alone without the foundation though. It’s quite tempting with two retail size brushes in it.

Remember, if you fail to get coverage with the foundation, it’s not the product or the brush fault, it’s the application technique.

Tell me, are you willing to go the extra mile and spend a great amount of time with foundation?

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored review. I bought the product on my own.