Hi girls! I'm back to blogging, but unfortunately not with nails (yet!) since they're still growing out. Instead, I'm sharing with you a very special product to me that I've been loyally using for a few months now and has done wonders for my skin. I'm starting this as "Face Friday" even though I'm a day late but bear with me, okay? I have the next two Fridays scheduled already and I think that counts for being a day late this time even though it's the first time. Right?
You may not know I've had acne since I went off birth control about a year or two ago, and nothing has helped (even being on birth control again). I've been on a journey to find a combination of things that work for my skin to control breakouts, and this is one of those products (the rest are coming soon - on Fridays, duh).
It all began one day when I was getting a facial and my aesthetician suggested I try a makeup with benefits for my acne and skin. I told her I used Bare Escentuals and she explained that it wouldn't hurt my skin, but wouldn't help, either. She suggested another brand but I forgot which one, so an Ulta associate helped me find Pur Minerals. I bought the Start Now! kit, in Light, which was on sale at that time for $29.
The benefits of this set included SPF 15 in the foundation, shea butter (organic, too!), vitamin E, is paraben-free, and natural. No dyes, chemicals, etc. but most importantly, no alcohol to dry out your skin, which is an ingredient common in facial care, especially among cheaper brands. I was really drawn to it when I saw the brush, primer, and mascara were included - a whole makeup kit in one box! Since I'm not a huge makeup snob, I was happy I wouldn't have to find a coordinating brush and could try out the primer and mascara, too.
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| Image from OurKidsMom.com |
This kit included the primer, brush, foundation, a highlighter, and their mascara. I loved all of the products, although the brush sheds bristles constantly. I usually have one on my face daily, but it still works well. The primer is one of my favorites of all time (more on that in another post), the foundation covers beautifully, and the mascara was actually awesome considering it was a tiny tube and I didn't expect the brush to work very well (which it did!). I still have the highlighter because I rarely actually use it, except on occasions where I want to highlight my cheekbones. I haven't even made a dent in the small pot, but it seems strange to me that it was the same size as the foundation!
Eventually, I outgrew the small kit, ran out of the primer, mascara, and foundation, and decided to buy the foundation separately. I now use the next color up, Blush Medium, since it's summer and I've gotten a little tan. The foundation is $27 (currently) on Ulta.com. I'm on my second pot of it, although the first isn't really finished; I just leave it at my boyfriend's now that it's starting to run down and I can see the bottom. It lasted about 4 months, I'd say, and is still useable for at least a couple dozen more uses.
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| Image from OutBlush.com |
The foundation applies like a powder, but on my face it feels more like a liquid or mousse foundation. It definitely leaves my face feeling soft and is a pretty good concealer. I use the 'swirl, tap, buff' method taught by Bare Escentuals and it works really well with this product as well.
My only complaint about this product is that as you use it up, it seems to be less effective. I notice my older foundation is much more powdery than the newer one I purchased, which could just be an effect of time, exposure to air, etc. I admit I should probably also clean the brush more frequently.
Overall, I'd absolutely recommend this product. It's a little expensive, but lasts a while and works really well (for me, at least). It's available through Ulta,
Pur Minerals, and probably other sources as well but these are the two I trust and would recommend to my readers.
xoxo,
Amanda
