I realized I never wrote a review of Everyday Minerals on my blog! (Though I have mentioned it a couple of times). Since I love their products I decided to write a full review.
Foundation:Their foundation is my holy grail! Not only is the color a perfect match for my skin but the finish is amazing! Since I started wearing mineral makeup five or so years ago, I've found many good/great matches (I thought all of them were perfect matches until I sampled more and found better and better matches: anything is an improvement from conventional makeup that is typically pink and peach tones!). Everyday Minerals is high in mica so its coverage for most of its formulas is light to medium, though it is very buildable, and they also have an intensive formula, which is medium to heavy coverage. I usually don't use their intensive formula (anything too heavy dries out my skin) but I love their matte and semi matte formulas. Many women also like their original glow formula, though some people say it's too shiny and others say it's perfect. I just got a sample of the original glow, I've only used it once but I thought it was too shiny for me. I love their matte and semi-matte formulas because it doesn't dry out my dehydrated skin yet controls oil. I don't really wear makeup for coverage or to hide flaws but I wear it to keep my dry yet oily skin in check, and also for some sunscreen, so I usually don't wear foundation most days but when I do I usually reach for this one. Note: because their formulas are higher in mica, and lower in titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, it would stand to reason the sunscreen properties of this line is lower than other mmu lines that use titanium dioxide or zinc oxide as their first ingredients.
Foundation color I wear: I am of Chinese descent and my skin is light-medium strong yellow with a lot of golden tones and a hint (and I really do mean a hint!) of olive. The color I wear is: winged butter. It is usually hard for me to find an exact match because I don't have the lightest skin, but my skin is not medium either, but falls in between. But this color is perfect for me :)
Blush:I am not really a blush person but as I've gotten a few free sample blushes, I've tried them. I like their product because the colors are very wearable, light in pigmentation, and blendable. Very nice formulation.
Eye shadows: Most of the time I wear my own (eye shadows are the color cosmetics I use the most), but I was pleasantly surprised at their eye shadows. I've heard from other women on some forums that they usually are not pigmented enough but I found this not to be true with their two newest colors (I have no idea on how pigmented their other colors are though). I like how the colors stayed put and the pigmentation was very rich. I've only tried two colors so far (which were free, but they were full size!) but they were very beautiful.
Concealers:I don't use concealers most of the time but ended up with some samples from the sample kit (see below). Usually I can not wear concealers because most concealers are too heavy in coverage so dry me out and settle into my pores (I have very fine textured skin). But this is one of the only lines in which I've been able to wear their concealer without it settling. Sunlight is nice for those days when I don't get enough sleep and don't want to wear a full foundation.
Lippies:I've only tried one lippie so far. I really love how it glides on my lips and the texture. It leaves the lips plump and also shiny (but not too shiny)! The color I got was cherry fizz. It is a medium pink color, but this lippie doesn't have too much pigmentation--perfect for a day look. My lips are very naturally pink so it didn't give my lips much color but made them a little shiny. A good natural look with a little oomph! Love the formula so next time will choose a color that's not that close to my lip color! Note:I just read on a forum and also checked their site to be sure, but they have reformulated their lippies. They are supposed to be more pigmented now and the texture is supposed to be different too. More pigmentation=great, but I'll have to try their new formula now to see if I like the texture and glide or not!
Cream:A very simple, waterless cream (so technically a balm not a cream). I like using this all over. For the face, I think it would be better for those with dry and normal skin; it may benefit some people with oily skin but others it will be too heavy. (Be sure to apply to damp skin/dampen skin with toner). Great on the hands and neck area! Smiled when I saw hydrogenated vegetable oil as an ingredient, ha!
Samples:I highly recommend people getting either their samples to start out with. They offer a free sample kit (you just pay shipping) in which you get
full 3 gram jars of three foundations, a concealer, and a blush/face color (your choice). They say on their website it's only enough for 3-6 applications but honestly it's really enough for a lot more! I apply makeup with a very light hand (one light coat) and if I wear it every day, their samples last me about a month or more. Most people wear more foundation, so this will usually last others at least a week or two (I don't think I've ever met anyone yet, or talked to anyone on the forums that applies as little foundation as I do). I like to use them when I travel.
Kits:They also offer many great kits, which end up being a lot less expensive than buying the product individually--and they are inexpensive to begin with! I just got their custom kit for $32.00, in which you can choose your own products--so I got 3 vegan brushes, 2 full size foundations, and the cherry fizz lippie. In addition they were having a weekly special when I bought from them a couple months ago so I also got a lot of free specials: 3 other brushes and two beautiful full size eye shadows. Be sure to check their website for weekly specials!
I will be reviewing the brushes in another entry, but they are fantastic: very nice!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Greed in the name of green article (Environmental News)
I just read a really interesting article in the Washington Post's style section called "Greed in the name of green" by Monica Hesse which I thought brought up a lot of good points about environmentalism and consumerism. But I am not sure if most people would truly get the article since it was very sarcastic in tone, and its tone may inadvertly dissuade people from buying green products when needed, instead of driving the article's main point home that to truly be green it is better to consume less. But I think it's worth a read since I think the author brought up a very important ecological topic, and the title and writing style really caught my attention.
I plug a lot of green companies on this blog and though I've mentioned in a couple entries that less consumption of products is always best for the environment, this article made me realize that perhaps I haven't emphasized it enough. In the last several years I've really tried to buy less; I'm the kind of person that will use something until it breaks (I had a CD diskman for 15 years and did not get an ipod until it died--and I got my ipod as a very nice birthday present, didn't buy it myself. When I got a new cell phone in the winter of 2006, the employees at Best Buy were so shocked that my old phone was like five years old--I had used it until it literally fell apart). But at the same time I have a weakness for books (my library is huge) and, of course, herbs and aromatherapy (but aromatherapy and herbalism are fast becoming my livelihood).
I think the article brought up a very good point: that the problem and point of being environmental is not buying just green products instead of conventional/less eco-friendly products (though that is a good thing too). The problem is that people consume too much, and think that if they can replace everything they consume now with a greener equivalent, and keep consuming the same amount they do, that will solve the problem. Well that would make it a little better, but many people don't realize that overconsumption in general is a huge problem: to be truly green it is better to consume less, and use what you have long term (not be caught up in consumerism and the need to have the newest gizmo or fad). The author also mentions in her article a few other good points (but I think they got buried under her sarcastic tone, and because of that some people may not get it and see this article as an 'anti-green product' article though it isn't): when you do need to get something buying green is a good alternative, since it is more eco-friendly, and the plethora of green products on the market shows that people are realizing that environmental problems are truly real and they are serious.
I personally think the best way to be eco-friendly is to buy less, and only buy what you need (and when you need to buy, try a green alternative). Quality over quantity.
I plug a lot of green companies on this blog and though I've mentioned in a couple entries that less consumption of products is always best for the environment, this article made me realize that perhaps I haven't emphasized it enough. In the last several years I've really tried to buy less; I'm the kind of person that will use something until it breaks (I had a CD diskman for 15 years and did not get an ipod until it died--and I got my ipod as a very nice birthday present, didn't buy it myself. When I got a new cell phone in the winter of 2006, the employees at Best Buy were so shocked that my old phone was like five years old--I had used it until it literally fell apart). But at the same time I have a weakness for books (my library is huge) and, of course, herbs and aromatherapy (but aromatherapy and herbalism are fast becoming my livelihood).
I think the article brought up a very good point: that the problem and point of being environmental is not buying just green products instead of conventional/less eco-friendly products (though that is a good thing too). The problem is that people consume too much, and think that if they can replace everything they consume now with a greener equivalent, and keep consuming the same amount they do, that will solve the problem. Well that would make it a little better, but many people don't realize that overconsumption in general is a huge problem: to be truly green it is better to consume less, and use what you have long term (not be caught up in consumerism and the need to have the newest gizmo or fad). The author also mentions in her article a few other good points (but I think they got buried under her sarcastic tone, and because of that some people may not get it and see this article as an 'anti-green product' article though it isn't): when you do need to get something buying green is a good alternative, since it is more eco-friendly, and the plethora of green products on the market shows that people are realizing that environmental problems are truly real and they are serious.
I personally think the best way to be eco-friendly is to buy less, and only buy what you need (and when you need to buy, try a green alternative). Quality over quantity.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)