The Best Mineral Makeup

The Mineral Makeup Benefits

Pure natural mineral makeup formulas are perfect for all skin types.

Their light weight textures and varying degrees of coverage, make them the best mineral make up for acne prone skin and oily skin conditions, due to their natural absorbency and non-comedogenic ingredients.

Mineral cosmetics are personally my professional make up product of choice.

The purity of their ingredients means they are gentle enough to use on even the most inflamed skin conditions, even straight after surgery without creating any skin reactions, making them the perfect choice for even the most irritated and sensitive of skin types.

Pure Mineral Makeup, the controversy

As a consumer we often don’t have a full understanding of what we are really purchasing when it comes to minerals.

It is easy to be misinformed by clever marketing and buzz words, that hold little meaning. We need to air on the side of caution when using them, because exactly how pure is pure is a very debatable question.

All mineral based cosmetics are not created equally, and because of this there is a lot of controversy surrounding the different ingredients found in formulations.

The reason for this is that true mineral makeup contains only naturally occurring ingredients, but there are some very big players in the world of makeup, who are not concerned about ethics.

This is coupled by the fact that the makeup industry is not governed by strict regulations when it comes to purity and advertising claims.

This means they have the freedom to include any number of ingredients in their formulations, allowing companies to market their products as natural, when they clearly contain any number of unnatural ingredients.

Mineral Makeup Ingredient

Absorbency: Kaolin is often an ingredient that is added, helping to absorb water and grease that can occur on the surface of the skin.

Adhesion: Zinc or magnesium stearate, are ingredients that are added to help the minerals adhere to the skin more effectively.

Appearance: The silky, matte appearance and texture of mineral powders is created by the use of chalk, starch and even on occasion powdered silk.

Bismuth Oxycholoride: This deserves its own special mention because although it is a mineral it is not naturally occurring and comes from lead and copper processing.

It’s popular because it acts as a highlighting agent that imparts a shimmer on the skin and is considered more effective then mica.

It is toxic and can cause reactions, so it is best to use mineral makeup without bismuth.

Colors: Mineral eye color makeup is colored by the use of either dyes and pigments.

Dye’s are a soluble agent that gives color to a mineral product by dissolving in it. Dyes are used because of the variety of colors and their staying power and work really well in lipsticks, penetrating the surface and dyeing it.

Personally I avoid any minerals cosmetics that include dyes, because I am unsure of their safety.

Pigments however are insoluble powder coloring agents that color products by dissolving in it, coating the skin with a pigment.

These are the safest and most natural choice of color for mineral makeup. They are literally colored earth pigments which are crushed and washed and are either used raw or burned.

Slippage: Talc and silicone is added to a formulation to help slippage, which gives a better feel as they glide across the skin

Fillers: These include talc and cornstarch, they are often used because they are cost effective. Fillers affect the quality of the product and dilute the color. If you ever feel like you have to layer on a product, this is probably due to the fact that fillers have been included.

Foundation: Mineral makeup comes in different forms and textures, rue mineral foundation comes in loose powder form.

Compact powders are the best makeup for oily skin, they are formulated with added kaolin, zinc oxide and starch, this helps to make the product more compressible.

These ingredients also help the product adhere to the skin more easily, absorbing excess oil of the surface of the skin, preventing shine.

A binder is also added to the formula such as a wax or gum to form the compact. Liquid foundation is usually a powder dispersed in water and glycerol water, oils and preservatives are added to them.

Having been in the beauty industry for many years, I have had the opportunity to work with a number of different mineral makeup product houses.

I have also had a lot of exposure of working with these products on literally hundreds, if not thousands of clients.

The following recommendations are my top tried and tested mineral based cosmetics that I personally love to use.

This is not only because of their commitment to staying as true to their original form as possible, but also because they create natural looking makeup formulas that have a wonderful effect on the skin and I happily recommend them to you:

After Glow

This is one brand that is trying to bridge the gap between fashionable cosmetics and purity.

Their commitment to creating a range of minerals that is safe to use and free from synthetic ingredients is commendable.

With their recent range of organic mineral cosmetics, they are certainly bucking the trend and paving the way for a new healthier way of thinking when it comes to mineral makeup.

Bare Escentuals

This is considered on of the best mineral makeup brands.

It offers a wonderful range of makeup colors and textures and has one of the best mineral makeup for dry skin in the range which is a light weight liquid formula with wonderful moisturizing properties.

They are another company that works hard at keeping its ingredients as pure as possible.

Bare Escentuals have recently they have even introduced a foundation formulation that is bismuth free.

Glo Minerals

This company offers an extensive range of fun minerals that appeals to the younger market.

Their philosophy is very much based on the skin enhancing benefits of ingredients, and their formulas include skin loving ingredients such as potent antioxidants and vitamins and green tea extracts which are great for aging skin.

Jane Iredale

This was one of the first cosmetic ranges to supply a professional range of mineral makeup to the beauty industry, so it has a great reputation within the world of beauty.

Jane Iredale’s philosophy is to be upfront and honest about their ingredients and adopt a really natural approach to their formulas, making it a personal favorite of mine.

Young blood

The owner originally started out in her career as a therapist. Working with dermatologist and skin care specialists, she noticed a gap in the market for a range of makeup for people with severely damaged skin.

This led her to create her own range of completely natural mineral makeup, that not only offers full camouflage coverage but also offers protection, in order to help to heal the skin restoring it to health.

The mineral range is all 100% natural with no fillers and again offers a wonderful selection, with more then sixteen different foundation shades which come in pale to mahogony, creating great natural coverage

True Mineral Makeup

As you can see its not easy to define what is the best mineral makeup, but fortunately there are ethical companies out there that do remain true to their natural claims.

They create formulas that are completely free from additives, preservatives or skin irritants.

By doing your research well and becoming a smart shopper, familiarizing yourself with the different ingredients found in mineral formulations, you will soon begin to recognize what are the safest and best mineral makeup cosmetics available on the market.