Bareminerals Survivor Lipgloss For Look Good Feel Better

To support Breast Cancer Awareness Month bareMinerals has teamed up with Look Good Feel Better to launch an exclusive pink lipgloss. This partnership aims to raise awareness and provide vital funds for the charity.

Survivior is a suit all Carnation pink shade - as with all Marvelous Moxie Lipglosses, it is infused with vitamins and minerals to smooth and hydrate lips, lips look fuller for a luscious pout. It features a delicious minty scent and is super glossy with sheer to medium opacity. 

For those who love a tingle, this gloss certainly has it!

For each sale of this £16 lipgloss a very generous £5 will go directly to the Look Good, Feel Better charity.

Look Good Feel Better is the only international cancer charity, providing free skincare and make-up workshops and self-help materials to help women and teenagers combat the visible side effects of cancer treatment.

Available now from bareMinerals boutiques and online at bareMinerals. 

*PR Sample

My Top Five Foundations

Listed below in no particular order are my current top five favourite foundations - 

Elizabeth Arden Flawless Finish Perfectly Nude Makeup £28

A light to medium coverage foundation that is so light in texture that it melts into the skin leaving a natural and radiant finish that makes my skin look so good.

Read the full review here - http://www.beautyswot.com/2014/04/elizabeth-arden-flawless-finish.html

bareMinerals BARESKIN Pure Brightening Serum Foundation £26

bareMinerals first ever liquid foundation blew me away with its results. Flawless perfection, a bright and natural finish with buildable coverage.

Read the full review here - http://www.beautyswot.com/2014/08/bareminerals-bareskin-pure-brightening.html

YSL Le Teint Touche Éclat Foundation £30.50

Over two years down the line this foundation still impresses me with its ability to transform my skin, illuminating and enhancing in a great gel like formula.

Read the full review here - http://www.beautyswot.com/2012/08/ysl-le-teint-touche-eclat-foundation.html

Boots No7 Stay Perfect Liquid Foundation £14

This foundation provides almost full coverage and has excellent staying power, I would use this on a daily basis as a good alternative to Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation.

Read the full review here - http://www.beautyswot.com/2013/10/no7-stay-perfect-liquid-foundation.html

Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Makeup £29.50

A best seller and it is easy to see why. A perennial favourite of mine, this foundation provides full coverage and all day staying power. It is heavier than other foundations but it really does cover everything and is ideal for the winter months. 

Read the full review here - http://www.beautyswot.com/2011/01/estee-lauder-double-wear-foundation.html

bareMinerals bareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation SPF20

bareMinerals say 

Our first ever mineral foundation and skincare serum in one. This ultra-thin, skin-perfecting fluid provides seamless adjustable coverage, a natural finish and the look and feel of beautiful skin. Supercharged Lilac Plant Stem Cells and Vitamin C help to reveal brighter, more even-looking skin tone.

To use - 

Shake bottle well 

2 drops for light coverage

4 drops for medium coverage

6 drops for full coverage

My thoughts

For reference I have normal/combination skin.

I didn't get on with the original bareMinerals loose powder foundation at all, I just found it accentuated my pores which wasn't a good look on me. The pressed powder foundation was better and although my sister loves it, again I wasn't convinced it was right for me. I much prefer liquid foundations on my skin personally and so I was rather curious to say the least and of course delighted that bareMinerals have launched a liquid foundation. 

I chose to review shade Bare Linen 03 - which is a neutral light tone. I have to say this is probably the BEST match ever to my natural skin.

I also was sent the brush that bareMinerals recommend to use with the foundation - a round brush with the inside cut out a bit, this is where you drop the foundation into and then buff in circular motions. 

I have been wearing the foundation for almost a week now, I have tried applying it with the brush, applying it with my fingers, wearing it with primer and without.

First of all I want to say straight off, that for me this is a holy grail foundation. I absolutely LOVE it. I love how light it is to wear, how it evens my skintone, conceals the redness on my skin and just makes my skin look utterly flawless. It looks so incredibly natural that it really just looks like my skin is amazing. The area that I love the most is my nose area, it is smooth and wonderful looking. Pores are concealed (although I am using the brilliant Witch Blackhead Clearing Gel).

Overall my skin looks fresh, radiant, clear and beautiful without looking mask like. This really is my skin but better. Skin perfection indeed.

It lasts a good 10 hours without need of a touch up.

I would 100% purchase this foundation.

With regards to the brush, do you need it? No you don't need to but personally I love the finish that it provides.

Below I am wearing bareMinerals bareSkine Pure Brightening Serum Foundation SPF20 in Bare Linen

bareMinerals Pure Brightening Serum Foundation SPF20 £26

Perfecting Base Brush £24

Available in 20 shades

*PR Samples

Beauty Look - Red Lips

Friday night and the red lips are out. I think it is much easier to apply a bold lip with a lip brush so I used the Kiko Lips 300 Retractable Brush for precision application. This meant I was able to get a lovely cupid's bow in my lips. On my eyes I used Benefit's Peek-A-Bright Eyes Illuminating Eye Kit and for some extra definition I used a black eyeliner pencil from Pur Minerals.

The red lipstick? A lovely and moisturising tomato red colour from Bare Minerals Marvelous Moxie Range in shade Live It Up.

Swatch of Live It Up

If you want to tone down this super bright look you can do so by using a gloss, I used New CID Cosmetics i-gloss in Coconut Ice which has a cool shimmer to it. Glossy but pared down red for a gorgeous pout (this is fab for Christmas Parties too)

My Lulu Guinness Lips :)

*I am not a makeup artist, I just enjoy playing with makeup

bareMinerals Ready SPF20 Foundation Review

If you are a regular reader of BeautySwot.com you will know that my preference by far and away are liquid formula foundations. I cannot get on with loose powder/mineral foundations and yet I continue to try them out as I know that they are popular with many people and I want to know what it is exactly I am missing out on. When I found a sample of the latest bareMinerals Foundation (a pressed powder foundation) - Ready SPF20 Foundation in a press bag I was keen to try it out.

bareMinerals Ready SPF20 Foundation shade - Medium Shade R250

bareMinerals say 

bareMineral Ready SPF20 Foundation is an innovative concept in solid mineral technology. Created through a unique method, this silky formula combines our propriety SeaNutritive Mineral Complex composed of positively charged sea minerals and antioxidants with cold-pressed rose hip seed oil. Our foundation is proven to hydrate and replenish throughout the day while diminishing the appearance of lines and wrinkles for softer, smoother, younger looking skin.

Formulated without parabens, binders, fillers or harsh chemicals

My thoughts 

(Bit of background -my skin is normal/combination with slight redness rosacea)

Being a pressed formula I had high hopes for this foundation. The shade R250 is spot on for my skin tone which I was really happy about. The formula is silky and smooth and on the bits of my skin that are not problematic the foundation looks really lovely and virtually undetectable. The little redness that I have on my inner cheeks are covered beautifully. The formula feels really nice on my skin and not at all powdery or dry. Looking great. However...when it comes to my nose and the area around my nostrils it is an entirely different story. I applied a primer, I waited for it to dry and then applied the foundation as directed. Sadly the one area where I needed it to perform is the one area it let me down. The pores were still visible and the powder just accentuated it, I tried my best to sort it out but to no avail. This happened before with the loose bareMinerals formula.

I just don't know where I am going wrong. it seems application should be foolproof but unfortunately for me for whatever reason I cannot seem to use this foundation brand to make me look flawless. For now I will keep on using liquid foundations which cover and disguise my pores in seconds.

I don't know if it is an age or skin type issue - anyone else have this problem?

bareMinerals Ready SPF20 Foundation is available in 20 shades and costs £25

bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss in Spark Plug Review

I was recently sent a few lip products from the new Marvelous Moxie collection from bareMinerals to try out. This Lipgloss in shade Spark Plug is already a firm favourite and a new go to if I want a natural, glossy lip.

Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss

bareMinerals say

Luscious, vibrant colour loaded into a refreshing formula that slips on satiny-smooth for sheer-to-medium coverage with nonstop glistening shine.

Lips look fuller and more voluptuous. Naturally-derived Shea, Avocado and Murumuru butters help to deeply hydrate and smooth lips while an infusion of minerals revitalises lips for a healthy-looking pout. All the while, an encapsulated vitamin A, C and E complex helps to deliver antioxidant defense,

Spark Plug is described as a Dusty Pink Pearl shade

My thoughts 

First up I like the packaging and the doe foot applicator which makes it really easy to apply with precision. The product has a really lovely minty scent and I am guessing by bareMinerals description of a refreshing formula they mean the slight tingle you get whilst wearing the gloss. Personally I shy away from products that give a tingle as I have a low pain threshold but actually this isn't painful at all more like a cooling effect, which when the weather was sweltering was quite welcome!

The actual colour is a really nice and well pigmented pinky/brown shade that looks very natural on my lips and the effect provided is an ultra high shine. Super glossy but not at all thick or gloopy it also lasts for a few hours.  I love it.

Here I am wearing it on a couple of occasions

A cheeky pout

bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss is available in 14 shades and costs £16

*PR Sample

New Launch - bareMinerals Ready Luminizer

Being a fan of getting 'the glow', I absolutely love all manner of face highlighters and illuminators, with that in mind it comes as no surprise that the bareMinerals READY Luminizers have piqued my interest.

I have struggled with mineral products in the past as they were in loose format but now that advances in technology has meant that mineral makeup is able to come in solid form I feel more at ease with using them.

Promising to enhance the complexion with a lit from within glow it contains ingredients to deliver skin nourishing benefits whilst highlighting the complexion with a soft candlelit radiance. It sounds so good!

The Ready Luminizer comes in two shades -

The Shining Moment - Shimmering yellow gold

The Love Affair - Shimmering warm nude pink

Formulated without parabens, binders, fillers or harsh chemicals.

Available from November from bareMinerals stockists priced £26

Bare Minerals Original SPF15 Foundation & Matte SPF15 Foundation

I know that there are many fans of mineral make-up particularly foundations and felt it was about time to do a review or two on them. I had only had one experience of Mineral Foundation from a different brand prior to trying Bare Minerals and I just didn't didn't get on with it at all. I found it hard to apply and it left what I felt was a cakey finish and showed up the pores on my skin.

The lovely people at Bare Minerals sent me 2 samples of their foundation in the hope that I would change my mind and opinion of mineral foundation. They also very kindly spent time explaining to me how to apply - by swirling your brush into the powder, tapping the excess off and then buffing it onto the skin in circular motions

Original in shade Medium Beige - £22 for 8g 


I like this foundation, I won't lie I still find it all a bit too much faff to apply and it takes a lot longer to do than my usual and still preferred liquid foundation. My pores still show up so lots of buffing needed to make them disappear. The end result though is very nice and was in actual fact a perfect match for my skin tone - it leaves my skin looking clear and bright, glowy but not oily. It feels so light that I don't feel like I am wearing anything at all. For me, the major plus points of this foundation were that it gave excellent coverage that completely covered the slight redness that I have on my inner cheek areas and the fact that I did not need a separate concealer at all.

Matte in shade Medium Beige - £24 for 6g


This is the latest foundation from Bare Minerals and I have to say that I wasn't as keen on this version compared to the Original.Although the coverage was exactly the same as what I have written above, I felt my skin appeared duller than I would like. Readers of my blog will know that I like bright, dewy foundations that luminate my skin. If you are a fan of the matte look than this foundation will appeal. The added benefits of this version are that it absorbs excess oil and eliminates shine.

I am still not convinced that I will be replacing my usual liquid foundation - I find it a lot quicker to apply but maybe my application is at fault. I am considering visiting a Bare Minerals counter to have a make-over done to see how the professionals apply it.

Do you use mineral foundations? Which one do you use?

If you would like to try Bare Minerals it is available from Debenhams, House of Fraser and Selfridge's and QVC!