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| MAC MSFN - photo from maccosmetics.com |
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| Laura Gellar Blush n Brighten in Sunswept, my photo |
So, first up, I figured I might as well write an official review for the MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural, since I've been talking about it so much. And actually, I've been using it almost every day since I bought it.
MSFN is part of MAC's Mineralize line - they have liquid, loose powder, and baked powder makeup. Keep in mind that there's a difference between their Skinfinish and their Skinfinish Natural (which is what I'm reviewing) - the regular Skinfinish is a setting powder, and it comes in bronze-y shades or brightening shades. The Skinfinish Natural is their actual foundation, and the claim is that you can use it to set your foundation or you could wear it on its own.
When I was at MAC, I tried it both ways. The SA put tinted moisturizer on one side of my face, and left the other side clean. I don't know if it was her technique (I should've known not to ask someone with leathery skin to help me pick foundation!) or if it was the actual product, but I HATED how the MSFN looked on top of the moisturizer. It made me look old and dry and gross. (Sorry, I just hate that "HI! I'M TOTALLY WEARING FOUNDATION!" look.)
On clean skin, it looked nice. Really... natural. And according to Leatherface, even if it looks powder upon first application (she must've applied, like, five pounds of it to my face), the natural oils in your skin will make you look less dry. Okay, I'll bite. I bought my shade, Medium Plus, and went on my way.
(Note: MAC foundations usually come in shades labeled in codes - like NC35 - rather than actual words. MSFN comes in shade names, like light, medium, medium plus - whatever that means, medium dark, etc.)
Over the next few days, I wore it alone over my moisturizer - no primer or concealer or anything. And I REALLY like it. My skin feels soft, rather than chalky. It evens out the redness in my cheeks without making my face completely one solid color. (I've seen that on people too - they look like plastic, all uniformly shaded.) It doesn't last all day, but that has never bothered me - when I'm tired after a long day of work, the last thing I really care about is my foundation. Plus, it's not a big deal to do touch-ups if I have to.
One thing I noticed is that it's hard to pick up much product with a regular powder brush, but actually, that's a good thing - it gives me a chance to build, rather than putting on way too much right away. I've tried a couple different brushes, and to really pick up the product, I've had to use those flat blending/buffer brushes (like the one I got from Mineral Essence) - the softer, longer bristles of a normal powder brush don't pick up much very easily.
So, I would DEFINITELY buy this again. In fact, I think it might be my Holy Grail powder. (I'm considering adding it to my list - I don't have any foundations listed.) It's light-but-buildable coverage, and it doesn't give me the powdery fuzzy-face look that other powders do.
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| Smooth even skin! |
Laura Gellar's Blush n Brighten came in that set that I bought and returned, but I decided to re-buy just the blush in a different shade. The set came with Apricot Berry, which was too dark and reddish on me. I chose Sunswept, which is a little bit more pinky. I've been on the hunt for a good baked blush/bronzer, and this one fit the bill.
So, one tip here is that, unlike the MAC foundation above, this product gets picked up EASILY. I was messing with it last night and swiped a couple fingers across the top and applied it, and I looked clownish, so this morning, I dabbed my angled blush brush (from Sephora) and gently applied, and it still came up strong, but less clownish. I look extremely rosy, maybe on the verge of being sunburnt.
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| Too much sun? Not in the middle of March! |