Originally Posted by Heather Hicks /img/forum/go_quote.gif
Hmmm...This may make me rethink some things. I always thought mineral makeup was supposed to be more gentle. I do have sensitive skin. I burn easily. Very fair. And my cheeks stay red. When I went to the dermatologist on a separate issue, she mentioned I have some mild rosacea. For instance, I just got the Clarisonic Mia in the Sephora chic week sale, and it comes with a sensitive skin brush though they do make an ultra sensitive brush head. I found I can only use it at night because it makes my face red for a couple of hours. Although, when I wake up in the morning, my skin looks better than it would without the Mia.
Anyway, I bought some powder foundation from Meow Cosmetics which is made for sensitive skin. Sure it does not offer the best coverage (as it goes on pretty sheer and does not build much) but it doesn't seem to bother me. I also don't 'buff' it too much but rather I kind of glide it on with a very large powder brush. But as I wanted to find something more portable, I did purchase a pressed powder from Josie Maran, which works ok, but feels a bit heavy on my face. Then just yesterday I purchased the first liquid foundation I have tried in years--Urban Decay's Naked Skin in the shade 3.5. I like that it really does feel weightless, but it offers more coverage than either of my powders, for those days I need to look my best.
I have moved away from minerals in the area of blushes and I use mineral shadows only every now and then. Urban Decay is again my main shadow choice, with a few others like Tarina Tarantino, Lancome, Sephora, Tokidoki, etc. For blush, Tarte is my fave, along with sometimes using Benefit, MUFE, etc.
Should I have any concerns about anything I mentioned, due to my rosacea? I know my skin flushes easily. Just the friction of putting makeup on with my hands or with a brush is going to cause me to flush red a bit. But it usually fades quickly and the makeup helps cover it anyway. Still, I don't want to do something which will make my rosacea worse. Yikes! Thanks for mentioning all this Formosa. I might want to take my rosacea a little more seriously than I have.
I'd observe my skins reactions to different mineral mixes, try samples first. Not all minerals have the same hardness or sharp edges when reduced to a base powder form the way mica has.
Mica's made up of a a few different minerals but silicate is a large component, which is what sand is and when sand is melted down forms glass.
There are some minerals that are soft, for example graphite and it won't scratch you no matter what you do with it... so there very well may be a mix that won't hurt your rosacea, or a company that mills and tumbles their powder to silky perfection!!
I'm sorry but I do not have extensive knowledge on other minerals at this point... I'm aware of mica because it has become the most common offender for me in skin care.
If you've got a geologist friend have them read the mineral powder ingredients they can probably tell you which when milled might still retain jagged edges and cause abrasions on sensitive skin.
Mica's natural structure is sheet-like and can be easily separated into little leaflets. I suspect when it is milled it still breaks in a way that doesn't betray it's natural mineral structure so it could scratch. It' really pretty though!!