Mineral Makeup Brand Spotlight : BareFaced Minerals

I’ve got a quick question : What would happen, if you place someone who works at the kitchen alot, with mineral makeup supplies? A wild guess would be, she’d apply her expertise in the kitchen to whip up absolutely wonderful mineral makeup! Wanna bet? This actually is the story of Rhonda Bridges King, the beauty and brains behind the mineral makeup brand, BareFaced Minerals.

BareFaced Minerals is a mineral makeup brand sold in the internet, and is based in Florida. They take pride with their Velvet Plush foundations which took over a year to formulate ( hard work, actually paid off! ), which in my opinion, is one of those really unique mineral makeup foundations in the market. They also pride themselves with great shades, with over 93 shades of foundation! So, it’s almost a sure bet that you’d find your perfect shade in one pot, as opposed to mixing them to achieve your shade! Coolness!

Going back to her story, Rhonda has always been fond of colors, and makeup is one of her favorite things, too. She has worked for the Healthcare Food Service as CDM for over eighteen years, and she has a flair for decorating cakes and coming up with unique recipes of her own. Now, she wanted to wear a kind of makeup that would last all day in the kitchen, and she bought mineral makeup, and was absolutely smitten by the idea that minerals were all natural, and wouldn’t harm the skin in anyway. However, she didn’t quite like the ingredients listed on this certain brand, so she began her research about mineral makeup and formulations, and came up with her own. It seemed so natural for her to do this because of her expertise in the kitchen - with formulations, and shades, as well. Let’s just say, she discovered that she has a natural talent for making mineral makeup. When her colleagues at the hospital asked her what makeup she was wearing ( this is a sure shot sign that they love it! Haha! ), they couldn’t believe Rhonda when she said that she made it herself. Then and there, a business is born. Everything fell into place, and she let destiny take her to her rewarding career, as owner of… BareFaced Minerals.

Okay, I bet you all want to know some inside scoops inside Rhonda’s workplace. We’ve got some!

1. BareFaced Minerals are handcrafted in small batches to give the best texture possible.
2. BareFaced Minerals undergo several different blending techniques, 3 separate times, using 3 different pieces of equipment to ensure the incredible smooth texture of their products.
3. They work in a completely smoke-free environment.
4. Their bestsellers are the following :
Velvet Plush Foundations give that unique feel to the face. The finish is absolutely flawless and incredibly natural.
Jo’s Secret Illuminating Finishing Powder for a flawless, airbrushed finish
For shadows, and liners - Golden Oak (rich brown), Katana (rich deep navy blue), and Wizard of Oz (deep, rich emerald green with turquoise undertones)
For blushes - the shades of the Colorme collection and the Cinnabear are popular
Of course, may we forget the Lippie Styx? Absolutely not? The Coco-Tangerine taste, as well as the balm-and-color in one is a staple inside the purse! I personally love Lippie Styx with all my heart =)

5. BareFaced Minerals is expanding. They just moved into a 2000 square foot warehouse, and will purchase a bigger one this coming 2007!

Wow! Wasn’t that great? Now, it’s time for our question and answer portion! Rhonda was so nice to answer everything we needed to know, and for some tidbits and advice, just for our The Mineral Makeup Blog readers!

What inspires you to come up with certain shades, and finishes ( for foundations ) ?

My clients, of course! Here at bFM, we strive to give our clients what they ask for. Having a very broad client base world-wide, we have a lot of faces to practice on . We listen to their wishes and formulate our colors based on their requests. When we first opened our webstore, we had a small line of foundation colors. As we began to grow a client base, we used their custom colors to add to our product line…that’s why Velvet Matte shades have names….they are all clients.

Same for blushes, shadows and multi-purpose powders…all named for people in my life, or a client. It’s really easy to think of someone you know and name a color for them. Some of my very best friends are blushes.

What can you say about alot of people absolutely loving your new Velvet Plush foundation?

Well of course we are absolutely thrilled that our clients are loving Velvet Plush! There was a LOT of research, development, trial and error (LOTS of trial and Errorssss!) that went into VP. It took us over a year to develop the finished product we offer now. It was important to us that we have the very best product on the market. We couldn’t settle for mediocre….it had to be flawless and perfect. We are very happy with the results, and are tremendously grateful to those testers who gave such honest opinions as we struggled along this road. The ladies from Mineral Makeup Mania (thank you maniacs!) have been a great asset to us…always ready to test and they LOVE a sale.

How do you love your profession?

Oh my, can you tell I love it? I could talk forever about mineral makeup! I am truly blessed to be an active part in this revolution towards healthier choices for cosmetics and skin care. There are lots of healthy choices out there, and I encourage everyone to take that first step: read the ingredients on the products you now use. Check out a mineral makeup company (we hope it’s us!) and read the ingredient list. Your skin will love you for making the switch!

What message do you have for the non-mineral makeup users out there? (let’s convince them to use mineral makeup! Haha! )

I think there are a lot of faces out there who are seeking a healthier look, who are longing to be environmentally friendly and delete the harsh chemicals from their daily lives and get back to basics as much as possible. Some have found it in mineral makeup, some are still struggling for an answer that works for them. I have found very few people who actually WANT to go back to liquid-over-the-counter cosmetics. There is definitely a learning curve to mineral makeup. It’s difficult to really believe that a few grains is all you need to complete a face. I say: Try it and have fun with it! It’s so versatile and the creations you can do each and every day can be different, even with just a few samples. Minerals blend very well together, so there’s really no need to ever “wipe it off and start again” ..keep layering that eye shadow! It will be an awesome trip! Beginners should sample, sample, sample.

What’s your personal style?

My staples are several different kabukis (different sizes and density), as well as a flat top bronzer, taklon for concealing and a fan brush for blush. I use a mini smudger and contour for shadow. I use mineral makeup every day, no matter what my plans are. I never do touch-ups in the middle of the day, with the exception of lippies….I carry at least ONE in my pocket always.

Do you have secret application tips that you wish to share for my readers?

Good brushes are a must! Keeping them clean and sanitized is also important. Good lighting is imperative when applying your minerals. Natural lighting is better. Find a place in the house where you can plug in an Ott light if possible. And don’t be afraid to take a mirror outside and see how your face looks in the natural sunlight. Secrets? Well, they wouldn’t be secrets if I told you, would they? hehe! Seriously…less is better with minerals. Applying a light layer and building your minerals to achieve your finished look is crucial. And don’t be afraid to try new colors! Mineral Makeup should be FUN!

Okay, for the list of great women who wear BareFaced Minerals? Okay, one huge secret. Remember the absolutely fabulous Toni of Mineral Makeup Mania who granted us an interview? Rhonda let us in a secret, and told us that Toni wore Velvet Plush in that picture! All I can say is - WOW. ( I always get dumbfounded with pictures of women wearing mineral makeup! )

Let me end this article that I absolutely loved writing with the philosophy of BareFaced Minerals. Ingredients in a mineral makeup should be beneficial to our skin, that makes our skin look and feel softer, healthier, and prettier. BareFaced Mineral Cosmetics is where Beauty begins..Naturally.

*Plug : They have a sale sale sale!!! Go hoard your Lippie Styx now!!!