Frugal Friday - Mineral make-up for less

I posted about my simple facial care routine here, but now I want to share my make-up routine.

Liquid make-up has always caused problems for my skin. It clogged my pores, despite its claims to the contrary. And it was messy and hard to blend into my hairline/jawline. Not to mention it felt heavy. Ugh!

I was so glad to find mineral make-up several years ago. On the recommendations of friends, I tried the Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals. Let me tell you, that stuff is expensive! But it was a dream to use. Buff, tap, swirl! I loved it. It wasn't hard to blend and it felt so light on my skin. The only product that I couldn't use was the eye color. It made my eyes itchy and watery. Since then Maybelline, Avon and other name brand cosmetics have marketed their own lines of mineral make-up, but it was still a bit pricey.

Then I found Everyday Minerals. Compared to Bare Minerals and the other brand names, it was positively cheap! For example, the Bare Minerals foundation is $25. I can get the EM equivalent for $9.50. The EM eye color doesn't bother my eyes at all. I compared ingredients and found that Bare Minerals contained bismuth while EM didn't. Maybe I'm allergic? The EM price is $6 while the Bare Minerals is $13. From brushes to concealers to kits, EM is cheaper.

And the best part, you can try them out before you buy. Everyday Minerals offers various free kits for foundation, concealer, eyes, and cheeks. You can find the perfect colors for you without investing a lot of money. All you do is pay shipping, and unless you choose a quicker method like Priority Mail, it's less than $3. You are limited to one free kit per order, though. But you can return as many times as you like to try other colors.

What's better than free?

Oh, they also offer samples of almost every make up product for $2-3 if you don't want to try a kit. So you don't have to spend a lot to find the perfect make up for you.

If you've ever considered switching to mineral make-up, give Everyday Minerals a try. If you don't like it, at least you haven't spent a fortune finding that out.

For more frugal ideas visit Life As Mom's Frugal Fridays.