There's been a fuss about mineral makeup. I never really quite got it but eventually, I gave in. Many bloggers and beauty experts rave about its wonders. Just so you know, the difference between normal, commercial-grade makeup and mineral makeup is this: the latter are made up of crushed minerals with no oil or wax additives. Commercial-grade makeup, however, may contain preservatives (anything that has paraben attached to it, and other chemicals.) Many mineral makeup manufacturers also swear by their cruelty-free tag, meaning they do not perform animal testing.
At first, I thought mineral makeup is more expensive. Well, that may be partly true, but I found a local brand that seems to fit my needs and of course, my budget. Say hello to
Ellana Minerals! I first came across Ellana Minerals while I was browsing through different beauty blogs and raiding Multiply for new and potential review materials. They have a wide range of options specifically suited for Filipina skin. Even more
morena girls have shades to suit their skin tones.
I wasn't sure what particular products would actually fit my skin tone so I tried asking for their free samples (they come in small baggies for you to try out before purchasing). I just filled out a questionnaire with my descriptions and after sending in a minimal fee for shipping, in less than 3 days, I got what I asked for! It's really easy. Just go to the website and everything is already there. If you're sure about which shade you want, you can go right ahead and proceed to purchase. There are many payment options, so it won't be much of a hassle for buyers to get their hands on their amazing products!
I know now that I have a warm skin tone with olive to yellow undertones (thanks to my Chinese heritage).
Check out what they picked out for me.
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| Macchiato foundation. |
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| Caramel foundation |
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Smile concealer
I had to add Awake in my next purchase.
This is too yellow for me if I used it alone. |
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Espresso con panna translucent finishing powder
This, I re-purchased! I love it! It's sheer and blends
well with my concealer and foundation. |
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Fulfillment blush
I like this a lot but I did not repurchase since I still
have stocks of blush in my kit. |
I used the baggies for my graduation ball and the actual graduation ceremony. I love that when I use mineral makeup, it feels like my second skin and I can feel my skin can actually breathe in it. It doesn't clump, provided that it is blended properly, plus it requires very little touch-up (well, maybe because I used primer, but with the heat and humidity on the UPLB grounds, these babies really stood the test of time and of the elements.) I just use my normal eye shadow brush (in place of a concealer brush) then just blend in with a sponge. The concealer really covers up my pimples and dark spots well. I don't use much of the foundation because I use a BB cream as my base, but the concealer and the finishing powder pass with flying colors. The blush is so adorable. It gives me that just-bitten color and it looks so natural. I'm thinking of re-stocking as soon as I run out on supplies. Oh, did I mention that their prices start at Php 100 per 1g? Amazing, right? Plus, it's Philippine-made! Support local enterprises! :)
Love,
SGT <3
