I have lots of friends who look wonderful in Bare Minerals. It seems to give them a radiant healty glow. I, on the other hand don't like it. I gave mine to a neighbor and she was happy to get it. On me, pores looked huge and wrinkles and lines were exaggerated. I didn't like the coverage and my face burned. Of course, the colors didn't work for me either. Bare Minerals seems a bit overpriced to me, also. I tried many mineral foundation samples from the internet and most didn't do much for me but were better than BM. I did find a great one though. I love the new Merle Norman mineral makeup. It looks good on me. FINALLY!!! We're all definately not the same, and different products seem to work for different people.

the reason that you are feeling a pricking itching sensation on your face is not because of the minerals moving around on your face but because of the naturals sunscreen, titanium oxide. some people notice that pricking sensation when they are in the heat or sweating, it will go away after a short time. i experienced this same thing for a short time but i cannot tell you the last time that i felt that and i live where the temperature is commonly over 100 degrees and it is constantly humid. i have been using the makeup for awhile now and could never switch to anything else. i have even tried the avon mineral makeup and it is very thick and cakes easliy. bare minerals is one of the only true mineral makeups and has been around the longest.

Oh yes, little critters are everywhere... but it doesn't mean I'd want to rub the ones that are still crawling around on my eyelids... *shudders* I know what carmine is and where it comes from, but the dye should be an extraction created from the crushed shells... and should NOT contain living buggies. If BE is going to continue using carmine in various products, perhaps they should find a better way to refine it... or at least have some better quality control over it. And no matter how you shake it, bugs are NOT minerals. You can't make a big deal about having 100% mineral makeup when you are using non-mineral ingredients in them. And if it's only the the foundations that are 100% minerals, then they should stop implying that ALL their makeup is 100% min. That's just my thought on the matter. Having worked in the cosmetic industry before (but no longer) I ran into many people who had sensitivity/allergic reactions to various ingredients. Other than perfumes, one of the biggest offenders causing skin sensitivites is COLOUR. A LOT of people have reactions to products that are in shades of pink, and to lesser degrees reds and some light purples. Not all shades of pink, mind you, but enough of them to make them wary of that whole section of the colour spectrum. And since they can use other colours of shadows and blushes, they've ruled the irritants down to one or more of the dyes. The problem with most beauty products is that there are so many ingredients listed on the labels that once you know that you react to a certain colour product, you can't usually tell which of the dyes you are sensitive to. Most people with this problem wind up avoiding the whole pink colour family just to be on the safe side. But if you know you react to a certain ingredient, like carmine, you can pass on anything that shows it on the ingredient list. I have not seen how the ingredients are labeled on the BE packaging/website/etc, so I'm just going off of what people have posted here. My issue with the whole thing is: How are the people who KNOW they are allergic to carmine (or have any other issues with it) going to know to avoid this product? Or at least that colour? If there's no ingredient list and the company is already implying that they are 100% mineral based, that further implies that they don't use carmine... which can be a problem for those people who need to avoid carmine for allergy or lifestyle reasons. And personally, I get a little peeved when something is sold to me under false prestenses, implied or otherwise. That's just my spin on it.

I just purchased the Bare Minerals and have used it with the id prep cream. I do use Clarins Moisture Quenching Hydra-Care Cream on the dry areas on my face heavily, and lightly on the rest of my face under the prep. I haven't had any problems yet... That said, about 5 years ago, I picked up what I thought was the Neutrogena daily moisturizer that I had always used. I used it one day and the next morning woke up with a "sunburn". It was early fall so I figured I had spent a little more time in the sun than I realized the day before. I didn't use the product again until Christmas Eve that year. Well, I used it more heavily because it was winter and my skin was drier. On Christmas morning I awoke to a completely dark red sunburned looking face and had to wait several days for it to go away. I had all of the same symptoms you have posted. It was painful and I didn't even want to put anything on but aloe because I was afraid to trap the heat. i didn't even wear makeup on Christmas day to tone it down since it hurt so badly. Long story made a little shorter, I checked my bottle of Neutrogena thinking perhaps I bought one that had expired. No, they changed the product to include alpha hydroxy. Apparently, I am one of those people who absolutely cannot use anything with alpha hydroxy in it. I can't even use a zit stick. I have really fair and sensative skin. I like the BM since it is light and contains natural ingredients, and very natural looking. I even splurged and bought my daughter the beginner set. I am thinking that perhaps the mask you used (especially since it was on much longer than recommended) burned your face. I will contiunue to search the reaction to the Bare Minerals since I my interest has been peaked. I hope I didn't waste good money.