WHY MINERAL MAKEUP?
By Chris Krenzer
“It looks like my skin only better.”
My answer to the question “Why Mineral Makeup?” is
“Why would you wear anything else?” The
look and benefits far surpass traditional makeup. And the category gets bigger and bigger and
more inventive every day with choices from low-end to high-end and everything
in between.
It does, however, get more important to examine
thoroughly the ingredient list. I had
one mass brand explain to me that they put talc in their mineral makeup because
it’s a mineral. Yes, but then it’s not
mineral makeup; it is traditional makeup relabeled. Be careful of those marketing people –
they’re clever!
What minerals should you see in mineral makeup? The quality, quantity, particle size and type
differ from brand to brand, but you should see a combination of any of these
ingredients: Titanium Dioxide, Zinc
Oxide, Iron Oxides, Mica or Boron Nitride.
The minerals should appear at the top of the ingredient list and not at
the bottom. (Ingredients are listed in
descending order with the largest amount listed first.)
Why is it important not to dilute minerals with
fillers such as talc? The high percentage
of minerals is what provides such versatile coverage, sun protection and
benefits for the skin. This concentrated
pigment also gives the mineral powder such adherence that it rarely transfers or
needs touching-up. Traditional colour cosmetics contain 70 – 90% talc and are often coloured
with petroleum-derived dyes (FD&C or D&C).
I should add that minerals have no relationship to
mineral oil which is a liquid
petrolatum, a by-product of petroleum.
I am often asked if minerals are organic. All substances can be divided into two
categories:
a) Organic
– that which contains organs to support life and will eventually rot (humans
and plants, for example)
b) Inorganic
– without the organs necessary for life (rocks, for example).
I think what people really mean when they ask me if
minerals are organic is: “Are they natural?”
That’s a hard question to answer because there isn’t a satisfactory
definition of “natural” in our industry. Perhaps a better question would be: “Do they
occur naturally?” The answer to that
would be “yes and no.” There is a
misconception that minerals used in mineral powders come directly from the
earth. Even if the FDA allowed that, you
wouldn’t want these minerals on your skin because they would be contaminated
with heavy metals and other toxins.
All minerals are manipulated extensively in a
laboratory and many are made there. This
doesn’t make them bad. They are still
minerals but they are manufactured under strict laboratory guidelines that
ensure their purity.
Perhaps “clean” rather than “natural” is a better word
to describe products that are attempting to eliminate toxins and questionable
ingredients. Clean has been the mineral
makeup pioneers’ quest from the start. Because
the category is so much more extensive than it once was, it has opened the door
for compromises. Now, you will see
mineral powders with talc, parabens, synthetic dyes and other ingredients. However, there are still a few purist brands
around. The choice is yours.
Let’s look at what minerals are used and
why.
- Titanium
dioxide (TiO2) – approved as a physical sunscreen – is a manufactured oxide of titanium. Titanium is
most commonly found in the mineral rutile (beach sand). TiO2 is seldom used raw but is coated to
eliminate oxidation and to increase its ability to refract UV rays. Dimethicone is commonly used as a
coating to increase the light scattering properties of TiO2.
- Zinc
oxide (ZnO) is manufactured from the mineral zincite. ZnO is also approved as a physical
sunscreen. This pure white mineral
is known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties. It remains white when exposed to UV
light.
- Mica
occurs naturally but in cosmetics is a manufactured mineral which gives
slip and glide to the finished product.
It can be used in a larger particle size to provide shimmer or it
can be used in a much smaller particle size to render it matte and
absorbent. Mica is often used as a colourant.
- Boron
nitride (BN) is a manufactured white, silky powder that gives smoothness,
coverage, slip and sheen. It is
also known as the “soft focus” mineral because of its light refraction
qualities.
- Iron
oxides (Fe203), commonly known as rust, are primarily used as colourants. All
iron oxides used in cosmetics are synthesized under strict laboratory
processes. Iron ore cannot be used
from nature because it contains heavy
metals.
At the beginning of this article, I made
the rather bold statement that the look and benefits of mineral makeup are far
superior to traditional makeup. How can
I back this up? Well, to begin with, in
the ten years that I’ve been intimately involved with mineral makeup, I have
never known a woman return to traditional makeup once she’s found a mineral
brand she likes. I’ve seen women and men
with skin challenges turn their lives around because of the benefits and
coverage from mineral makeup. Celebrities become fanatical about it. It has grown from a few pots in a plastic
surgeon’s office to a world-wide phenomenon.
It is now the fastest growing segment of the cosmetic industry.
Let’s look at some specific benefits. Authentic mineral powders are a foundation,
concealer and powder all in one. If the
label indicates an SPF, they are also a sunscreen.
Coverage
It is the way mineral makeup interacts with light that creates its
celebrated coverage. It can cover
almost any distraction without looking heavy and cakey. Minerals interact with light in complicated
ways:
- They
allow light to pass through the particles so it bounces off the skin
reflecting back some of the skin’s hue – literally taking on the colour of
the skin
- They
reflect, refract and diffuse light creating a soft focus effect
- They
create a luminous look to the skin – a healthy, youthful glow
This interaction with light makes colour-matching the skin tone easier
than with traditional makeup. In fact,
you will rarely see where minerals end and the skin begins. It is important to try minerals on the skin
to test for colour. Often, the colour in
the jar looks quite different when it is applied.
Allows the skin to breathe
Minerals allow the skin to breathe and function normally – a boon to all
skin types but especially for those with acne and rosacea.
Sun Protection
There is no question that sun protection is one of the most important
things we can do for the health of the skin.
The elegance of minerals is that they make this protection easy,
effective and beautiful. However, do not assume that because you have
a mineral makeup in your hand that it has sun protection. Assume the reverse unless it has an SPF rating on its label. Mineral sun protection satisfies everything
that we want a sunscreen to be. It is
part of the makeup not a separate layer.
It is non-occlusive, There is no
wait for chemicals to absorb before protection begins. It stays where you put it – no running into
the eyes. And it is so easy to add more
if you need it.
A quick word about SPF protection. SPF only refers to protection against the UVB
ray – the shorter ray that goes into the epidermis and creates a burn. The FDA is actually considering changing SPF
to SBF (sunburn protection). Why? Because the ray that is now considered more
dangerous that UVB is UVA, the longer
ray that enters the dermis and injures the collagen and elastin layers. It also lowers the immune system. (UVA creates the tan which is the body’s
response to injury. This is the ray that
tanning booths use.) Until now there has
been no method approved in the US for testing UVA protection. Other countries such as the UK, Australia and
Japan have measured UVA for years. The
FDA has the Japanese method under consideration for approval and some labs are
already conducting these tests. It is
reasonable to expect that mineral powders with an SPF rating will also have
meaningful UVA protection. Our company’s
initial tests have shown this to be true.
Feel and Look
If minerals are applied properly, they should feel weightless on the
skin. Some wearers even report that for
the first time in many years they can actually feel air on their faces. If minerals feel or look heavy, it is
probably an application problem and not the minerals themselves.
Minerals are so versatile that practically any look is attainable. But I think a phrase that I’ve heard more
than any other to describe the finished effect is: “It looks like my skin only better.” Perhaps in the end this is what attracts
women and men to mineral makeup. It fits
perfectly with today’s lifestyle. It’s
fast, easy and effective. It’s
multi-functional. It allows us to feel
natural and look flawless at the same time.
And for those of us who are interested in eliminating as many toxins as
possible from our lives, it does that too.
Why mineral makeup? Why would
you wear anything else?
©Chris Krenzer Mineral Cosmetics..
