Foundation Week: BYS Minerals Naturale Compact Foundation

It's been a while since I reviewed a foundation, no? I've been so enamoured with my favorites that I haven't been exploring outside of the things I already have. That's perfectly fine, of course, but I'm a beauty blogger. I'm all about options for you guys, which is why this week I'll be talking about five foundations worth looking into. You just might find a new favorite!

Let me begin with a drugstore product: the BYS Minerals Naturale Compact Foundation (P699). I liked it as soon as I swatched it - it had this pearlescent sheen and a silky, smooth texture, two qualities that mark a good foundation. I'm quick to judge when swatching foundation, and I'm happy to say that I made a good call in buying this one!

The coverage is light to medium only, so I can say right off the bat that this isn't for troubled skin. It does have good oil control though. If you have acne and heavy blemishing, this is more appropriate as a finishing powder on top of liquid foundation or a heavy-coverage powder foundation. It won't cover much by itself.

Sand Beige is a medium, yellow-toned shade. It suits my NC30-35 skin well.

If you have good skin, this is a great everyday foundation. It will make your skin glow without that overly-shiny look, plus help you keep the oiliness at bay. This BYS foundation is actually very similar to the MAC Mineralized Skinfinish powder! I don't own the MAC one, but I've swatched it several times and BYS appears to have the same silkiness, sheen, and low coverage.

It comes in three shades only, but the coverage is light enough that it can blend on a lot of skin tones.

The lasting power is pretty good. It stays put for about five hours before I notice any fading (no primer) and takes about three hours before oil seeps out. Not bad for a drugstore foundation that doesn't look like a mask!

But wait, is this BYS foundation actually traditional mineral makeup? It has a base of mica and silica, two common mineral powders. However it contains synthetic dyes and binders - all safe ingredients, mind you, but they are not traditionally included in "pure" mineral makeup. Whatever that is. The important thing for me is the fact that I didn't break out from this.

There is one con. I don't like the smell of this thing. It has that cheap powder smell, unfortunately, but at least it fades away quickly. 

Overall, the BYS Minerals Naturale Compact Foundation is a nice light to mid-coverage powder that gives skin a natural glow. It helps with oil control (great for retouching) and doesn't fade away too quickly. Use it alone if you have good skin, or use it on top of your favorite liquid foundation/ BB cream if you have troubled skin. It is a great finishing powder that'll seal your makeup really well!

What do you think? Is this foundation for you?