Alima • Satin Matte Mineral Foundation • Powder

Where To Buy?

Pimpinett on 11/26/2010 3:09:00 AM more reviews by Pimpinett

Age: 30-35   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Red, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

The canvas I'm working with is acne-prone combination skin with a very oily t-zone and dry cheeks. I have been on the market for a foundation for a while, after a year and a half of disastrous skin since I stopped using hormonal contraceptives, and a lot of things I've been using without problems before now suddenly break me out. Enter mineral foundation, of course.

I have been wearing this daily for about three weeks now, over the Alima Balancing Primer. It generally keeps me reasonably matte for about four hours, which is as good as I can expect from any product; foundation, powder, primer or all three. After that I just blot and it looks fine for another couple of hours. What I really love about this foundation, though, is the coverage and staying power. I get a surprisingly nice, light-to-medium coverage with just one light layer, and it's quite buildable. It's easy to work with, silky and creamy on the skin, the finish is lovely - satin matte and quite natural-looking. Best of all, it stays put. I get easily twelve to fourteen hours of wear or more, and it stays looking good on my skin - no separating, no settling in pores, Everyday Minerals did both on me, and my skin loves it. No breakouts, no irritation, I have recently started treatments with a derm and my skin looks fantastic, better than it has in years.

I'm still experimenting with shades, but all three colours I ordered, after consulting their in-house make-up artist, are good matches and look perfectly fine. I will probably end up ordering a custom blend of two-thirds Olive 0 with one third Golden 2, as the olive is a great match to my cheek but slightly pinker than my neck, but both Beige 2 and Warm 2 are good matches to my NC20-ish yellow/olive skin, with pink discolouration, as well. So. No perfect match in the range, but several close matches and there's the custom option.

On the negative side it's bit messy, of course, like all loose mineral foundations, but that comes with the territory and considering how good this is, it's a very minor complaint. I have never been this pleased with a foundation and will certainly repurchase.

6 out of 6 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

LovelyStars on 11/7/2010 1:19:00 AM more reviews by LovelyStars

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

this is the best mineral foundation i can ever use. it provides medium coverage and actually controls the oil in my t zone area. i am never oily using this foundation.

my shade (which i can't remember now) is a perfect match to my skin tone.

i wish it has more coverage though.

i will definitely repurchase this!

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margoess on 11/7/2010 12:40:00 AM more reviews by margoess

Age: 25-29   Skin: Sensitive, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

Recently as I was about to reorder my foundation from Everyday Minerals, I somehow stumbled upon news that they had changed their formula, and it was causing some people to break out. That, plus the fact that they no longer offer their super cheap kits, prompted me to give Alima a try. With EDM, my perfect, perfect shade is golden fair. With Alima, I fell somewhere in between golden 0 and olive 0. Golden was a touch too pale; olive made me look a little greyish.

Color aside, the main problem I had was that it dried my face out like crazy! I moisturized like a mother, tried it with and without their priming and finishing powders, but nothing worked. When I wore it, it was like I could actually feel the powder sucking the moisture out of parts of my face, particularly around the nose and mouth. It was really uncomfortable, and I would rush home at night to desperately slather my face in cold cream as soon as I could. This also happened around zits, too-- they just ended up looking flaky and gross. The coverage wasn't as good for me either. I tried it for about a week or so, and every night I would find myself with a powdery, cakey, screamingly dry face. So, definitely not for me, and something to think about if you have dry or sensitive skin (my sister has oily skin, and this is her foundation of choice).

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

Walhalla on 10/29/2010 1:27:00 PM more reviews by Walhalla

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair, Cool   Hair: Brown, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

Alima is the first MMU brand I ever tried. After reading so many good reviews about their foundation, I ordered 3 samples a couple of weeks ago: Beige 1, Neutral 2 and Cool 2. Neutral 2 ended up being as close as possible to a perfect match for my pale skin (pink/yellow-ish undertones). I liked it for its smooth and creamy application, but it seems that MMU just doesn't work for me - not surprising considering I have very dry skin. Even after moisturizing with a thick cream, using damp application and spritzing my face to add a little bit more moisture, it never looked more than "OK" on me and the foundation accentuated my dry spots. It also enlarged my pores and created a shiny T-zone after a few hours (which I don't normally have with dry skin and all...).

I'd still recommend you try some samples even if you have dry skin - their blushes, for instance, work flawlessly for me. :D

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Starberri on 10/26/2010 12:48:00 PM more reviews by Starberri

Age: 30-35   Skin: Other, Fair, Cool   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

Wow, wow, wow. HG foundation, finally!

I've tried so many foundations (mineral, powder, liquid, pressed powder, mousse) from so many brands (just about everything at Nordstrom, La Mer, Bare Minerals, and a handful of drugstore brands) and none can hold a candle to this makeup.

1) Coverage: Goes only lightly but builds to a full coverage. Easy to apply and blend, lasts all day (seriously!).

2) Finish: Perfectly natural finish; not shiny or chalky like other mineral powders. Again, easy to apply and doesn't look cakey.

3) Color: They have so many shades and a full range of cool, neutral, and warm. I think it would be impossible not to find a match. You can buy samples for $1.50 a pop to try before you commit to a full size. Amazing!

4) Price/packaging: Price is about average compared to Bare Minerals and packaging is good. I took one point off because they don't have the cool packaging the new BE has, but nonetheless the container *does* keep the powder contained very well--I have to give it a pretty good shake to get enough powder out. And, it seems like they give you a LOT of product, so I anticipate that it will last a long time.

So happy to have found this makeup! I honestly don't know how I went this long without it.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

liljenstar88 on 10/22/2010 3:40:00 AM more reviews by liljenstar88

Age: 19-24   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I am in love with ALL ALIMA's products. just found out about them two months ago. I am chinese and wear Golden 4. I came across them when I everyday minerals started to change their sales. I used to think edm was the best mineral company with some of the best deals but ultimately I think alima's company values are more in line with my own. They only have about 4 ingredients in each of their products, they don't test on animals, and they're BDIH- a certified natural cosmetic. I have found that using their primer under the foundation really does wonders. The foundation alone gets a bit greasy for my oily skin after a couple of hours but with the primer it pretty much lasts the whole day. Overall great foundation for everyday use!

4 out of 4 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

chaifreak on 10/9/2010 9:15:00 PM more reviews by chaifreak

Age: 25-29   Skin: Normal, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Red, Wavy, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

I am in love with Alima foundation! Neutral 2 is the perfect shade for my pale & very neutral (pink and yellowish undertones) skin! It is very natural looking, too, and very affordable. Alima also packs their containers VERY full, so one jar will last awhile! I wear this stuff just about every day, and I could never say that about any other foundation. They're also a very eco-friendly and vegetarian company. Very impressed, keep up the good work, Alima.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

nithooz on 10/4/2010 4:23:00 PM more reviews by nithooz

Age: 30-35   Skin: Sensitive, Olive, Warm   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

Me: East Indian/Desi/South Asian skintone. NC40 / MUFE F&B 34 / Shu Uemura Face Architect 754 / EDM 50% Olive Light and 50% Olive Medium.

Alima is one of five brands of MMU that I've tried (Alima, EverydayMinerals, L'oreal Bare Naturale, Bare Minerals, and Urban Decay Surreal Skin). This was the 3rd worst (better than L'oreal and Bare Minerals), while EDM has been the best.

I really wish this product worked for me like it seems to for everybody else. I was unable to find a good color match -- the goldens are too yellow for me, while the olives and warms are too pink. Creating a blend also just didn't work (I tried several times) -- either I would look pasty and too pink, or too brown and too pink.

The product went on very smoothly, which was nice. But it accentuated my pores so much!! The pores on my nose literally looked like giant, red, inflamed craters :( Putting more product on corrected this, but then it also looked slightly heavy/cakey.

I looked shiny within a matter of hours, no matter how much I blotted. Something about this product just looked shiny on me. (I had the same problem with L'oreal and Bare Minerals.) It also settled into lines I didn't know I had. It was so bad, that while I was concentrating on some work I had my chin resting on my hand. When I removed my hand and glanced in the mirror, I saw that the makeup had creased on my chin.

But the worst part for me was the patchiness. 5-6 hours after application, the makeup started separating on my face. Parts of my forehead and chin had no makeup left, while the rest of my face still had makeup on. This has never happened to me before.

There were a few positives though. For one, I was so grateful that I didn't break out from this makeup. (Considering everything else that was going wrong with me and Alima foundation, I kind of expected it!) Second, the packaging is wonderful, the prices were nice, and the samples are generous. The bonus samples they sent along was the best part -- they gave me a sample of Luminous Blush in Nutmeg, which is the BEST blush I've ever used. Seriously, it is beautiful!

So while I had a very disappointing experience with Alima foundations and will not be using it again, I was very impressed with their other products (blush, eyeshadows).

10 out of 10 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

*TOP REVIEWER* Zetaflickan on 10/4/2010 7:19:00 AM more reviews by Zetaflickan

Age: 36-43   Skin: Dry, Fair, Neutral   Hair: Brunette, Curly, Fine   Eyes: Grey    

I really like this company, fast and friendly service, environmentally conscious, non-toxic ingredients. Unfortunately, mineral makeup seems not to work for me, not even this, that is eons better than what I have previously used. Color selection is great (including shades that are too pale even for me), finish is, as name indicates, satin, but makes my pores very visible.
Even on a very moisturized face, it looks a bit dry and dull (much better than the dreaded shiny pore-super-highlighting look of other MMU, but still worse that liquid foundation) . From a distance, it looks fine, but not so great up close.
After 4 hours, I got a bit shiny on forehead and nose. Adding some more looked cakey.
Will stick to liquids.

3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

greathouseemily on 10/1/2010 10:11:00 PM more reviews by greathouseemily

Age: 30-35   Skin: Oily, Fair   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Blue    

I think I'm in love with this product. It's only been a few days, but I'm pretty smitten. I was a StudioFix Mac girl forever, but wanted to switch to mineral makeup since my pores seemed to be getting bigger by the minute. I've been experimenting for a couple years to find an MMU that gave me the coverage, the ease of application, and the lasting power of StudioFix. I tried Bare Minerals, Everyday Minerals, Pur Minerals, Neutrogena pressed minerals, and the list goes on. Pur Minerals was runner up - beautiful coverage, and felt great on my skin, but the lasting power was minimal and not matte enough for my oily skin. Alima feels so good on my skin (like I'm not wearing makeup), great buildable coverage, fantastic staying power for an MMU, not too dry and "powdery" feeling, but not too "glow-ey" (which some people love, but with oily skin, I don't need any extra glow), and looks great applied with a brush, or a flocked sponge. I still have to deal with the MMU mess a bit, but I just remove the "sifter" since half the powder sits up above that thing anyway. Anyway, FANTASTIC product, great color selection (a little intimidating at first, but samples are reasonably priced, and they will make custom blends), I love, love, super love it.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

Marvlgrl2 on 10/1/2010 12:59:00 AM more reviews by Marvlgrl2

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Hazel    

Alima was my first mineral makeup and I absolutely love it. It definitely matters how you apply it though. There have been times when I've over applied and it looks too powdery and times when I haven't applied enough, so the coverage isn't there. But most of the time, it applies really nicely with the Alima #25 brush and looks great. I haven't experienced too much of the melting or fading that others mentioned, but I imagine with any makeup that's a risk. Plus, I want my skin to breathe and I feel like mineral makeup will allow that. Alima is located in Portland, OR so I also love being able to support a local company. I just wish that the powder wouldn't get everywhere when I'm trying to get it out of the container, but sometimes makeup is messy. It's easy cleanup, so no biggie.

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peanut32 on 9/29/2010 11:54:00 PM more reviews by peanut32

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Blue    

This foundation is just okay. I like that it is all natural but doesn't give very good coverage. The colors are also very drastic, as another poster said, yellow based is very yellow and vice versa. I will use up what I have but will not purchase again if I can find something better. I am always in search of the perfect mineral makeup and still haven't found it yet. Def wayyyy better than bare minerals though. Glo Minerals has better coverage and a better finish, but isn't as natural as Alima.

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Hoyman on 9/21/2010 12:58:00 PM more reviews by Hoyman

Age: 30-35   Skin: Normal, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

I order 4 samples colors by the help from Alima makeup artist by email them what product I used recently. I found my match in Biege 3 and olive 1 If you are wearing Make up forever HD in 118 Biege 3 or olive 1 will work on you same as Shiseido I40 wearer can also match with Biege 3 and olive 1 due to that 2 products that I had wear. coverage is very good. Very nice costomer services. Great company keep up all the good work. I recieve my order in 2 business days. I will order full sized for sure in both colors. I love this foundation. I had used for 1 month now. No itch, and last all day at work. Doesn't oxidize like other mineral. By the way put Alima finishing powder over look more smooth and flawless. I already order full size. If you like full coverage don't purchase this foundation. Update: 09-23-11 order full size foundation, finishing powder, blush. Still like it. I also used Shiseido powder foundation in O40 for full coverage but due to wear foundation everyday it will clog pore and I have alot of black head on my nose and chin some break out on my forehead. But when using Alima foundation I have more clear skin. Still love Alima all products are great. Now Alima went up the price for foundation now cost $22. Finishing powder $17, and blush $17. I will still buy it again when they have their annual sale they will let me know by email me like every time that i ordered.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

*TOP REVIEWER* dancer156 on 9/16/2010 7:16:00 PM more reviews by dancer156

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair, Warm   Hair: Black, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Blue    

I just don't think mineral makeup and my skin mesh well. While this was a good foundation (out of all the loose powder foundations I have tried), it still did NOT provide good coverage for my acne (even with their concealer) and did NOT help with oil (even with their balancing primer powder).
After a few hours, I noticed my T-zone was extremely oily, my cheeks had dry patches on them, and the fine lines on my forehead were much more accented.
If mineral makeup works well with your skin, I would recommend this. But if you're looking for full coverage, go with a liquid foundation.
****UPDATE: *****
If you are looking for a wonderful coverage foundation that won't make you greasy or cause breakouts, I recommend Gabriel Cosmetics-- Liquid Foundation and Dual Powder! My new favorites!!!

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petrina_678 on 9/15/2010 1:36:00 PM more reviews by petrina_678

Age: 19-24   Skin: Very Oily, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

Two months back i got the samples. they have lasted me this long, and i still have more ( i got about 6 shades) used them almost everyday.
Bonus point for the cute sample packaging, even though they didnt have a sifter which would have been more useful. came with freebies and badge cute!

Lets talk about shade selections:
Now firstly its good they have a wide range of shades but i feel like their shades lack depth , like their warms and golden are really yellow, but their olive is slightly too cool.
They need a wamer neutral.

Im about Nc 20-25 , i've found my perfect skin match in EDM almond light , that matches me so spot on. In alima the goldens are WAY too gold/yellow for me.

The warms are still noticeably yellow for me , i tried warm2 and that was the wrong undertone but the right lightness.

Olive2 is too pinkish for me, its called olive but i would say this is a more cool neutral rather than a real olive. If you are used to EDM's olives which are a yellow/olive based neutral, alima's are nothing like that.

beige 1 is even more cool toned than the warms . I can pull this off though . since its slightly more neutral than the warms .

Olive 0 is closer to my skin tone, only that its a tad too light and still a tad ashy on my skin since it gives me a non-obvious pinkish cast.
I've found my best match in 75% olive 0 and 25% golden 2 .

lets talk about coverage now:
This is one of the heavier coverage mineral's i've tried. and i like it that way. Application makes a difference too, you can try applying it more sheerly.
I like applying this wet (using a wet sponge or kabuki ) and then finish of by spritzing my face.

It gives a mostly matte finish,i woulds say that its more matte than semi-matte that the name implies , its more matte then say EDM's matte.
I like its very polished matte finish. But it also feels very very very slightly heavier on the skin than any other minerals i've tried, i doubt you will notice .

It gives me the kind of coverage that i can achieve with liquid foundation . I apply with NO base, and no finishing power. i love how it holds up and looks on its own.

Its finely milled .and has an almost creamy sink into your skin feel.

how does it wear? :

SPECTACULAR ! it stays on forever. I live in singapore , hot humid all year, and its common to spend the day walking under the sun and deal with perspiring.

I wear it up to 11 hours a day, and it hold up with no touch ups and no blotting. keep in mind im really oily. But yeah i get lazy and dont blot. but when i do it looks amazing all day.

I like how it looks great, gives you the flawless skin look, feels way lighter than traditional liquids and powders, and holds up on my skin better than:

EMD, silk naturals, aromaleigh .

those did not handle my oily skin and the heat well .

OVERALL :

love the coverage, best yet. Great finish , blends into your skin does not look like you are "wearing a ton of makeup" . amazing staying power.

i would love if they had truly olive shades, and less "flat" shades but at least they have the shade mixing option which is what i will use.

so YES i see this a being me go-to every day foundation for a long time . im so in love. i apply it with a heavier hand for events and it looks ok even in flash photography , at least in my experience .
you have got to try this!

8 out of 8 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

*TOP REVIEWER* TheReviewLady on 9/14/2010 5:10:00 PM more reviews by TheReviewLady

Age: 30-35   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium, Neutral   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Black    

The photos in this listing got me to try it back in 2007, when I desperately wanted to jump on the mineral/"natural"/organic/free range (just kidding, it's makeup not chickens) cosmetics band wagon. I thought I looked great for about three weeks... even though the Alima Foundation did not ever stay on my face for long... even if I mixed it into my sunscreen to make a tinted moisturiser and then used a setting powder on top. I always ended up looking glossy and felt oily. And the last straw was when my skin started itching and burning and eventually I broke out in little bumps whenever I used it. I was using an oil-based pre-cleane to remove the makeup, so I think I reacted to it because I was sensitive to the high mica content. Mineral makeup is, I think, for resistant skin types. Looking at the photos of happy, glowing, perfect-skinned people in this listing make me want to try this foundation again... but I know better than to do that and while I may not have resistant skin, Alima gave me a resistant attitute towards ALL mineral makeup -- I'm just that frightened of it. Now on the other hand, Alima makeup brushes are nice quality.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

c2yoshi on 9/4/2010 5:36:00 PM more reviews by c2yoshi

Age: 25-29   Skin: Very Oily, Fair-Medium, Warm   Hair: Brown, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

After reading all the shining reviews on the Alima foundation, I was looking forward to trying it out! I had ordered 4 samples and narrowed my choice to Warm 3. The color was just about an absolute match for my Asian skin tone! The coverage is great: able to cover most minor to medium imperfections with one application and the texture is very creamy. It also lasts all day on my oily skin, which is a big plus. They have so many shades to choose from, you're bound to find one that's a match; it's a bit daunting at first, but you'll quickly pick up on how to find your shade, plus they also have a makeup artist you can e-mail if you have any questions.

My biggest complaint however was that it always applied terribly onto my nose; it always looked cakey and uneven, no matter what I tried (moisturizer, primer, etc) to help even it out better. It would look lovely on the rest of my face, but it looked TERRIBLE on my nose. It also didn't do anything to help absorb oil, but I've pretty much settled on the idea that nothing will work (except MAC Blot Powder, and even that only lasts 2-3 hours). So I'd give this a 3.5 but I always round up so it gets a 4. It's still a much better mineral foundation than Bare Minerals (that stuff made my face SUPER oily) so I still recommend giving this a shot if you're looking for a good quality mineral foundation to use.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

abbbetty on 8/30/2010 3:37:00 AM more reviews by abbbetty

Age: 25-29   Skin: Normal, Medium, Warm   Hair: Brown, Curly, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

this product good for my skin!LOVE~~~~~~~~~~~~

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eatmyshort on 8/30/2010 2:42:00 AM more reviews by eatmyshort

Age: 19-24   Skin: Sensitive, Fair   Hair: Brown, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Violet    

it's a pretty makeup that has light coverage. This is not for those who want to conceal scars or zits. it looked good for about 2 hours and disappear into thin air making my skin looking muddy. I wouldn't repurchase because I was looking for a looking lasting medium coverage mineral foundation that won't change color or oxidize on me.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.     Was this review helpful to you? Yes   No

restinginlove on 8/28/2010 4:19:00 PM more reviews by restinginlove

Age: 19-24   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair-Medium, Neutral   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

the only other mineral makeup I've tried is Everyday Minerals and Alima blows them out of the water. for some reason EDM never made me itch, though, and Alima does. however, it doesn't make me break out and looks creamy and natural when applied wet or dry (I've been spraying my kabuki brush with mark's mist opportunity now before picking up the powder and applying as I've read some experts think breathing in mineral makeup can hurt one's lungs over time.) there are SO MANY shades and if you send a message to "ask the artist" with a foundation that matches you, they give helpful suggestions as to which shades to try. love that. as a whole, this company is great to its customers and they even give extra samples when purchasing $1.50 samples.

downsides--powder all over my bathroom counter! but I have always had that problem with loose powder. I wish they had a pressed powder version. I know sephora does and it has great reviews so I may try that next as I never haul a kabuki brush and jar of MMU in my purse for touch ups. for some reason I can't get this or any other MMU to not fade after a few hours--dry, wet, over moisturizer and/or primer, setting with rimmel's mattify powder, spraying with mist opportunity to set, nothing seems to keep it there! but it's not melting off, it's just not there. there's gotta be some way to keep it on! still my HG for now and I will definitely be repurchasing.

EDIT: I can't make this or any other MMU look not-powdery on me, so I no longer use this but I think it's more of a user error and my skin + this type of makeup thing than anything having to do with product performance, so I'm leaving my ratings the same :)

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