My first experience with bareMinerals was about 20 years ago when I tried their Original Loose Powder Foundation.
I fell in love with it instantly for its lightweight, buildable coverage and radiant finish. I’ve used it periodically ever since and to this day, it remains one of my all time favorite foundations. In recent years, bareMinerals has released several new foundations. I tried them all but didn’t love them. The brand recently introduced their latest formula, bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Foundation Stick. My first thought was Ughhh… a stick… I’ve never had much luck with foundation sticks. But since it’s Bare Minerals, I knew I had to give it a try. In this Foundation Over 40 Review, I’ve tested this foundation on my mature skin over a period of several days to see how it wears and performs. Is Complexion Rescue Foundation Stick a hit or a miss? Let’s find out…
bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Foundation Stick – The Claim
According to bareMinerals, Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick is “the first clean, water-based liquid foundation in a stick with SPF 25. The vegan formula combines the hydrating benefits of your favorite tinted moisturizer with medium buildable coverage. In a convenient on-the-go format. The easy-to-blend texture melts into skin for all-day wear that’s lightweight and never cakey, with a radiant finish. Use the multitasking formula as foundation, concealer, contour or for touch-ups on-the-go.”
Formula & Packaging
bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick is packaged in an elegant, rose gold twist up tube. The tube feels like it’s good quality and the lid fits on very tightly. No worries about it popping off and making a mess in your purse or cosmetic bag. The formula is quite creamy and is made with over 30% enhanced mineral water. There is a cooling sensation that can be felt on the skin when applying this foundation. Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick is recommended for all skin types.
Ingredients
*Cruelty Free *Paraben Free * Gluten Free *Vegan
One thing I love about bareMinerals is their clean ingredients. You know you aren’t putting a lot of junk on your skin with any of their products. Complexion Rescue Foundation Stick is free of Gluten, Formaldehyde, Mineral Oil, Parabens, Phthalates & Propylene Glycol. It contains no synthetic fragrance and is not tested on animals. Awesome, right? This foundation is water based & provides non chemical SPF25 sun protection. Other notable ingredients are:
- Volcanic Sea Water – Filtered through volcanic rock and sourced from Jeju Island, this mineral-rich sea water helps deliver a burst of hydration.
- Red Algae: Has been shown to possess better hydration properties than hyaluronic acid.
- Squalane: Derived from olives, this nourishing ingredient helps to prevent moisture loss.
- bareMinerals Pollution Protection Complex – Protects against environmental aggressors, heavy metals and blue light.
- Titanium Dioxide 4.15% – Provides sunscreen SPF25 protection.
Shade Selection
bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Foundation Stick is available in 20 shades ranging from fair to light to deep. For my fair to light neutral toned complexion, Shade Birch 1.5 was a perfect match for me. In the Original Powder Foundation from bareMinerals, I wear Fairly Light. If you are unsure of your shade, use bareMinerals Foundation Shade Finder Tool Here.
Application & Coverage
bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick glides onto the skin with a pleasant cooling sensation. This foundation is smooth, blends easily and dries to a satin to radiant finish. bareMinerals recommends applying this foundation with your fingers to achieve sheer to medium coverage. For medium coverage use a foundation brush. And for buildable coverage, they recommend their Dual-Sided Silicone Blender. I tested all three methods and found the foundation brush did the best job of blending. I used my It Cosmetics Airbrush Blurring Foundation Brush #101 which worked perfectly.
The Wear Test
Initial Application: Using a foundation brush, I applied 1 swipe of the bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick to my cheeks, forehead and chin to achieve medium coverage. This foundation takes a few minutes to dry down. It dries to a flawless, satin to radiant finish. There was no settling into fine lines and wrinkles.
I tested bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick with a Primer and without. I couldn’t tell much difference in the way it applied or wore throughout the day. If you have oily skin or are oily in the t-zone, you probably need to use a primer. Without a primer, this foundation may look at bit shiny. If you do use a primer, I recommend using a water based formula. Lancome Prep & Matte Primer and Korres Pomegranate Mattifying Primer are good options.
Finally, if you have oily skin or live in a hot & humid climate, I would suggest setting this foundation with a finishing powder. I used a light coating of NYX High Definition Finishing Powder in Banana.
After Four Hours: The foundation was still in place with no shine. There was no settling into fine lines, wrinkles or pores.
After Ten Hours: bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick still looked pretty good. There was some wearing off and shine on the nose and chin. This foundation did not settle into lines & wrinkles the entire day.
Price
$32.00 USD 0.35 oz.
Final Verdict
I love the blendability and natural, radiant finish of bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick. The stick formula is super easy to apply and convenient to toss in your purse for touchups. It did not settle into fine lines, wrinkles or pores and lasted a good 8-10 hours. Let’s have a look at the Pros & Cons.
Pros:
- Clean Ingredients with skincare benefits.
- Convenient Packaging for touch ups.
- Built in Mineral Sunscreen SPF25.
- Easy to Apply & Blend.
- Coverage is buildable.
- Does Not Settle into Pores, Fine Lines or Wrinkles.
- Wears well with and without a Primer.
- Good Shade Selection.
- Long Wearing 8-10 hours.
Cons:
- Requires a Primer for Oily Skin.
- Needs a Finishing Powder on Combo to Oily Skin.
If you are looking for a no fuss foundation, this may be the ONE for you. This stick foundation really surprised me and turned out to be a keeper!
Have you tried bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick? Or any of the other foundations from this brand? I would love to hear from you. Please leave a comment below! As always, I appreciate you stopping by & reading and hope you found this Review helpful.
Until next time…
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I haven’t tried Bare Minerals before. I also find foundation sticks challenging. Thanks for the recommendation. Quick question does it have a smell?
I just went & double checked, I don’t smell anything. I think It basically has no smell.😍 Thank you for stopping by & reading Kimberly!💕💕
Ok, you have convinced me, I am trying it !! Like you, I have gone back and forth over the years with this brand, started about the same time you did, and for the most part this brand has worked for me. Coincidentally, I recently purchased a new powder makeup (in a different shade) and I do love their tinted moisturizer. Thank you for the very detailed review!!
Thank you so much Sherri!🙏 I’m interested to know how you like it so let me know if you try! I’ve been wearing it daily since I bought it!💕💕
Definitely going to try this. Thanks for the detailed review. I use Charlotte Tilbury for the last few years and though happy with it I feel like a change..
I’ve been wearing it every day since I bought it! Let me know how you like it if you try. Thank you so much for stopping by & reading Hilda 🙂
I definitely want to check this out. I’m in the mood to try a new foundation!
Fall is the perfect time to try a new one! Let me know how you like it if you try!💕💕
Thanks for the in-depth review. I’ve never used foundation stick but surely gonna try one. Let’s see if I find this brand hee in India or not. Thanks for the recommendation.
I was surprised at how much I actually like the stick! I hope you can find it there. Let me know if you do & thank you for stopping by & reading!💕💕
It sounds perfect for me as I don´t have oily skin and love the selection of natural materials.
It’s so wonderful to have natural options, right? Let me know if you try it!💕💕
I’ve never tried Bare Minerals, but I’ve heard people who have, and loved it! Will have to check it out 🙂
It’s a great Brand with a good lineup of products. Let me know if you try. Thank you so much for stopping by & reading!💕💕
I used Bare Minerals loose powder for years, but with my aging skin I had to stop. This looks like a good replacement. Going to try it on your recommendation! Thank you!
I used the loose powder for years as well. I’ve been wearing the stick all Summer! Let me know if you try it, would love to hear how you like it.💕💕
I am not a makeup wearer. However, bareMinerals used to have something called ‘Blemish Therapy’ which they have discontinued. It was a powder that you put on when you felt an imperfection coming on – and by using it pimples never popped out!!! I loved it! I only used it on the area that needed it – not the whole face. Haven’t been able to find any replacement. I’m glad the replacement above is working for you!
Yes! I remember the Blemish Therapy. You may be able to find it at a BareMinerals Outlet. They also have it on Amazon:
https://amzn.to/2nEFdaS
Thank you so much for stopping by & reading!💕💕
I believe that is actually Blemish Remedy – which is different. I have tried to find the Therapy for a long time 🙁
Oh you’re right! That is the Remedy. 😞 I’ll keep an eye out for Blemish Therapy!💕💕
I may need to give this a try now that my favorite company Laura Gellar is no more.
Right? So sad about Laura Geller! I really liked her Balance n’ Brighten Foundation! Let me know if you try the BareMinerals stick!💕💕
I have never heard of BareMinerals before but I am not a big makeup person to begin with. Thank you for putting pros and cons of the product in. Easy to read and make a decision!
You’re very welcome! Thank you so much for stopping by & reading!💕💕