Mineral beauty bronzer by Bella Il Fiore - review by Kira (stainedclear)

Whether you're looking to perk up a pale winter completion or enhance an already tan summer one, bronzer is an essential part of any makeup collection. Sure, it can be used on the face for that nice summer glow, but it can also be applied to other part of the body as well. You can even put it in between the breasts to enhance the look of cleavage. This beautiful mineral bronzer is made by Bella Il Fiore and can be used by just about anyone, barring any potential sensitivity to the ingredients. Use it daily to create a healthy glow or for special occasions. There's no bad time for a little bronzer!

This bronzer is a pressed mineral powder. It feels silky to the touch. When applied, it goes on creamy with a hint of shimmer. The shimmer is more evident in swatches than in actual facial application due to the higher pigment when applied with the finger. It does not have an overly powdery feel to it like some cheap drugstore brand "mineral" powders do, though it also doesn't have the same feel as some of my mineral makeup from the original mineral makeup line in a loose form.

While we're on the topic of "mineral" products, let's take a look at the ingredients. Make sure you check these for any possible allergy or sensitivity issues you may have.

Mica - This is the main mineral ingredient.

Here's what Wikipedia says: "The mica group of sheet silicate (phyllosilicate) minerals includes several closely related materials having highly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition. The highly perfect cleavage, which is the most prominent characteristic of mica, is explained by the hexagonal sheet-like arrangement of its atoms. The word 'mica' is derived from the Latin word mica, meaning 'a crumb', and probably influenced by micare, 'to glitter'." Thus, this is also what gives the product its shimmer.

Magnesium Stearate - A white substance which is solid at room temperature. It is a salt containing two equivalents of stearate (the anion of stearic acid) and one magnesium cation.

Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2 - A synthetic oleochemical of the glyceryl ester family.

Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate - Made from a naturally occurring fatty acid, stearic acid. Stearic acid is found in animal and vegetable fat.

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride - An oily mixed ester composed of caprylic and capric fatty acids derived from coconut oil and glycerin.

Dimethicone - Silicone oil.

Phenoxyethanol - An organic chemical compound, a glycol ether. Used as a preservative.

Caprylyl Glycol - Skin-conditioning agent that may be plant-derived or synthetic.

Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract - Aloe vera.

Tocopheryl Acetate - Vitamin E Acetate

MAY CONTAIN:

Titanium Dioxide - Naturally occurring oxide of titanium.

Iron Oxides - Chemical compounds of iron and oxygen.

There is hardly any odor to this bronzer. If you stick it up to your nose very closely, there is a faint powder smell to it. It's not a baby powder smell, but a makeup powder smell as you would find in a powder foundation or finishing powder.

I did not taste this. I'm sorry, but makeup isn't going in my mouth!

The first time this primer was applied was at night. It was not washed off and was still very visible the next morning. The next time it was used was during the day over a Sephora mineral primer. It lasted all day, with pretty much the same level of pigment that it had first thing in the morning. The pigment did start to wear down a little bit by the evening, but it was a very light fade and the bronzer was still very noticeable.

The bronzer comes off easily with face wash or makeup remover. When swatched on my arm, I was able to remove the bulk of it with just water, but some of the pigment and shimmer remained until makeup remover was used.

Here are the swatches I did at varying degrees of intensity. The top is two swipes of product. The middle is about five or six. The bottom is about three or four. As you can see, this product can be built up in pigment. As you build it up, the undertone changes from a fair golden to a dark golden color. This allows a more customizable color. The bronzer comes with three different colors that are blended together when you sweep your brush across it. If you have a very tiny brush and a lot of patience, you may be able to focus just one color if the combo color doesn't work for you.



The bronzer gives a great sun kissed look without giving an Oompa Loompa appearance, even on my very fair skin. The pictures in the swatch are much darker than what I actually ended up applying on my face, as I cannot apply bronzer heavily without looking overly orange. This bronzer allowed for a light application and, as the swatches show, can be built up to a heavy application for those who are darker skinned.

The bronzer comes in an adorable pink box that is cut out in the center so the bronzer is shown through the box. The front says the name of the company, "Bella Il Fiore," and "Bella Beauty Bronzer" in a very cutesy scripting. The back has the ingredient listing as well as a little blurb about the product.





The bronzer itself is in a circular container. The front is clear and the back is black. The back has the ingredient listing on it and says the name of the company and the bronzer. This bronzer does NOT come with a brush, so you will need to purchase one separately if you don't have one around the house.





You get 37.31g of product in the package, or 1.316oz. To show you how much product this is, I took this picture.

The first time I used this, I overdid it by using my regular coverage brush. I was able to buff this bronzer out easily and work with it and still not look overly bronzed. I was still happy with the result, even though I had gotten a little over-enthusiastic with the application.

The next time, I decided to use a Bare Escentuals Soft Focus Face Brush. This did the trick. I applied this in the areas where the sun would naturally hit my face to get a sun-kissed look like I had just gotten back from the beach. Even though I have Irish-Italian super pale vampire skin, this still looked great on me. I didn't come out looking orange or obscene like I got a bad celebrity spray tan. I'm very particular about bronzer because of how many of them will turn me all sorts of awful shades, but this one was a major win.

I liked how easy this was to blend out over my skin. It didn't leave visible streaks where the brush had hit my skin, but blended out nicely to look airbrushed. I was also very impressed with how long it lasted as many mineral products are low on pigment and will fade by 10am.

Overall, this product gets a full five stars from me. While it may not fully replace my primary brand (only because I'm very brand loyal with my makeup), I will definitely be reaching for this bronzer often.