With everyone “going green” or picking environmentally friendly products, Physicians Formula’s Bamboo Wear definitely brings that to mind with its bamboo motifs on its boxes and pressed powders.
I only purchased the Bamboo Wear Compact, Mirror & Brush because Physicians Formula had a “Try Me Free” rebate special going on. I figured it couldn’t hurt, and I was looking for a new compact mirror that wasn’t an old Clinique mirror that came from free gift set my mother bought eons ago.
The exterior of the compact is very natural and sleek looking since it is made from bamboo and has a simple green colored bamboo motif on the front lid. The compact is on the thick side, but the three layers of the compact swivels open in any direction you prefer. Each section is snapped shut with a magnet. The magnet feels pretty secure and does not feel like it would snap open accidently in your purse or gym bag.
The top compartment is where the mirror and brush are stored. The bottom compartment is where the refill pan of either the Silk Face Powder Refill or Silk Bronzer Refill can be dropped in. The refill pan is held down by tw
o magnets on the bottom. Since the compact does not come with a refill pan, I was hoping I could put the brush in the bottom compartment and just flip open the top section and use the mirror. Unfortunately the bottom compartment is thinner than the flat brush, so I couldn’t stash the brush below. Since I don’t care for the Physicians Formula flat brushes, I’ll probably just leave it out. However, I don’t think putting the brush and mirror in the same compartment was a good idea, since after usage, the residue powder from the brush would fall onto the mirror making it dusty. Then again this is a problem for all compacts.
I like the idea of a refillable compact. How many times have you finished a press powder compact and thought, “What a waste, the mirror is still good,” before chucking it into the garbage bin? Unfortunately, the Silk Face Powder in this collection only has colors that ranges from light, lighter, to translucent though I may consider the Silk Bronzers in this collection.
Overall, the compact has a nice natural Eastern look and feel to the design. It gets a plus for being refillable and recyclable even though it can be a bit bulky.