My $.02...I'm a huge Bare Minerals fan...I too had been egged on by a friend to try it for over a year before actually getting some.
What I would recommend...if you're thinkin of going the Bare Minerals route...there are a lot of the BM sellers on ebay that sell their products in sample sizes. (clean samples just from larger jars!) So for maybe $10-$15 total, you can try a couple different shades of the foundation (remember, you can blend them to create your perfect formula!) as well as a blush and/or eye shadow! It's a great way to try it without making that huge $$$ investment. I don't wear eye shadow a lot, but like to be a little different when I do...and being able to buy the samples has allowed me to try all sorts of different fun colors I wouldn't have normally bought because of the $$$ involved!