is to really start looking after my skin. One of the ways I
plan to do this is by not waking up every day and just
caking on the foundation like my life depends on it -
something that as a compulsive caker, is no easy feat.
We're all guilty of it, we're in a rush, we'd rather have
an extra five minutes in bed before work than take care
with our make up. It's so easy to splash on a big dollop
of foundation and pray for the best. For me it's a cycle,
the more foundation I wear, the more clogged up my
skin feels, the worse my complexion gets ...It really
can't go on. Therefore in 2013 I vow to find myself
a perfect BB cream.
There are so many benefits to going BB. Plenty of people
tell me that they have a BB cream somewhere, but it's
reserved for lazy days when they need to nip out for
five minutes and can't be bothered with make up -
basically for days when looking good isn't a priority.
What I need is a BB with really good coverage, to feel
confident enough to leave the house on a daily basis,
and still have skin that feels good.
I chose FIVE big branded BB's to see if they suited
my needs, here were my results...
L'oreal Nude Magique (£9.99) 2/5
The new L'oreal Nude Magique is an advanced self-adjusting
cream, that is unlike standard BB creams. The formula itself
is made of blue beads that give it a gritty texture, and there
was promise for the first few seconds of rubbing, as the
grains "burst" into colour and blended into my skin.
However, the overall coverage was not fantastic, as
the thin cream merged into more of a sheen effect.
I also had a massive problem with the price - at £9.99
for 30ml I would not expect to have to wear anything
else with it, and yet I found myself feeling very concious
and having to constantly top up with concealer throughout
the day. I noticed the bottle also promoted
"24 hour hydration" ...sorry L'oreal.
You aren't fooling anyone.
No7 by Boots (£12.95) 4/5
This was one of my favourites of all the tested products.
No7 range of BB creams are skin-specific, so you can
choose your ideal cream based on your skin type.
The cream I tested for very dry skin made my skin
feel lovely and hydrated. The mixture is very thick
which means the coverage is good, and I felt as though
my skin could breathe. The SPF 15 means this would
be a great BB to take on holiday or for the summer
months. The cream evened out my skintone, hid my
blemishes and my skin felt radiant. The only advice
I would give is to only use tiny amounts at a time -
at £12.95 for 40ml, a little goes a very long way.
Nivea Tinted Day Moisturiser (£3.66) 1/5
I know what you're thinking .....this isn't a BB Cream.
However, I was assured by a few people and a fairly
over-enthusiastic sales assistant, that the product is
"just as good, if not better" than other marketed
BB Creams. At £3.66, I made the purchase thinking
that if that were true, it would be an absolute bargain.
Unfortunately the product was not what I'm looking for -
the formula spreads so thinly, and absorbed into the skin.
The effect was not unpleasant - the light formula and
fragrance still make this very good value, I will continue
to buy the cream, but as a moisturiser.
BB Blemish Balm by 17 (£6.99) 3/5
The product is reasonably priced, and I found the
consistency to be similar to that of No7 (which is
unsuprising, considering they're ran by the same
company), however unlike No7, the thick formula
took more effort to blend in, and I felt that rather
working to enhance my skin, the overall aim was
to simply cover. I also had an issue with the colour -
I opted for "light", which was still a fair bit darker
than my pasty complexion and just did not suit
at all. At £6.99, this is one of the more affordable
BB's, and it does generally do what it claims to,
despite its flaws.
Superdrug BB Cream (£8.99) 2/5
What I did like about this product was the fact that it's
vegan, cruelty free and paraben free - so it ticks alot
of boxes on the ethical factor. However, the sheerness
of the cream and the warmness of the colour meant
that I had quite a lot of orange patches left on my face,
even after a good few minutes of rubbing. The product
also offers more of a warm tint to the skin, rather than
any sort of coverage. The price is good, the idea behind
it is very good, but personally this product was just
not for me. Sorry Superdrug!
I think I will probably carry on using a couple of the
tested products, but overall I'm going to continue my
quest to find a quality BB Cream that doesn't cost the
earth, offers complete coverage but still leaves my skin
feeling fresh. I found that most of the BB Creams seem
to go for a Jack-of-all-trades concept - they repair skin
and stop breakouts and cover all the nasty bits etc,
which leaves me thinking that maybe there's just a little
too much promise and not enough of a delivery
within the industry.
I would definitely like to hear feedback on any products,
or if there's any products you'd like to see me review,
please contact me at jess.whatsonmyface@gmail.com
