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| Yeah, sometimes I cart this much around. |
We have all been hammered by the beauty and fashion magazines lately about BB Creams. BB stands for Blemish Balm, as they are sold in Asian markets, or Beauty Balm as sold in Western markets. They are supposed to multitask and be a primer, foundation, sunscreen, moisturizer and serum. You can wear them alone or with your other favorite moisturizer, foundation or powder.
Are they really worth the hype or are they just another sales pitch for one more product that we can’t possibly live without. I have so much makeup it’s frightening (or drool inducing), but that’s my job. See picture to the right and you’ll see what I mean. Is a BB Cream really going to change my life? Probably not, but I had to try one anyway. Those magazine ads really do work. I had received samples of different brands and I liked them but they always made my skin look a little shiny after a few hours. For my personal use, I usually like more of a matte look to my skin. I don’t wear a full coverage foundation, maybe just a tinted moisturizer or a very light coverage foundation. Too many freckles to cover up and then I just look weird. BB Creams seem to be marketed to gals like me.
In a beauty magazine recently, they had an ad for Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream for Combination to Oily Skin. My interest sparked. The ad came with a coupon and a handy color chart. Most of us know what color spectrum we fall in when the cosmetic companies group us into only 3 different skin tones. Although, light may not be light enough for you or deep is not deep enough. Trial and error is sometimes the only way to figure out which color is appropriate for your skin tone. I went with the Light/Medium for combination to oily skin. I purchased it at my local gigantic one stop shop for $11.97 and used my $1.00 coupon.
Garnier’s BB Cream Skin Renew for combination to oily skin is supposed to control shine, minimize pores, even skin tone, and hydrate. It also has SPF 20, which in my opinion is not enough for daily wear (SPF 30 is recommended), but at least it’s something. It also has “Mineral Perlite + Mineral Pigments”.
I have been wearing it for a few days now and here’s my opinion: OK, not a life changing “miracle”, but I kind of like it. The color is a tad dark and a little too beige for me, so I have to use it sparingly and blend well down my neck. Most BB Creams are supposed to be used very sparingly anyway. I do really like the fact that it is not dewy like other BB Creams. It does feel like more of a light coverage foundation. My skin looks very pretty with it on and I did set it lightly with a loose translucent powder. I wore it out one day and got caught in a rainstorm and it seemed to hold up pretty well, my hair was another story. My only note of caution is that some users with very sensitive skin have reported that this product was irritating to them. I haven’t experienced any blemishes or itchiness.
The texture is not thick at all, not what I would call a “cream” but more of a liquid. You have to be careful when dispensing it from the bottle, a lot can come out at once. The smell is alright, it doesn’t really bother me. After it sets on the skin I can’t smell it.
While this product may not be technically a true BB Cream like the real ones sold in Korea, I will continue to use this bottle of Garnier Skin Renew BB Cream for combination/oily skin. Are you going to be sucked in also and try a BB Cream for yourself?
** Update: I have been using this product now for a while and I have come to completely love it. I even put one in my professional makeup kit and intend on purchasing the darker colors as well.
