Sunday, March 18, 2012

Garnier BB Cream Review


This is a product I have been after for AGES and finally justified purchasing it in the 3 for 2 Boots skincare deal. (I'm also after the Estée Lauder BB cream but that will need some saving up for)! I am now the proud owner of a Garnier BB cream (£9.99) and I love it!
To make this review easier to navigate, I shall split up my contents into specific categories, let's get started!


Backstory

I first heard of BB creams from Ingrid, or missglamorazzi, about a year ago. Hearing her talk about how much she loves BB creams and how good they are for your skin made me so excited to try them myself. They're a Blemish Balm created in East Asia, mainly for problem skin. They're innovative in that they have multiple features: they serve as a primer, foundation, sunblock and complexion corrector all in one.
The first one I found (and could not believe my eyes when I did because it was from some dingy homeware/lifestyle shop) was from an Asian company and didn't say much in English other than BB Cream. That product was a FAIL for me: it oxidized quite strongly leaving me with a ghastly grey complexion, ugh.

That made me steer clear for a while, until I heard rave reviews about the Garnier version, here's my two cents:

Yay or Nay


Yay:
  The cream comes in two shades: Medium and Light. The light shade blends into a range of skin tones very nicely. I know this because it works well both for me and for much paler bloggers/Youtubers too.
 It leaves a very dewy finish. 
In terms of coverage, it definitely helped to conceal a large acne scar on my cheek .
 It's a great primer.
 Has UV SPF 15 protection. 
Smells nice.
 Reasonably priced.


Nay: 
It really is dewy so if I am wearing it without foundation on top then powdering is not an option, it's a definite must
I would like it to have a higher SPF as SPF 15 just seems too little for your face + neck (as opposed to just lip balm which goes on a tiny area of your). It would also be nice if it were PA +++ approved. The PA system ranges from just PA to PA with three plus signs, depending on their UVA strength. It's a separate measurement from SPF (it is primarily a Japanese/Asian system) so to see both on a product would be very reassuring.

Verdict

Left: Bourjois HealthyMix Foundation #52 Vanille 
Right: Garnier BB Cream in Light

All in all, I am in love with this product. My everyday routine includes a moisturiser with SPF under my foundation, so this is ideal. Compared with the moisturiser I was always using before I bought the BB Cream, I would say they serve different purposes. The Boots Soltan SPF 50 moisturiser that I got for no more than £5 is just that, a sunblock. While it is SPF 50+ with UVB protection, its not as makeup-friendly as the Garnier BB cream and offers no coverage whatsoever. In future I REALLY want to try the DiorSnow products which Ingrid loves as well because they have high SPF and PA ratings and they also help fade acne scarring. I might sacrifice my next pay check for that #whoknows.

Have you guys tried BB creams? Xx

2 comments:

  1. I am intrigued to try this product but for me my favourite under foundation SPF treatment type thing will always be Clinique Super City Block. I think I want to try this BB cream though. :)

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    Replies
    1. ooo haven't used that in YEARS! I heard there were tinted ones now too? x

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