Drugstore BB Creams

BB Creams have been on the market in North America for a quite a while now, but I'd never really been too keen. I tried one when they first became big and it really didn't impress me.  But now that summer is coming and I'm looking for easy, one-step products with lighter coverage, I thought I'd give them another shot.

This post is just going to cover a few of the drugstore brands although I'm dying to try out Dior and Clarins' offerings (if anyone has, I'd love to hear about it).

I originally was going to do a comparison between Revlon and Maybelline but I recently got a sample of Garnier's BB Cream as well so I'll talk about all three.

Maybelline Dream Fresh BB 8-in-1 Beauty Balm

The first one I tried was by Maybelline Dream Fresh BB 8-in-1 Beauty Balm and to be honest, I don't love it.  I believe it was only available in three shades (of which I bought the lightest) so it's unsurprising that it is much too dark, even in the summer.  It now comes in five shades so the colour range is probably a bit more suitable. I also found that throughout the day it oxidized, making it even more orange. As for finish, I found it quite oily and the coverage wasn't really great either.  I do like that it has SPF 30 but other than that, I don't think it's anything to write home about.

Revlon Photoready BB Cream

On to Revlon Photoready BB Cream which I showed you all in my last Haul. I bought it in the shade 010 Light and the colour match is great.  I find most Revlon products are able to match my skin very well (something for my pale friends to remember).  The coverage is pretty sheer but buildable: it actually does something to your skin.  I find most days a layer of this plus a bit of powder on my t-zone is great coverage.  It also has SPF 30 and a thicker formula than Maybelline's, meaning a little goes a long way.  It also lasts well.  I have a lot of love for this product.

Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector for Combination/Oily Skin

Finally, we have Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector for Combination/Oily Skin in Light. I was hesitant to buy this one because I read a lot of reviews saying the original formula was quite oily.  Although my skin is dry/combination, I have a weird paranoia of looking shiny so I try to stay away from products with a lot of oil.  When I got a sample of their oil-free formula, I was excited to give it a try.  First of all, it goes on beautifully. It has a matte, velvety finish that almost feels like you aren't wearing any makeup at all.  I also dries quickly and I definitely wouldn't think you'd need a powder to set it.  All-in-all, I think it's a lovely product but unfortunately (and unsurprisingly) it is a bit too dark.  I believe they just released a lighter shade in the original formula so hopefully they will for the oil-free as well.  I will probably purchase a full-sized version of this in the summer because if it weren't for the colour-match issue, it would probably be my favourite.  The coverage is perfect and it makes your skin look flawless but still natural.  Sigh

Top: Maybelline Dream Fresh BB 8-in-1 Beauty Balm

Bottom: Revlon Photoready BB Cream

From the tubes

 Top: Maybelline Dream Fresh BB 8-in-1 Beauty Balm

Bottom: Revlon Photoready BB Cream

Slightly blended to show consistency 

 Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector for Combination/Oily Skin

I hope this review has been helpful! I have yet to try L'Oreal, Covergirl or Rimmel's BB Cream so I'll be on the lookout for that. They're making them faster than I can buy them! If there are any other products you'd like me to review, or if you've tried any of these ones, I'd love to hear what you think!

Kendall

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I Was Bad Part Three

Happy End-of-Weekend my friends! Well that's a bit of an oxymoron as Sunday nights have got to be one of the most depressing parts of the week. So to make your evening (or more likely your Monday as I'm a procrastinator and this probably won't be up until late) a bit more enjoyable, why don't you have a look at the latest damage I've done to my bank account.

All of the things here have been purchased from Shopper's Drug Mart (again for the non-Canadians, as the name implies, it's a popular drugstore of the north).  I'm planning on doing reviews of a few of the newer products that I picked up, so if there's anything specific you would like to see, don't forget to let me know in the comments!

So I did a fair amount of damage as you can probably see.  Just jumping right into it, from left to right: Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser in Fair (I've yet to try this but I've heard a lot of promising things about it and I'm still on the hunt for a great concealer), Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in (05) Candy Shimmer, Clinique Almost Lipstick in (06) Black Honey, Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate in 102, Rimmel ScandalEYES Waterproof Kohl Kajal in (008) Light Blue, Covergirl Lip Perfection Jumbo Gloss Balm in (215) Watermelon Twist, Revlon Photoready BB Cream in (010) Light, Benefit Hoola

Oh boy.

From top to bottom: Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate in 102, Clinique Almost Lipstick in (06) Black Honey, Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in (05) Candy Shimmer

You can probably tell I'm feelin' the pink-lip look for spring.  The Rimmel lipstick just struck me as such a beautiful spring pink; for some reason I want to call it a tulip pink but that can't be right.

As for the Clinique one, I think I actually bought the wrong colour.  I swatched it in Sephora and it  seemed a bit more berry-toned there whereas now that I've bought it, it looks a bit more wine-toned.  Apparently this is one of their best-sellers though and I've yet to actually try it on the lip so I'll keep you posted.

Now I know I've just recently posted about my recent Clarins lip gloss purchase (you can read that one HERE) but I just couldn't help myself.  Candy Shimmer is a sweet, shiny pink that's new for spring that I can tell is going to get a lot of use.

I also picked up a couple of skincare items

I know this might be a tiny bit boring but I partially just wanted to share that I managed to find two full-sized bottles of Bioderma! I've been hunting for this like mad as it still isn't consistently available in Canada but here it is.  I also picked up Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer in Aloe-Fresh which was basically just an experiment.  I liked the idea of a spray-on moisturizer that dries quickly, as I really can't stand that sticky-skin feeling while you're trying to get dressed.  I've only tried it once but so far I think it does a great job.  It's quite watery but I think it has to be in order to be spray-able.

Mercifully for my wallet, that's it! Please stay tuned for reviews because most of these products are first-purchases for me so I'm sure I'll have lots to say.

If you've tried any of these products, be sure to let me know how you feel about them in the comments.

I hope you all have a great week!

Kendall

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