Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream No. 23

Hi hi! ~♥

This post has been a looong time coming. I just wanted to really test this product out coz well, they say you should use a product for 2 months in order for it to work. Sometimes a product can seem nice at first, but 2 weeks down the line - lo and behold, your skin's a walking nightmare! 

Anywho, BB Creams are THE hottest thing right now & supposed to be a miracle wonder cream. If you still don't know what BB Creams are, then stop hiding under a rock & read about them here. :")

I decided to try out the real-Korean-deal first & ordered a tube on Ebay.

I had ordered Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream in No. 23 or Natural Beige in a 20ml tube. Because it's half the size of the full sized product, it does not have a pump.

I did contemplate buying the 40 ml tube, but opted for the 20 ml to try it first before committing to a full sized product. After a month of testing, I've finally reached a conclusion on this one: it's nice.

Not brilliant. Not OH-MY-GAWD-WHERE-HAVE-YOU-BEEN-ALL-MY-LIFE! Not Earth-shatteringly, heart-stoppingly, stop-what-you're-doing-and-stare amazing.

No.

It is just nice. 

Ok, so to be fair I've only tested ONE BB cream out of hundreds of brands, but I was kinda expecting... more. What more is exactly, I don't know, but you know when products are so hyped about, you tend to expect miracles of biblical proportions. Or at least I do!

Anyways, this NICE product is supposed to have a multitude of functions:
♥ lightening (I'm assuming blemish scars here)
♥ healing skin
♥ healing wrinkles
♥ healing blemishes
♥ concealing & covering skin
♥ preventing ageing
♥ anti-wrinkle 
♥ whitening
♥ moisturising
♥ SPF 
 

Some of these functions do seem redundant, no? Well, it did heal my skin somewhat & made my skin feel really smooth & soft- very nice indeed! I did notice less blemishes (although this could be attributed to the recent change of season). It's not the most effective moisturiser & I'm not too sure about the anti-ageing & anti-wrinkle function. I'll tell you in 20 years time. :)

It provided light coverage and, though not concealing scars totally, it did blur them, like someone went to town on my face with an airbrush. It works best on thoroughly cleansed and exfoliated skin- if it isn't then this BB cream does not blend well.
       

 Without BB cream:

Ugh! My skin is a sad mess I tell you!

With BB cream:   

 Marks are still visible, but not so bad!

Pros: 

Missha Perfect Cover BB cream makes my skin feel super soft, smooth & plumped up. I have noticed that my skin looks brighter these days. New blemish scars seem to heal much quicker too which is great! The SPF is a whopping 42 & it's PA+++  which is the highest UVA protection found in Asian skin care. 

The good thing about this BB cream is that it is not oily! I've found that it goes on matte without looking dry, which works wonders for oily-skinned gals like me. Of course, it is a tad drying which may look too mask-like so I'd recommended that you use a light moisturiser, which makes application of the BB cream smoother and easier to blend in.

The little 20 ml tube lasts for ages. I've been using it obsessively for a month & the tube still feels quite full. The scent it pretty, like a baby lotion.  

The biggest Pro for me? It did not cause me to break out!!!!! Oh joy!!!

Cons:

The colour is completely off- it would work for girls who have skin with a pink under tone as the No. 23 is heavily pinkish. Unfortunately, it makes my skin look ghastly & grey for a while, but settles into my skin after about 30mins, which means I have to lurk around my house for 30 mins and then leave. Of course, using regular foundation over the BB cream negates the grayish look BUT this combo makes my skin more oily.

On hot, humid days, this BB cream literally slides off my skin, making it look patchy & can only be rectified with a dusting of powder. It also easily transfers off your face and onto any other surface which is not so nice. But the again, the humid Durban weather plus my ghastly oily skin makes all products slide off my face. Gah!

Oddly enough, when I first tried this BB cream, it made my skin feel itchy in  very odd way, almost like an allergic reaction. I refused to give in, however, and continued to use it. I didn't break out or anything, just had a mild itch. Eventually, I used a moisturiser underneath and it stopped!!  

How to Apply:

Ah, now here is where I had trouble. I applied Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream the same way that foundation is applied- by rubbing in with fingers & using the same amount of product as with foundations. Big, BIG NO-NO! It will only result in a white mask-like face. There's a reason why Korean gals PAT all their product onto their face- gently patting the BB cream onto skin is the correct method. The BB cream blends better & looks more natural. Also, only a pea-sized amount of cream is needed. 

My Verdict:

The biggest deterrent is the colour - I need something with more yellow in it, so perhaps I'll try No.27 next. It's not a bad product, it does work as long as you get the right colour! Would I purchase again? Yes, just a different colour.

My Rating:

★★★☆☆

Price:

USD 5.40 @ Ebay

Thanks for reading!! ^_^* Leave a comment!!

♥Miss. Q♥

It's all about the BB Cream!

Every now and then, a new skin care product is born & soon becomes a craze. Brace yourselves, girls, it's the era of the BB cream! I had to jump on the bandwagon & did my own mini BB cream haul. So I thought I'd shed some light on the who, what, when, where & how of the humble BB cream.

♥ What is a BB cream?

The BB stands for blemish balm or beblesh balm (apparently there's copyright laws on the word "blemish" in Korea, so they substituted it with beblesh. Again, sounds like a skin rash to me). 

Basically BB creams are lighter than foundations, but have more benefits than a tinted moisturiser. 

♥ Who uses BB creams?

BB creams were invented in Germany a while back to be used on post-cosmetic surgery patients. It's functions were to heal & nurture the skin while offering coverage and protection from the sun. 

Soon, Korean actresses began using BB creams (maybe because they had cosmetic surgery done too?). Eventually, skin care companies caught on to the idea of creating and selling BB creams that were accessible to the Korean public. Why should actresses have all the fun? :)

♥ Ok, then what happened?

BB creams eventually gained popularity in Japan, before taking over the rest of Asia. But it didn't stop there: soon thereafter, BB cream fever hit the West, gaining fans in Europe, Australia, the United States and more!

It's slowly hitting Africa too, but may not be as successful due to one simple draw back - BB creams come in limited colours that don't really cater for darker skins!  BB creams generally come in one or two standardised colours that cater to lighter Asian skin tones. Brands like Missha have a wider colour range, but it's still pretty limited...


Which is why Western brands such as Estee Lauder, Maybelline and Garnier have introduced their own version of BB cream that DO have slightly more variety in colour! Hooray!

♥ Sounds nice, but what's the point?


BB creams are the solution to ALL your skin care needs! It's an ALL-IN-ONE skin care product that packs as many benefits into one product so that you don't spend hours on a skin care routine. Some of the more basic benefits of a BB cream include:





♥ moisturiser
♥ provides natural, light coverage
♥ protects skin 
♥ conceal dark marks, scars & pores for an "airbrushed" effect
♥ heals blemishes
♥ softens & smooths skin, while aiding in regeneration
♥ maintaining youthful skin 
♥ contains some SPF
♥ can be used as a makeup base
♥ whitening
♥ anti-wrinkle
♥ anti-ageing
♥ mattifiying effect

♥ How do I use a BB cream?
 
If you use BB creams, you don't really need to use a moisturiser, sunblock, foundation etc. (Although I prefer to). After cleansing, toning and moisturising, dot the BB cream on your forehead, nose, cheeks and chin. Blend using light patting motions, working your way from the centre, outwards. Dust with your preferred powder to set & tada! You're done! =^_^=


♥ Which are the best brands for BB creams?


It all depends on what you're looking for in a BB cream, but  here are some of the more popular BB cream brands:


♥ Skin79
♥ Missha
♥ BRTC
♥ Etude House
♥ Dr. Jart
♥ Laniege
♥ Garnier
♥ Skin Food
♥ The Face Shop
     
♥ Where can I buy BB creams from?


Depending on where you live, it can be easy or difficult. Here in SA, our only BB cream option available from a store is the Estee Lauder Daywear Anti-Oxidant Beauty Benefit Creme. If you want the authentic Korea product, you'll have to order online.




And that's it for BB creams... for now! It's a long post, but I hope you found it helpful! :) Thanks for reading! =^w^=


♥ Miss. Q. ♥

BB Cream Haul

Ah, the BB cream... It's the stuff legends are made of! 

If you haven't heard of it, you must either be living under a rock or in the middle of the Sahara desert coz the BB cream craze has already hit Europe and USA. As for Asia? The sheer amount of BB cream brands available in Asia is enough to make you salivate... Ahem.

 It's slowly beginning to creep into the SA beauty scene, but quite frankly, I can't wait that long for original Korean BB Cream brands.

So, I took the plunge, went online & bought mini, trial sizes of two of the most well known BB creams out there - Skin79 Hot Pink Label Super Beblesh Balm & Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream No. 23. I was sooo happy when my package arrived from South Korea!! Here's a sneak peek:

   I even held them & gazed happily at my new BB creams... and made a special place for them in my vanity case. I was that excited. 

Coming up...

I'll be reviewing these products as well as giving you the scoop on what BB creams are all about... Don't miss out!


♥ Miss. Q ♥

Have you tried BB Creams yet? :)