Product Review: Revlon PhotoReady BB Cream Skin Perfector

Revlon has jumped on the BB Cream bandwagon and launched one of their own---or did they?  A big pet peeve of mine is cosmetics companies that try to get in on a good thing (like the BB Cream craze) but then do it in a less than optimal way. Many of the non-Asian brands call themselves BB Creams but they are really tinted moisturizers.

So let's look at what a BB Cream is "supposed" to be about: 

• light to medium coverage
• moisturizing (and sometimes oil controlling)
• Built in primer
• decent level of sun protection
• skin benefiting/anti aging ingredients
• either automatically adapts to skin tone or comes in several skin tones to match different depths of pigmentation
• Evens out skin tone
• Lightens skin/reduces discoloration (Asian brands only)

Product Review: Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream

Beautiful Finish for Slightly Dry to Oily Skin

I originally became acquainted with Smashbox's Camera Ready BB Cream through a Sephora sample. Having tried several Asian and Western BB creams, I was a little bit skeptical of yet another tinted moisturizer masquerading as a BB cream. Fortunately, I continued on with this product as I am happy I did!

Smashbox describes its BB cream as  "a five in one formula for achieving flawless skin on camera and beyond."  The five functions are as to prime for a layer of foundation; to perfect or even out skin tone using one of the five available shades; to hydrate and improve skin moisture in four weeks; to protect with a sun protection rating of 35; and controlling oil. 

My Skincare Routine: Part 2

It wasn't until I was 42 that I began to be interested in skincare and take the health of my skin seriously. That first summer that I went to the beach slathered in sunblock, my pale white skin glowing against my black bathing suit as I sat under a beach umbrella with a sunhat and sunglasses, was very uncomfortable, indeed! Besides being slightly embarrassed by my deathly pallor, I really wanted to get out there on the beach and in the water! 

Slowly but surely, I embraced my natural color and began to figure out what would work best for my skin. Not one to be impressed by fancy packaging and expensive brands, I researched the ingredients that worked for aging skin (I'm still learning!) and came up with a skincare routine that works for my skin at this stage in my life. Skincare products can be soooo expensive and my research indicated that some of the most expensive products are made with some of the simplest, most inexpensive ingredients (in other words, they are waaay over priced!).

My routine is spelled out after the jump. Check it out!

My Skincare Routine: Part 1

Picture Credit: The V Effect

Many women notice that as they grow older, their skin becomes dry. I am no exception. When I was a teenager, I was spared the indignity of teenage acne but my skin was fickle, oily and prone to breakouts. Like many that age, I tried every skincare gimmick advertised on TV---pads, skin creams, foams, toners...you name it, I tried it. If I could have only eliminated oil from my skin...

In my twenties, the oil calmed down a little bit so I was pretty happy. I was on the birth control pill and the hormones helped prevent any potential breakout from starting.  By that time, I was out of college and into my first couple of "real" jobs. The income allowed me to step up my skincare routine and I began purchasing skincare systems from department stores. Clinique's system was the first one I tried. I'd use it until it was finished and try another one, never to be satisfied.

Every Woman's "Must Have"

Probably the most important item a woman can have in her beauty arsenal is a good sunscreen. The effects of long term (or short term) exposure to the sun can be devastating to the skin. An example of this is illustrated in the picture below. This 69 year old man was a delivery truck driver for years. The left side of his face was exposed to the sun from the drivers side window. Look at the difference in the left and right sides of his face! His skin looks 20 years older on the side facing the driver's side window. That's what happens to your skin, over time, without sunscreen.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Gordon/NEJM.com