It was nearly a year ago that I talked about bb creams in my bb/cc/dd cream cheat sheet. A lot changes in a year. Now I’m using a BB cream most days and a regular foundation only for special occasions and evenings when I want better makeup coverage.
BB cream is probably the topic I get the most questions about. “Should I use one?” “Which one should I use?”
BB creams are great because they are a time saver and are a moisturizer, SPF, primer, foundation, and sometimes more in 1. Unless you answer yes to one of the below questions, then yes, yes… you should be using a BB cream:
are you spending the day in the sun?
are you looking for full makeup coverage?
Although BB creams have a SPF, it is not sufficient for spending the day in the sun so be sure to wear a separate sunscreen. If you’re looking for full coverage, then you just need to use a regular foundation since most BB creams have sheer to moderate coverage.
Okay so now you know you want a BB cream. Which should you use?
Although many brands are making BB creams, there are very few that make ones that have enough color options and provide even the slightest bit of coverage to replace your foundation. Actually, there really are only 3 that I could find.
3? What about the loads of other ones? Well, typically if there are only a few shades of BB creams, that means that it is actually a tinted moisturizer and not sufficient to replace a foundation. These 3 passed the coverage test and offer all those great benefits of BB creams – being a primer, moisturizer, sunscreen, and more all in 1.
My personal favorite is Bobbi Brown, since they have a great range of colors for olive skin tones like mine. Tarte and smashbox are also both great alternatives.
Are you using any of these? Have another BB cream you love? Let me know in the comments below.