I've poured my heart over my fave BB cream from L'Occitane numerous times since last year when I've discovered it. And it really is a mighty fine BB cream specimen, however, I'm also aware that its price tag doesn't cater to everyone's budget. I'm sure that there are loads of fine budget-friendly BB creams out there but most of them haven't really catered to my needs. I'm not usually a matte finish lover as far as foundations go (I'm more looking after that plumpy, juicy dewy effect) so I was a bit meh when I received this BB cream to test – you know, I wasn't really expecting anything special. Wow, was I wrong! Avon Matte BB Gentle Beauty Balm with SPF 15 really surprised me in a big way and it meant that I've finally stumbled upon a great, affordable BB cream which does almost exactly the same as the more expensive and luxe L'Occitane offering. It's of a quite plain design, a solid 30ml tube of beige coloring but does it house a great product or what? It's ingredients aren't really perfect for you puritans out there (titanium dioxide, mica, parfum, silica) but it photographs quite fine as you can see and it does contain a Jujube Fruit Extract, urea, Petasites hybridus (bog rhubarb) extract and hydrolyzed silk. It's actually quite decent by my own perimeters but the most important thing you want to know about this BB cream – it's silicone based. That means that it has that classic silicone feel on the skin, it has that slip I personally like but I understand it's not to everyone's tastes.
Posto sam vam otvorila srce i pisala sve sto mislim o svojoj omiljenoj BB kremi koja dolazi od L'Occitane-a i vise mozda nego sto se tolerise (ipak je bila divno otkrice prosle godine) – iako je krasan primjerak BB kreme, itekako sam svjesna da njena cijena ne pase svakom dzepu. Sigurna sam kako na trzistu postoji solidan broj pristojnih BB krema pristupacne cijene no mojoj kozi nisu odgovarale. Imajuci na umu da nisam pretjerano sklona mat finisu kada su podloge u pitanju (vise volim ‘socan’ dewy efekat), bila sam ambivalentna kada mi je u rucice dopala ova BB krema na testiranje. Jednostavno nisam imala neka divlja ocekivanja ali sam se dobro prevarila! Avon Mat BB Gentle Beauty Balm sa SPF 15 me iskreno iznenadio, bolje reci sokirao jer je to znacilo da sam napokon naisla na odlicnu BB kremu, pristupacne cijene koja radi istu stvar kao skuplja i luksuznija L'Occitane BB krema. Jednostavnog dizajna, ova tuba bez boje skladisti solidnih 30ml proizvoda. Sastojci nece impresionirati puritance izuzetno visokih standarda (titanium dioxide, mica, silica, parfem) ali, kao sto cete vidjeti, sasvim lijepo izgleda na fotografijama (nema bijelog odsjaja). Ova BB krema ima i jako lijepe sastojke poput Jujube vocnog ekstrakta, uree, ekstrakta Petasites hybridus (vrsta rabarbare) te hidroliziranu svilu. Po mom misljenju je solidnog sastav, no najbitnija stvar koju zelite znati o ovoj BB kremi jeste da je silikonske baze. To znaci da pod prstima i na kozi imate onaj klasicni osjecaj koji dijele proizvodi sa silikonima, tu odredjenu glatkocu koja mi se dopada no razumijem da nije po svacijem ukusu.
Being silicone-based it means that it will not work equally well if paired with a moisturizer underneath. You don't particularly need a moisturizer with it, it's just my preference, but if you also prefer to apply something else with it – it's worth noting. It works amazing with LRP Effaclar Duo+ underneath but not as well with other silicone-based moisturizers (L'Occitane Angelica Hydra Vital Gel, LRP Effaclar Mat). I found that Effaclar Mat made tiny flakes when this BB cream applied over and the Hydra Vital Gel paired with this BB cream left a colored layer on my fingers after application. I suggest using it with a moisturizer without silicones. It does feel amazing on the skin, never clogged my pores and it isn't difficult to remove after a working day – it does stay put for at least good, solid 8h on my face which is amazing for a BB cream! As for its mattifying claims, I'd rather say that it gives a satin finish than matte as it doesn't look cakey or heavy on me. It also doesn't make my face look dull like some other matte bases. It has a healthy sheen but it noticeably takes the shine down. It's quite remarkable in that aspect. It's of a light, mousse-y, creamy texture that just melts in contact with the skin and it's rather delightfully fragranced. I have the shade ‘Medium’ which is everything pale skins run from – it looks like caramel when swatched but when I massage it on my skin, it sinks in and unifies with it. I'd say that it provides one step above light coverage – it's buildable. It's a very interesting BB cream and ‘Medium’ is a perfect shade for medium skin tones. I haven't tried the ‘Light’ version but I hope it caters to paler skins because this BB cream is too good to pass on.
Posto je silikonske baze, to znaci da nece podjednako dobro funkcionisati sa bilo kojom hidratantnom kremom koju nanesete ispod nje. Ovo vam ne spominjem u smislu da smatram kako je hidratantna krema potrebna ispod ove BB kreme (jako lijepo njeguje kozu i samostalno) – to je jednostavno mozda stvar navike kod mene. Meni ova BB krema odlicno saradjuje sa LRP Effaclar Duo+ kremom ispod dok sam primjetila kako ne pase sa kremama koje takodjer sadrze silikone (L'Occitane Angelica Hydra Vital Gel, LRP Effaclar Mat). U kombinaciji sa Effaclar Mat-om je pravila sitne grudvice (neravnomjerno nanosenje) dok je Hydra Vital Gel ucinio da mi na prstima ostane sloj u boji BB kreme. Izvukla sam zakljucak da je najbolje koristiti je u sinergiji sa klasicnim kremama koje ne sadrze silikone (ako cete ih uopste koristiti ispod ove BB kreme). Jako je lijepog osjecaja na kozi, nije mi zacepila pore i nije je tesko ukloniti sa lica nakon radnog dana. I da, zaista mi ostaje na licu u punom intenzitetu minimalno 8h sto je izvrsno za BB kremu! Sto se tice matiranja koze, radije bih se izrazila da daje kozi satenski efekat i finis nego onaj klasicni mat finish. Ne djeluje tesko i ne osjecam tezinu na licu kada je nosim. Takodjer ne oduzima zdrav izgled koze i ne cini kozu sivkastom, sto neke matirajuce baze cine. Kozda djeluje lijepo ali odmah po nanosenju je jasno da znacajno smanjuje sjaj. U tom smislu impresionira. Lagane je, pjenaste i kremaste teksture koja se topi u kontaktu sa kozom i jako je lijepog mirisa (nije napadan). Moja nijansa je ‘Medium’ i upravo je ono sto bi osobe svijetlog tena trebale preskociti. Djeluje kao karamela kada je nanesem u vidu swatcha na kozu, no kada je umasiram u kozu potpuno se stopi sa njom i blago je ‘utopli’. Rekla bih da pruza jednu stepenicu iznad laganog prekrivanja – moze se slojevitim nanosenjem nadograditi do odredjene mjere. Mislim da je nijansa ‘Medium’ idealna za tonove koze poput mog – srednjeg, neutralno do toplog podtona. Nisam isprobala ‘Light’ nijansu no iskreno se nadam da ce odgovarati damama porcelanskog tena jer je ova BB krema isuvise dobra da bi je preskocile. U aktuelnom katalogu na str.100 mozete pronaci ovu mat BB kremu po cijeni od 11,90KM sto je odlicno.
Avon Matte BB Cream in Medium
Revelique Eyebrow Pencil in Ochre
Bourjois 1 Volume Seconde Mascara
Avon True Color Quad in Barely There
Clarins Natural Lip Perfector in Rosewood Shimmer
*Some of these products may have been sent to me for review. For more information, see my disclaimer.
