BB creams. Or is it cremes?
What are they, whom are they good for, and why is Dior getting in on the act?
BB creams are like the new vibrating mascaras. Remember how everyone was talking about those a few years back (myself included)? “I’ve got a vibrating mascara wand! BAM! Check it out.”
And now, it’s BB creams. They sure are having a moment, and it seems like everyone and their mother and their cat is coming out with a BB cream.
So what are they?
Great question. Take the sheerest tinted moisturizer to ever walk the earth, combine it with a sunscreen, maybe a primer, add a little something to hide fine lines and shrink pores, squirt it in a tube, and voila! — BB cream.
They combine the benefits of skin care with the beauty of makeup, and Dior’s new Diorskin Nude BB Creme wants to join the party. Available now in four lightweight shades — Light #001, Fair #002, Medium #003 and Dark #004 — they feel almost like I’m wearing nothing at all.
And get this: all four of them contain pink. All of them. Which surprised me.
Not that there’s anything wrong with pink. In fact, I love pink. It’s just that I think Dior may have left out girls with yellow skin tones this time around. If your skin has yellow undertones, you’re probably well aware of this: pinkish face products can look a little…weird (because all you see is the pink, and it can look like you’re wearing a mask).
With these, as long as I only use a small amount and apply it with my fingers to my cheeks, nose and my forehead between my brows, that isn’t a problem. Applied this way, I think the effect is very cool.
Dior added the pink on purpose, as these are supposed to give skin a rosy, pinkish glow, and I can see it when I wear my favorite shade, Medium #003.
Dior also included mauve, hibiscus, SPF 10, and green, red and white tea extracts to create a moisturizing, smoothing formula that melts into my skin.
I think these are great if you don’t want to wear a full face of foundation and powder and the whole makeup shebang. If you just want a streamlined routine — or for weekend makeup looks, you know, when you’re out hiking or going to the movies, and you don’t want to get all dolled up — these will make you look like you tried.
It doesn’t cover as well as foundation or concealer — not by a long shot — but that’s the idea. I can still see my freckles and my post-acne dark spots, but I also see a pretty, pinkish glow.
For what it is, Diorskin Nude BB Creme does a pretty good job. Well, the pink might be an issue for some gals (those with a lot of yellow in their skin), and there is quite a leap between two of the shades, Medium #003 and Dark #004. I find myself wishing for a fifth shade somewhere between those.
Is it worth the $44 price? Hmm… Maybe if you’re careful about how much you use, I think so. Of course, if you took a liquid highlighter and mixed it with your favorite foundation or tinted moisturizer, you could probably get a similar effect for less, but then, that wouldn’t be Dior. 🙂
PRICE: $44
AVAILABILITY: Available now at Dior counters, Sephora stores and also online
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Eh…I hate it when brands only release products with pink undertones. I at least think that more people can wear neutral or even yellow tones (as yellow neutralizes redness), but pink? *sigh*
Huh! Sounds kind of cool actually, but yeah I think I’m BB creamed-out to be honest. Although I do like the glow this one gives you!
Only 4 shades? :s
Sarah
I tried this for about a week now. I don’t find the pink to be much of an issue. I have quite a yellow undertone on my skin and this marries perfectly. Also, I’d say the finish is quite matte for someone with dry skin like me, no illuminating effect that I can tell (I’m used to moisturizing/illuminating foundation along the line of NARS Sheer Glow or Bourjois Health Mix). Finally, the coverage is actually quite decent compared to any other TM/BB creams that I’ve tried (certainly better than Laura Mercier’s TM or NARS TM).
If I’m going to shell out $44 on a full-face product, I at least want it to have some great coverage. I have a lot of red overtones so a pink all-over face product probably is not for moi.
I gotta say, you look really nice with it on though! You are so naturally pretty, you can pull off wearing next to nothing on your skin or a full face with some bold colors and look awesome no matter what. 🙂
The Asian BB creams as I understand them offer skincare benefits, SPF and higher level of coverage than most tinted moisturizers. I’m disappointed that none of these American versions seem to hold true to what BB creams actually are. Many are just an OK tinted moisturizer possibly with either some spf or maybe some skincare benefits added and make huge promises as far as what they actually do… Because of that
I believe they will probably die out and become a fad, a thing of the past. Had these companies tried to stick close to the original concept/formula more and less cash-in on the latest product craze I think it’d be much better.
Oh dear, I see a sea of pink and that does not work for my golden skin. This is not a keeper for me.
I loved my Dior HydraLife BB cream last year. In fact, I really don’t think there’s a lot left in my tube anymore. These ones I am a little cautious about, precisely because of the “pink” claim. There is really too much yellow in my skin for me to pull that off!
Western BB creams make me angry, haha. I hate that they’ve made people think they should be anything like “the sheerest tinted moisturiser to walk the earth”.
I absolutely adore this product. I’m cool toned, but lean towards neutral and pale. I use 001. I bought it on a whim and I am in love. I use this in place of my Dior Forever foundation. I found the coverage excellent, but had to conceal a blemish. This was my first venture into BB creams that wasn’t a sample. I think they did a good job. I haven’t noticed the pink at all, but its been gloomy weather here so that may be why. I can’t recommend this product enough. My pores on my chin are so much better, I can’t feel them at the end of the day.
Although if you have normal/combo/oily skin I recommend skipping moisturizers. I found that I get really oily if I don’t and I have normal skin.
I always set with a powder, Nars.
Thanks for the info on BB creams in general. They do seem like they’re everywhere! I’m definitely a fan of tinted moisturizers and will have to sample some of the BBs. I’m sure I would benefit from the extra coverage of a foundation but they just feel too thick and heavy on my skin. I break out if I don’t wash the tinted moisturizer off my face before working out/sweating, so less is definitely more for me. 🙂
I have a lot of yellow undertones to my skin and pinkish products just don’t look good on me. I think I’ll have to pass on this one. On a whim, I did pick up a L’Oreal BB cream and I like it. I do add a bit of foundation to cover trouble spots, but I’ve found I need to use less foundation. When I’m in a hurry I’ll just wear the BB cream by itself. I’ve been keeping an eye on reviews to see if there are any other BB creams worthy of trying.
These are really pink! That lightest shade is pure baby pink.
I use a Korean brand BB Cream (Missha) that I’m quite fond of – the Korean BB Creams tend to have a lot more coverage than the US ones (although most of them tend to lack in color selection). I also like the one I have because it comes in a very fair color, which is good for my skin.
Medium is too light and dark is too dark. What a shame – good thing I have my precious Nars tinted moisturizer <3
I sort of see what they were doing with the “pink glow” thing, but no. No no no. Some of us just cannot wear pink-based base products! Maybe someday they will expand the shade range if a high percentage of people don’t/can’t buy these shades?
Is the number system right?? 001 is Light and 002 is Fair?? I have a sample of this in 002 and haven’t really put it on my full face. A Dior rep (or Sephora rep focusing on Dior) was in my Sephora and matched me to 002 at my jawline. I didn’t find it very pink to me. I’m a very fair Asian (I can go NW or NC 15/20) but with a neutral skintone so I can get away with both yellow or pink, so long as it doesn’t go too far either way. Perhaps I need to pull out the sample and give it a full go. My favorite BB cream at the moment is Hanskin and skin79 Diamond VIP Gold collection, but they are best for lighter, dry complexions.
Looking at your swatches again… I can see the 001 is really pink! Perhaps that’s why I didn’t think 002 was that pink. Also, how sad that 003 and 004 is such huge jump in shade! They definitely need a color in between!
I find it totally amusing when companies jump on a certain marketing bandwagon .. ‘Nude’ and “BB creams”.
Dior can’t come up with something original? Time for a new product development team 😉
Monica.
I haven’t been into BB Creams. I don’t even wear foundation!
Apply every 2 hours? Pssh. Western BB creams make me sad with their uber-sheer coverage. This girl wants to cover and heal at the same time, not just get a little glow! I use Korean brand Missha because it covers and my dark spots are slowly fading, woohoo!
I think the “apply every two hours” direction is in reference to the sunscreen, as the color itself is pretty long-lasting. I purchased this a couple of days ago. My skin is very fair, with a lot of freckling and is very sensitive so it gets pretty red (gotta love Irish skin). I’m not one to splurge on makeup, save for eye products, and I feel like this is definitely worth the price tag. I saw this one and Tarte were top-sellers, but between the two I felt the coverage of Dior was much better, and the consistency is a little more thick yet blendable (it’s not something you can throw on your skin, like a TM, and call it a day.. it takes a bit more work). It lasts an 8-9 hour workday with no problems (I topped it with Milani MultiTasker), and I was able to get it to cover my persistent chin acne (TOM) by using a dab more product – I found it’s very buildable.
The reason for my switch to a BB is because I feel like I’ve found myself in a Catch 22 situation. I have acne so I use a long lasting full coverage foundation, and I don’t think it’s doing anything to help clear up the acne, regardless of the amount of foundations I have experimented with. Dior BB, IMHO, covers the acne pretty well but is not a foundation. I’d like to ween myself off of facial “liquid” products altogether if I can get rid of this darn acne 🙂
Hi,
I’ve just bought it , in fair 002. It suits me very well, my skin got a new glow. Yes, my dark spots are still visible, but it doesn’t bother me at all. To settle, I put on the diorskin nude loose powder in 020 light beige, and my face is enlightened at once. And it lasts all day.