Bombshell Review: Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream SPF 35 in Dark

Posted by Amber in Featured, Headline, Makeup | 4 comments

If you’ve been paying much attention to the beauty scene over the last several months, then you know that BB creams are having a moment. Already a huge phenomenon is Asia, BB creams (the BB stands for ‘beauty balm’) have finally made their way stateside. What’s all the fuss about? Well, BB creams are all-in-one wonder creams that act as a moisturizer, sunscreen, and skin perfecter. Being the product junkie that I am, I would have jumped on the bandwagon long ago, but there’s one major problem with bb creams: they never come in anything other than fair shades. So when I saw that Smashbox had created the new Camera Ready BB Cream SPF 35, $39 in a dark shade I had to try it out! Here’s what the product claims:

This multitasking tinted cream formula with SPF 35 hydrates, primes, perfects, controls oil, and protects for flawless skin on set and beyond. Formulated with emollients and optical pearl pigments, this BB Cream gives skin a glowing, ethereal look and provides a hydrating veil for the complexion to maintain moisture on the surface of the skin.

With its ultra-smoothing finish, it instantly re-texturizes to create a smooth canvas. Especially when worn under foundation, it enhances the wear of makeup for up to eight hours. Ideal even for oily complexions, this expert formula with UVA/UVB protection helps inhibit oil to prevent the complexion from getting shiny throughout the day without the typical chalky matte finish.

So did it live up to the hype? I’ve been using this for a couple of weeks now, and in many ways it did. In others not so much. Let me break it down by each claim.

Hydrates

While testing this product, I used it in place of my usual moisturizer and found it to absolutely be an effective moisturizer for my combination skin. It actually felt like it sank into the skin to provide enough moisture to combat dryness, but not enough to be heavy.

Primes

I didn’t really care for this as a primer. While Smashbox is know for their amazing primers, and this had the feel of a foundation primer, I didn’t find this to be an effective primer. I wore it under foundations that I wear on a regular basis and it didn’t really provide any lasting power for my liquid foundations. Oddly enough, it did provide a good base for cream foundations and helped them last a bit longer. I think the cream consistency of this product lent itself to providing a better hold for other cream products.

Perfects

This absolutely gives the appearance of perfect skin, as seen in the pic above. Now, it isn’t full coverage so it didn’t camouflage a few post-blemish dark spots I had. If you need light to buildable moderate coverage or want something for light makeup days, this is ideal. On many days I applied this product, dusted a little powder on top and was good to go for the entire day.

Controls Oil

I would consider this to be an adequate oil blocker for all but the extremely oily. My skin isn’t as oily as it used to be, so the oil breakthrough I experienced was minimal. I will note that it is important to really rub this product in. The first couple of days I applied it like a foundation and found it to be very greasy looking. But when I rubbed it into the skin like I would a moisturizer, the results were much better. No more greasiness and a better looking finish.

Protects

I don’t leave the house without SPF 30 or more on my face an neck, so I found the SPF 35 to be great. I was also pleased that the sun protection didn’t leave an ashy white cast on my skin.

I also want to discuss this particular shade. The Dark shade won’t be suitable for deep skin tones, but I do believe that several dark skin tones can play around with this and make it work if your undertones don’t lean extremely warm 0r cool. I tried swatching this in different lighting and couldn’t get a truly accurate color representation. I would say that in real life Dark is a bit deeper than it appears in the picture above.

Overall, I really liked this product and recommend it to those looking for a tinted moisturizer or lightweight foundation. If you’re solely looking for a foundation primer, this may not be your best option, depending on your needs. If you’re near a Sephora, definitely stop in and check it out. It’s also available on Sephora.com. Have you tried any BB creams? Will you give Smashbox’s bb cream a try? Share in the comments!