Battle of the BB Creams

May 25, 2015May 25, 2015 / Kayla Hutchison / 6 Comments

Hey lovelies,

Spring is obviously here for many of us, but if you live somewhere humid as snot *raises hand* it already feels like Summer. Not gonna lie, I’m not a huge fan of Summer. If I didn’t have kids, I probably wouldn’t go outside much. I hate feeling like I’m melting.

When I do go out, I typically wear a BB cream as my main base with a tiny bit of powder on top. Full coverage foundations in The South probably aren’t gonna look cute in June and July no matter how much Urban Decay All Nighter you use..or at least for me. If you can wear full coverage in the Summer I envy you so very much. The humidity just makes it impossible for me to wear.

What is a BB cream? Some people say it stands for “beauty balm” and I’ve seen others say “blemish balm” but it’s a bit of an “all in one” type of product that covers and protects your skin, while also giving added benefits of SPF, hydration, etc. Some people wear these alone and some wear them underneath their foundations. It really depends on your preference and what you’re going for with your base.

So, today I want to talk about a few BB Creams that I have tried out over the past year and my thoughts on each. I’m going to rate these on a scale of 1-5 based on coverage, price, finish, lasting power, and overall skin benefits.

NYC BB Matte BB Cream- Score- 3/5

I do like this bb cream since it is very decently priced, and surprisingly the “light” shade from this line is more of a color match for me than any other bb cream in this post. However, it just doesn’t set right on my skin at all. I have tried exfoliating, a serum, brush, sponge…everything. It will look great when I first put it on and then when I look at myself an hour later I have granny face. It gives me wrinkles and I don’t even have wrinkles! It also doesn’t have spf or anything, and that’s not gonna cut it for this ghost girl in the spring time. I’m giving it a 3 because even though it doesn’t work for me, it would probably work great for someone with fair and oilier skin than me! It’s also the cheapest cream in this post, and is about $3 at most drugstores that carry NYC.

Lioele BB Cream- Score 4/5

I have done a review on this bb cream in the past, but I recently came back to it and I really like it. It’s thick, but I can still put it on with my fingers and get even coverage. The color match isn’t great for me, but it does mix very well with my Hard Candy Glamoflauge foundation (930 porcelain). The price is probably not ideal for many, but I did snag this on sale on prettyandcute.com awhile back, and I know that it’s also sold on amazon and ladymoss.com. I don’t believe this one has spf either. I want to say this foundation is about $15-20, but it depends on where you’re buying it from in some cases. There’s no SPF in this BB cream, but it is very hydrating and lays well on the skin. This BB cream is a great one that I will probably continue to reach for and just wear SPF underneath it.

Rimmel Matte BB Cream- Score 4/5

This BB cream is actually one that I reach for often even though I have dry skin and tend to avoid matte finishes. It has a really nice buildable medium coverage and has SPF in it. That makes it not very photo-op worthy, but it is good for your skin and will protect you from the sun. This is very affordable and readily available to many since it’s a drugstore BB cream. It doesn’t get a 5 though because the shade “light” is so off. I can easily correct it with my hard candy glamoflauge foundation or manic panic foundation, but it is annoying. This BB cream also claims to be beneficial to skin in 9 different ways, and it’s one that I do recommend trying if you’re looking for an affordable drugstore BB cream.

LA Girl Pro BB Cream- Score 4/5

This is the newest BB cream I’ve been trying out because Nicole from young, wild, and polished recommended it to me in a comment I left on one of her videos. At $4 I figured it was worth a shot. I have the shade “fair” which is a better match for me than the Rimmel, but still pretty dark on me. However, the finish is really lovely and leaves a nice satin-but-not-too-dewy glow to my skin. I didn’t give this a 5 because there’s no SPF, but because it’s HD it will work really well if you vlog like myself and don’t want to wear a heavy foundation on camera in the Spring and Summer. Also, this BB cream is a bit high maintenance for me some days. I feel like I have to powder my face more than usual (which is odd to begin with me, I almost never need powder) but when it’s a bit more humid than usual I feel this BB cream tends to slip a bit on my skin. So, if you have oily skin this may not be the best for you, but it’s still worth a shot given LA Girl is so affordable.

So, that was it for the BB creams I currently have in my stash. As you all can see, none received a perfect score, but none are very poor either in my opinion. Or maybe I just try to see the good in everything…who knows.

What are some of your favorite BB creams? I know that one I may end up biting the bullet and buying is the It Cosmetics CC cream because from what I can see the “fair” shade is actually made for those with fair skin and the coverage and finish looks stunning on everyone I’ve seen it on. I know it’s not a “BB” cream, but close enough to me.

I hope you all enjoyed this post, and I hope to add some more posts about random things in my stash in the future!

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Have a great day, beauties.

NYC Satin Matte Lipstick Review and Swatches

February 11, 2015February 11, 2015 / Kayla Hutchison / Leave a comment

During my last big drugstore haul, I stumbled upon a display with the new NYC lipsticks. Typically, NYC is not a brand I like when it comes to lip products. Most I’ve tried have a frosty finish (not for me, sorry) and have that old plastic smell.
However, this display said their new lipsticks were a “satin matte” and there were coupons. It had me at coupons. I figured for $1 a tube I could try a few and see if they’ve changed their formula at all…for the blog, right?

The tubes look the same as their other newer lines of lipstick.
I know that some might complain about how plain the packaging is, but considering the price it’s to be expected. Sometimes when a cheaper brand creates new packaging, they have to sacrifice some quality for the actual product, and it’s the product inside that’s important…most of the time. I mean, we’re all guilty of buying things strictly for the packaging, right? I can’t be alone in that

Anyway, there seemed to be 4 colors in all that were a satin matte finish, and I picked up 3. To start off, I wasn’t too happy with the color (or lack thereof) selection. There was only one “nude” color, and it’s pretty clear at this point that one nude does not fit all. I know that this is just a personal observation though. I tend to compare drugstore lines that come out at the same time, and both Milani and Jordana also launched their matte lipstick lines and have a pretty stellar color range.

This is what the colors look like on my arm. From top to bottom: “red suede,” “velvety fuschia,” “creamy mauve.”

The colors swatched so well on my arm. They went on creamy and smooth, and seemed to have a very nice actual satin finish. Still not too keen on the smell, but it wasn’t as bad as in the past.

Lip Swatches

Creamy Mauve- disclaimer: that is my nose ring, not a booger. This color swatched so pretty on my arm, and then looks frosty on my lips? The hell kind of sorcery is that? It still applied very well, but be cautious of that if you want this color. It’s not as matte looking…but it does feel light on the lips.

Velvety Fuschia definetly not a color I wear very often, if at all. I picked it up just so I could swatch it for anyone interested in seeing what the color looked like. It is a very pretty color though. Perfect for spring/summer if you’re not too into very bright “in your face” kinds of colors. This one also applied smoothly.

Red Suede My favorite of the 3 I bought. This one is a brighter red. I think this would also be a very nice Spring/Summer shade of red. When I tried the other 2 colors besides the mauve on, I couldn’t help but wonder what is different about the fuschia and red colors that made the mauve one frosty on the lips? So odd.

Overall, these are nice lipsticks given the very low price point. They didn’t exactly blow my mind or anything, but they did pleasantly surprise me since I am honestly have never liked any of their lipstick formulas. At regular retail price, these are $1.99, which is an amazing price. If you see a display, make sure to check for coupons as well and try a few out 🙂

If you’ve tried these out, what were your thoughts on them? Let me know!

Unboxing and Review: Walmart Beauty Box and Lip Monthly

December 26, 2014December 26, 2014 / Kayla Hutchison / 2 Comments

I am currently subscribed to 3 different things. The Walmart Beauty Box, Lip Monthly, and I recently caved and decided to go back to Ipsy since I felt a bit lost without my glam bag.
I recorded an unboxing of both of the December Walmart Beauty Box and my Lip Monthly bag, but I wanted to post better pictures and swatches here.

First up: Walmart Beauty Box

This box comes every 3 months (once per season) and is technically free, but the $5 is shipping costs.
This was December’s Winter Box

Pretty decent amount of product for $5, in my opinion. The one thing not pictured is the Maybelline Dream Wonder powder, but honestly I think that was just a coupon (it had a $1 coupon attached). I’m never too fond of foil packet samples because let’s be real many of them end up in the weird black hole part of makeup drawers where foil samples go to die. Or is that just me?
There was a full sized lipstick in the box as well! It looks like it’s from the new Maybelline line it’s in the shade “Mocha Kiss” and it’s a very brown shade. I don’t know how much use I will get out of this, personally, but I will play around with it.

However, I am pretty excited to try everything else. I’ve never heard of a body BB Cream, but from what I’ve read on the sample bottle it looks pretty neat! Overall, I am happy with this box and it’s a cute little surprise every season for me. It does look like there are different boxes sent out depending on your age group, because I’ve seen another version of the Winter box on several blogs.

Second: Lip Monthly Bag

I’ve reviewed Lip Monthly before on this blog, and on Youtube and I will link both at the end of this post.
I’m still very confused about this subscription. I love the concept, and for the most part the products are awesome, but there is something a bit off about their customer service. I feel that they need an overhaul and need someone better marketing for them and handling customer service issues. I know that running a business is extremely hard (my parents did twice) but if you’re not willing/able to answer your customers concerns, no matter how rude or odd they may be, what’s the point in having a business? There’s my small rant on that matter.

With that aside, the products are so spot on if you’re a lip product lover. I loved every single thing in this bag, and that’s not common for me. The total value of this bag was $25 compared to the $10 I paid, so that’s pretty rad. I do hope that whatever is going on with Lip Monthly is just a bump in the road for them, because I do wish them every bit of success. I love the idea of a monthly bag catered to those that love trying out new lip products. I can already say that I have worn that Magnolia Makeup lipstick twice since getting my bag. It’s so dreamy. I’m rooting for you, Lip Monthly. I really am.

Swatches from left to right: La girl lip liner in “mauvelous,” NYC lipstick in “Mocha,” Magnolia Makeup Liquid Ultra Matte Lipstick, Milani Lipgloss in “Nude Touch.”