Maybelline claims that this BB cream is an "8 in 1 Beauty Balm": it minimizes imperfections, enhances skin tone, brightens, adjusts to your skin's color, smoothes, hyrdrates, has no oil and has an SPF 30.
What I Say: It does most of the 8. It has a sheer coverage, so it did hide a little bit of redness, but nothing like what I was hoping for. I would like a little more coverage, which is one advantage Smashbox has. I can't see where it did anything to enhance my skin or brighten it. My skin does feel smooth and hydrated when I apply it, though. It did match to my skin tone well. I bought the shade "Light" and I thought it would be too dark at first, but it was not. It matched perfectly. I apply a translucent powder over it to keep my skin from getting very oily. It is 105 degrees today, so oil and sweat are going to happen no matter what. Despite this, the BB Cream actually stayed on all day. It did not make my skin itch or irritate it in any way. This does not have any odd scents, which is great. Some products I have tried that have sunscreen in them smell strongly of sunscreen.
Another good thing about this BB Cream is it has a good variety of shades compared to other BB creams. It comes in light, light/medium, medium, medium/deep and deep. The packaging is similar to Smashbox's, which is fantastic. It is in a 1 oz tube and comes out easily.
All in all, this is not much more than a glorified tinted moisturizer, which is the case with most American BB creams. My chief complaint with this is that it is a little thin instead of thick like other BB creams. The coverage is much more sheer than what I am used to wearing, but that is beneficial in this heat. It is very lightweight and smooth. I feel like my skin can breathe with this on. The SPF 30 is very important to me as well. And the SPF is a titanium dioxide sunscreen and is broad spectrum.
Overall, I give this a 4/5. The price is good (less than $8) and it accomplished what I wanted it to: some coverage with SPF 30 that did not irritate my skin and lasted a good part of the day. It did not brighten my skin, but that is not something I was really looking for. I like this for days I don't want to wear anything heavy and it will be good for my upcoming vacation :)
I would like to hear what BB creams you guys like or dislike. I like them and would like to try others.
Before application.
After application. Not a huge difference.
After application.