Review: The Body Shop All-in-One BB Cream

Today's post, ladies and gentlemen, is a prime example of how opinions on a product can change from their first impressions. I originally intended to review this BB cream from The Body Shop a few weeks ago, with a strongly negative slant on the review and the possibility of branding it the worst product that I have ever spent over £10 on, with a gentle warning to avoid purchasing it at all costs. But, more exciting products came my way and I had more pressing topics to discuss with you all, so naturally my review of this BB cream was pushed further and further down my 'to do' list, because after all - who has time to put negativity before anything else? (Although I do think negative reviews are just as valuable as positive ones, hence why I still wanted to discuss this product).

But I couldn't keep putting it off and knew that I'd be going to review it at some point, so I pulled it back out from my 'I don't like you and don't know what to do with you' basket and tried using it again. Only then did I realise that I've have to be eating a big, fat plate of my own words and admitting that it's not all as bad as I first thought. 

My reasoning behind originally disliking this product is primarily because I bought shade '01' (which is the lightest shade from a choice of 3 that The Body Shop offers) and it is too dark for my averagely fair skin. I'm not the palest person you'll ever meet, but I do land on the lighter end of the skin tone spectrum and always feel disappointed when the lightest shade isn't quite light enough for me. Combining this with the fact that the cream offers very minimal coverage on the skin can actually work in it's favour and instead of being used in place of a foundation, can actually be used under a foundation and as more of a 'bronzing base' as it doesn't offer coverage, but it does provide colour; especially convenient if you're like me and often have a face paler than your body. It can come off a little orange when first applied which is why I instantly thought 'urgh' on first use. It does, however, settle down and after a little while does adapt more to your skin tone and become more seamlessly blended and as someone who has complexion confidence issues, I actually felt comfortable wearing this alone on my skin.

It comes out of the tube looking like it could be an exfoliator with grains/beads within it, but these are the colour pigments that burst when rubbed into the skin and possess the colour adapting technology. The part that confuses me is that it doesn't blend and adapt instantly, you have to rub it in all over your face (warning: any area that you don't properly rub will stay as a white cream on your skin), and it originally appears much too dark, patchy, streaky and generally a mess. The patchiness would've be my biggest complain, especially when it's not a great colour match - BUT, half an hour later and I looked in the mirror and by that time it had actually adapted to my skintone, was a much better match and had settled into an even and pretty flawless base. It still offers low/medium coverage, but thankfully it feels lightweight on the skin and offers high levels of moisturisation too. But, the moisturisation is as far as the skincare benefits go; it doesn't even contain SPF. 

So, I'd say this is unlikely to be for everybody and should be branded as a 'tinted moisturiser' in place of a 'BB cream' as it doesn't boast a high list of skincare benefits and it's worth noting how low the coverage is. It's quite hard work and isn't an instant fix for someone wanting to get ready in a rush, but it might be suited to some people. Bare in mind the lack of SPF within this if you're looking for something to be a light, summer base.

You can buy this BB cream from The Body Shop here; £12.00/30ml.

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