Review! L'Oreal Nude Magique BB Cream

I was super excited to trial and review this product (provided by Beautyheaven) and I wasn't disappointed! As you may know, BB creams (blemish/beauty balms) were initially introduced in Asia and they are marketed to be very beneficial, providing benefits of a moisturiser, primer, foundation and sunscreen in one!  The L'Oreal Nude Magique BB cream is a white formula that has micro-capsules that contain pigments which will oxidise and match your skintone.  In Australia, the product is available in two colours, Light and Medium and retails for $26.95 at Priceline for a 30ml tube.

Background:
I have never used a BB cream before, currently I use tinted moisturiser with SPF for everyday and I only use foundation on special occasions.   I applied the BB cream initially using my fingers and absolutely hated the texture and finish of the product on my skin! The product felt very grainy (due to the micro-capsules) and was quite streaky on my face.  I tried applying it the second time with a foundation brush and it worked wonders.  For a demo of how I applied the product, please see the video below.

Pros:
* Matched my skin tone with a slight bronzy/glowy look (hurray! This is no easy feat)
* The finish / texture of the product looked really natural/glowy – the first day I wore it, I received compliments on my skin
* Light to medium / full coverage – you can adjust the coverage to whatever level you want without looking like you caked it on. The BB cream provides excellent coverage for a “non-foundation” product
* Easy to apply – use a brush! I haven’t tried using a sponge though.  Let me know what is your preferred method of applying this product!
* Felt hydrating, did not dry my skin out. Note it is winter time in Australia so the product did pretty well
* Stayed put for a whole day, i.e. 8 hours +
* Contains SPF 12 – yay for sun protection
* Reasonably priced - A$26.95 at Priceline

Cons:
* Slight sunscreen smell but this didn’t bother me at all and the smell goes away once applied

Overall rating:
I admit I was a bit skeptical trying out a drugstore BB cream as I typically prefer 'scientific' skincare (i.e. MD Formulations) and for some bizarre reason, I’m not a huge fan of products that can multi-task. That being said, this product did a pretty amazing job and performs as well as any medium to full coverage foundation you can find in the market. 

I think I would definitely be wearing this during the day where I would like additional coverage than what a tinted moisturiser can provide.  I am also really really loving the fact that the BB cream provides a glowy/healthy look to my skin! The only test would be how it would stay put in the summer.

My rating is 4.5 stars out of 5!