BB cream brands that I recommend

There's not that many BB cream brands that I trust. Most BB creams I have tried have caused me some irritation or have broke me out. I blame my sensitive and super reactive skin, that seems to react to almost everything >< Some of the BB creams that didn't work well for my skin were some of the famous ones: Missha Perfect Cover and Skin79 Hot Pink, Gold and Orange labels were awful for my skin. 

Fortunately, there's some brands out there that seem to be fine with my skin. They don't irritate my skin or clog my pores.... even if I wear them all day!

So these are my current favorite brands for BB creams:

BRTC

BRTC is a Korean brand that specializes in creating products that are suited for all kinds of troubled and sensitive skin (yay!). BRTC stands for "Bio Remedies Therapeutic Cosmetic" and they claim to use plant extracts to soothe and calm skin. It is a rather expensive brand and hard to find in Korea (as far as I know, they are only sold in some shopping malls like W-store or Coex Mall).

So far, they have launched 6 BB creams: Gold Caviar, Jasmine Water, Aqua Rush, Blemish Recover, Whitening and Repairing and Glossy Shining BB cream (this last one has been discontinued, I think). I have tried Jasmine Water BB cream and Whitening and Repairing BB cream, and I'm pleased with both of them. They have great coverage, they set really fast on my skin and they have a great staying power. They also look beautiful, flattering and quite natural. But the most important thing is that they didn't break me out or irritated my skin, so that's extra points for them. 

I know this brand (as many other Korean brands) can be found across Asia, but, unfortunately, if you live in Europe you can only get them through Internet. I always use ebay for getting the best deals, since this brand is not particularly cheap. 

ElishaCoy

When it comes to BB creams, I consider that ElishaCoy makes some of the best ones in the market. Why? Because they have outstanding ingredients, they don't irritate my skin or make me breakout, and they blend easily and look really natural. 

ElishaCoy is not as famous as other Korean makeup brands such as Missha, Skin79, Etude House or The Face Shop. Maybe it's because they don't have their own stores and they are rather sold in some selected department stores (like in Lotte Plaza or JN Shopping Mall). 

Getting information from this brand is a bit difficult. I only could find that this brand was launched in 2007. Their name "ElishaCoy" comes from hebrew "Elisha", which means "God saviour" and "Coy" is an acronim for "Creation of Youth". So, ElishaCoy translates as something like "God saviour that creates youth". In other words, they are a brand that want to promote young and healthy skin. They also define themselves as an organic skincare brand that uses botanical ingredients while using high technology at the same time. Sounds like the claims of every other brand nowadays, huh? :)

So far, they have 6 BB creams (Always Nudy, Always Triple, Always Baby, Premium Gold Mineral, Diamond Shiny Pearl and Time Capsule). I only own Gold Mineral, but I want to try more BB creams from this brand in the future (Always Triple and Time Capsule tempt me!). 


Palgantong

Palgantong is a professional makeup brand founded in 1989 in Korea. They have really standing products, known for their quality and long staying power. Their most famous product is probably their Theatrical Powder, a high quality loose powder that I simply can't live without. It is said to be the number 1 best selling loose powder in Japan since it was launched in 2001.

By the way, their name comes from the Korean words 빨간 (palgan= red) and 통 (tong= box), thus, making reference to their most famous product. 

Their BB creams are also worth to mention, since they are also high quality, have long staying power and are not comedogenic. So far, they have launched 4 BB creams; Vita White, One Touch, Theatrical BB and German BB. I have only tried Vita White and I'm in love. It blends beautifully with the skin and looks stunning. I wanna try the Theatrical one in the future. 

Their BB creams have some good ingredients like arbutin, hyaluronic acid or vitamin E. But it is not because of the ingredients why I love this brand: it is more about the finish and the general performance they provide. Ingredients-wise, I guess I prefer ElishaCoy BB creams since they have stunning ingredients known to be good for the skin. But if you want a smooth, perfect finish, I guess Palgantong have the best BB creams for achieving that. 

[Review] ElishaCoy Gold Mineral BB Cream

This BB cream comes in two sizes. The regular size (50ml) and the travel size (15ml). I got the travel size since the regular size is rather expensive (it costs around $30) while the small one costs around $8. Also, I didn't want to get the full size since I have had some bad experiences with some BB creams in the past that made me break out (Missha Perfect Cover, I'm looking at you!!) and I wanted to be sure the BB cream was fine with my skin before getting the full size. Well, I have to say I might get the full size in the future. This has become one of my favorite BB creams ;)

I picked this BB cream for various reasons. First because I was curious about this brand and I wanted to try their products. Second, this has a high SPF rating (SPF45PA+++) with whitening and anti-wrinkle properties. And third (and most important reason): because of the ingredients! I have never seen a BB cream that has so many beneficial ingredients in one bottle!

The most outstanding ingredients are titanium and zinc oxides (very reliable sunscreens), arbutin (whitening properties), sodium hyaluronate (moisturizer), vitamin e (antioxidant), adenosine (anti-inflammatory), hydrolyzed collagen (moisturizer), royal jelly extract (healing), lysine, arginine, aspartic acid, proline, alanine (all moisturizers), methionine (antioxidant), Japanese camellia (skin conditioning), purslane (antioxidant) and Cornelian cherry (skin conditoning). And, as the name suggests, this also has some amount of gold, which as far as I know it is used as a pigment, so it doesn't have any extraordinary properties. But I guess naming something with "gold" makes it more attractive to customers. 

So as you can see this has a good amount of moisturizing and antioxidant ingredients, something that makes this BB cream a good value for protecting your skin and keeping it healthy and moisturized. It is also non comedogenic and has some anti-inflammatory ingredients for preventing skin irritation. 

When you first squeeze this BB cream, you notice the color. Now, most BB creams have this unflattering grey or pinkish undertone that I'm not a big fan of. But Premium Gold has a rather beautiful, flattering beige undertone, which was a relief. If something, I would say it is a bit yellow undertoned, but just a bit. The color might look a bit pale, but it oxidises quite fast so it looks really natural on your skin.Mostly is just a beige tone that I think would suit most skin tones between N15-25. The texture is more fluid than other BB creams (think of the thickness of Skin79 BB creams!). Not too thick but not too runny at the same time. It spreads easily and you just need a tiny amount for your whole face.  I also like the fact that this has a dewy finish rather than a matte one, but in a very subtle way, so your face doesn't look oily or anything like that. This has a rather pleasant smell which it is not overpowering, so I don't have any complains.

The only downside is that if you use this BB cream alone the staying power is not that great (maybe just 3-4 hours). So you need to set this with a good loose powder  (I use my beloved Palgantong Theatrical Powder for this).

Overall, I would recommend this BB cream, especially for those individuals that have normal to dry skin.