Review | Ettusais BB Mineral Cream and BB Mineral Powder

The ad visual for this new Ettusais BB mineral collection is pretty cute – twin babies who aptly represent the baby-smooth skin the products promise, with a clever play on ‘BB’ and ‘baby’!

Ettusais BB Mineral Cream (S$38/10 g)

As with many Ettusais makeup products, this BB cream contains skincare ingredients, including the brand’s signature AC Control Oil which hydrates the skin while preventing acne. It promises to conceal pores and flaws, while offering sun protection.

The cute and petite packaging is an immediate draw but really, it’s the wearable Asian-friendly tones that will make many fair to medium-toned people happy! While I do like several Korean BB creams, the Japanese seem to be the ones who create shades that approximate Asian skin tones (the Heroine Make BB Cream come to mind).

Interestingly, the BB creams from Caucasian brands MAC and Bobbi Brown are great for the Asian skin tone too. I suppose the Estée Lauder Companies really know their stuff. ;)

I like how the yellow-toned colour blends seamlessly into my skin; there’s no greyish cast – so inherent in many BB creams – or any colour adjustment needed. I love its texture – lighter than most BB creams, it feels extremely comfortable on the skin. Although it dries down to a velvet matte finish (which will appeal to those leery of the dewy look), it has a moisturising glide to it during application. I like how it immediately evens out my skin tone. Its lightness and emollience ensure that the final look isn’t cakey even with layering; the finish is very natural.

It gives sheer to medium coverage: It won’t conceal serious blemishes but it can minimise the appearance of – sometimes even obscuring – the lesser ones. To round off its benefits, it has a nice SPF value (SPF 30 PA++) which doesn’t impart a white cast in photos. Instead, there seems to be a subtle radiance. This has to be one of the nicest and lightest BB creams I’ve tried in a while!

This BB cream is available in 3 shades: 10 Fair, 20 Natural and 30 Healthy.

Ettusais BB Mineral Powder (S$38/10 g)

Like the BB cream, this loose powder contains AC Control Oil to combat acne. Interestingly, it is also formulated with a ‘Skin Roughness Preventing Powder’ that won an award from the International Federation of Societies of Cosmetic Chemists. This ingredient helps to absorb urokinase, an enzyme that causes roughness of skin.

The powder gives me a touch more coverage when paired with the cream. I haven’t tried it on its own but I’ve discovered that with its ultra-fine quality, it goes well over heavier cream/liquid foundations to set them for a smooth, non-cakey finish.

The powder particles are so fine that I couldn’t get proper swatches of them! :P This loose powder is available in 2 shades: Light Beige and Natural Beige. (They are pictured in reverse order in the photo above.)

I was matched to 30 for the BB cream and Light Beige for the powder, for a subtle brightening effect. Remarkably, the combination stays the oilies quite well on me – I only really oil up 7 to 8 hours after application and needn’t blot before then. In the few times when I’d paired them together, I used the two products straight, sans makeup base.

In the second FOTD above, I’d had both products on for more than 6 hours – testimony to their sebum-absorbing/oil-controlling efficacy on me. :) Besides having oil-staying prowess, both are also fragrance-free and non-comedogenic, as with almost all Ettusais products.

From now till 29 September 2011, receive a beautiful makeup case with every purchase of S$80 and above. If you’re purchasing the BB cream and powder (they amount to S$76), you will need to purchase one more item to qualify for the gwp. I recommend Ettusais Cheek Color in PK6 for that rosy baby-cheek glow to complement the BB products!

Here I am with my little one at the product preview with Ms Sakoto Oki, Ettusais Japan’s makeup artist and trainer, who was here last weekend to share the benefits of this new collection. Very sweet and kawaii, she’s truly representative of the brand. :)

Image source: Ettusais Singapore Facebook Page