Review: L'oreal Nude Magique CC Cream Anti Fatigue

I'm sure most of you have either tried or at least heard about CC creams by now. Personally, I found the whole BB cream thing a bit of a let-down, and having tried several I can confirm that they definitely weren't for me. While they claim to help even out skin-tone, cover minor imperfections and redness and generally perk up a dull complexion, if anything I found them to do the opposite, leaving me looking grey and washed out. I wouldn't dream of replacing my tinted moisturiser with one, and would only ever use it as a base product underneath. If anyone has tried one that honestly did impress you then do let me know in the comments below, as I'd love to know if there is one that truly does cut the mustard.

So, what do CC creams have to offer that their predecessors didn't? Well, they claim to prime, protect, moisturise, control oil and fade dark marks and acne scars over time. On top of this, they aim to neutralise and brighten the complexion, so all in all a pretty tall order.

Of all the CC creams I'd seen, the L'oreal Nude Magique CC was the one that caught my eye, not least because it comes in three varieties: anti-redness, anti-fatigue and anti-dullness. Having tried some other items from the Nude Magique line as well as a couple of  L'oreal's primers and serums, and really enjoying them, I had confidence that this would mostly likely be one of the best on the high-street. I really like L'oreal as a brand in terms of their cosmetics, and as most of you know, I'm a loyal fan of their Volume Million Lashes Mascara and Youth Code Luminize Super Serum.

 I couldn't find many reviews to go by at the time of purchase, but I did see one or two for the anti-redness version, and I have to say that I was really impressed by the before and after pictures.

Personally, the variety that most appealed to me was the anti-fatigue version, so I popped online and made a swift order.

The Nude Magique CC Cream claims to transform into foundation and wake up the complexion for the perfect nude look. It also offers flawless coverage, perfectly even skin texture, a fresh dewy glow and 24hr hydration, and as an added bonus, contains SPF12.

The product itself is an apricot cream which is supposed to adjust itself to the colour of your skin upon application (hence there only being one colour for all skin tones), and is priced at £9.99 for a 30ml tube.

Unfortunately, this product wasn't a winner for me, as although it did perk up my complexion a bit and offersome very sheer coverage, unfortunately it left me looking like, well, an apricot. I didn't find that the colour adjusted well to my skin-tone, and I can only imagine how someone even paler than myself would find it.

I did find a way to make this work for me though, which involved wearing it underneath a light-coverage foundation such as the Estee Lauder Invisible Fluid Makeup. However, unfortunately for me, this was also short-lived, as within a couple of days I was getting breakouts under and between my eyebrows and on my cheeks - areas which usually remain blemish free.

I haven't lost all hope though, as I do think the anti-redness version looks much better. At the time of ordering, this wasn't really a concern for me, but thanks to hormonal breakouts I now think that it could be of benefit to me. That particular variety is a greenish colour, which is designed to counter-act redness, and again, adjusts to the colour of your skin upon application, so I'd like to give that one a go before I write these off completely.

The L'oreal Nude Magique CC Creams are available from Feel Unique here and Boots here.

I think I'd like to try out the Clinique CC Cream next.

Have you tried any CCs? If so, what was your verdict?

xx 

Beauty SOS: October

Another month, another Beauty SOS post. I'm afraid this one is going up a little bit later than usual, and if you read my October Agenda post then you'll know why, so I won't bore you with the details again!

So, last month, I must have been feeling unusually satisfied with my beauty issues, as I only asked for you lovely ladies to get involved with two little puzzles of mine. Either that, or I had already used all my other ones up the month before!

So, what did I ask you lovelies for your suggestions on last month?

1. A blemish-fighting product.

Last month, I was going through a bit of a skin nightmare, which I now believe was due to my over-zealous testing of a large number of new products in a short space of time. My t-zone became really oily and I found myself with some rather large blemishes popping up one after the other. I did freak out a little bit about this, as I usually have pretty normal skin, so I asked you lovelies to suggest something. Needless to say, several of you piped up with the Origins Spot Removing Gel/Pads. Other ideas were Alpha H Liquid Gold, Quinoderm, Sudocrem and Lavender oil. As I had some lavender oil to hand, I decided to give that one a go on a particularly unsightly spot that had chosen to pop up on my chin. I dabbed some on before bed and in the morning, voila - it had dried right out and diminished considerably in size. After my success with this, I decided to give the more expensive products suggested a miss (but thank you very much to those who suggested them!), as I am currently trying to cut back on my spending, and if something as inexpensive as an essential oil can do the job then I'm happy with that. A second discovery I made is that Propolis works equally well, so if you've got eiher of those in your cupboard at home then give them a go!

2. A good volumising product for hair.

Suggestions on this one were Sexy Hair Big Powder Play and Umberto Giannini Backcomb in a Bottle. I was very pleased to hear the latter suggestion as it reminded me that I actually already had a can of this, which had been squirreled away and subsequently lost and forgotten at the back of my cupboard. So I dug this out and gave my hair a good spray, and I must say, it does do the job rather well.

If you would like to hear more about my favourite products for big hair then keep your eyes open tomorrow, as there will be a post going up on precisely that.

So, with what do I require your assistance this month?

1. A great anti-ageing night cream.

I'm looking for something really moisturising but that won't clog my pores overnight. I've had bad luck with these in the past as they have often broken me out by morning!

2. A fantastic skin-balancing moisturiser.

My skin is mostly normal, but sometimes my forehead and chin are a bit oily, and sometimes I get dry patches on my nose. I'm after something to sort it out.

3. A good BB Cream.

I say a good one because all those I've tried have been a huge disappointment. Are there any that have really impressed you?

4. I know I have asked this before and gone on and on about it on Twitter, but.....

I am still on the hunt for something to banish my dark under-eye circles, preferably something to actually treat them but if you know of a phenomenal concealer then I would love to hear about that too. I'm sure you are probably sick of hearing me ask about this but if anyone is going to be able to suggest a solution then it's you lovely beauty bloggers and I refuse to give up hope! Whilst I have received some lovely suggestions so far, sadly, none of them have been able to make a difference, and I don't even consider my dark circles to be THAT dark. So, just throwing this out there. Again.

5. Your favourite pampering session products.

So, this one is not really an SOS as such, but I am looking to change up my weekend pampering routine as I am getting a bit bored with my own. I would LOVE to hear about what you do to spoil yourselves and what products you use in the comments below :)

If anyone would like some suggestions for some of their beauty ailments then let me know in the comments. I'm no guru but I'd be happy to share my findings with you, and perhaps feature them in next month's post so we can get some more ideas on the go!

Have a great week my lovelies!

xx

Desire of the Day #3

Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream SPF 35

I know, I know - BB creams are sooo two months ago. But, unbelievably,  I haven't actually tried one yet. When they first came out, I was very close to buying Garnier's offering, but after seeing some bad reviews, I decided against it, and since then, I have become a little bit obsessed with experimenting with different foundations and tinted moisturisers, so much so that I haven't got round to giving BB creams a look in. I have been loving the tinted moisturisers, and didn't feel that I needed to try any of them. Until recently, I hadn't really read any good reviews of any of them, so I was sort of of the mind-set that it was one of those things where it was a lot of Hype about nothing. 

However, recently, I have found myself eye-ing up the Dr. Jaart + range, as I have heard nothing but wonderful things. But now that Smashbox's Camera Ready BB Cream has come to my attention, I think I am going to go for this one instead. For a start, it's SPF35, which, let's face it, is a huge helping hand in summer (well, it would be, if the sun ever showed it's face!), as I hate having to re-apply suntan lotion repeatedly, and am not usually one to go completely bare-faced. I just can't do it - I feel naked! But equally, I am more of a light to medium coverage kind of girl, and in summer I want something really weightless, that won'tweigh down my skin or clog my pores. I have tried a few samples from Smashbox before and really enjoyed them, so I shall let you know when I have got my paws on this one, and what I think!

Hope everyone is having a good week - almost the weekend!

Have you tried any BB Creams?

What did you think of them?

xx