Nivea 5 in 1 BB Cream Review

Hi Pretties

Today I have a review for you on the new Nivea 5 in 1 BB Cream Review.  This product is due to hit the shelves in Australia in February 2013 and I was lucky enough to be sent this product for review by my favourite website BeautyHeaven.com.au.

Firstly, of all the Western BB Creams I have tried this would have to be my favourite. And I have tried a few. This still does not compare to the Asian BB Creams, but if you are looking for a tinted moisturiser this would be my pick of the Western BB Cream bunch.

The packaging is nice and 'Nivea simple' with a sleek tube with an easy open and close lid and simple text. The scent however faintly resembles a sunscreen and does not remind me of a Nivea scent at all. I would not say the smell particularly bothers me though.

I applied this after toner as directed, without first using a moisturiser and while the moisturising properties were ok, if you have dry skin I would recommend a moisturiser first. The instructions say to rub in circular motions into the skin which I did, but I did find it a little difficult to blend as the product is quite thick.

This gave me a very light coverage that you could build upon, however I chose not to do this due to the horrendus colour match.

Like most 'light' products, this was way to dark and orange for my fair skin and gave me a somewhat ruddy complexion. However, as previously mentioned this one takes the cake in terms of Western BB Creams, including colour match. It's probably the closest I will get to matching me.

The finish was a rather matte finish which I love, and with a dusting of powder kept me shine free for approximately 5 hours. While this is not bad, I need my base to hold up during a 9 hour work day. A quick blot had me basically shine free again, but I feel the colour oxidised more as the day went on and I started to look more and more orange in the face.

If Nivea could get a decent colour match for the pale people I would probably purchase this product as there was enough light coverage for my skin, it kept my combination skin hydrated enough and the price is not to bad at all.

May Favourites

It's May Favourites time!

This month I have all but one new product and an oldie but a goodie.

Nivea Essentials lip balm

This is a long time favourite of mine.  Many times repurchased.  It smells like baby powder, is super moisturising and smooth and gives nice shine.  I randomly purchased the Blistex complete moisture lip balms last time as they were on a super special and I'm glad to get back to my old favourite!

Urban Decay Naked Palette

This product needs no introduction.........

Garnier Miracle Skin Perfecting BB Cream


This is not a true BB cream.  It's a tinted moisturiser so if you purchase this please don't expect it to be like the Asian or German BB creams.  None the less I really like this product.  I've never liked a tinted moisturiser before this one and while the critics say it is oily and shiny I feel that your technique in applying this makes all the difference.  I apply moisturiser, wait 5 minutes, stipple and blend my BB cream, wait 5 minutes and then powder.  I find these little time breaks very important in applying this cream.  While the colour is a tiny bit too dark for me it still works well.

Benefit Thrrrob blush


This blush is a beautiful cool toned baby pink.  It's what I hoped Mac's Well Dressed would be.  It took me 5 weeks to get my Benefit order from the US but it was well worth the wait.

Coastal Scents 110 Bionic Flat Top Buffer


This brush was on clearance on the Coastal Scents website for $6.98 so I grabbed it when I purchased my 22 piece brush set.  OMG I have no idea why.  This is the best brush I have ever owned/tried/bought.  I use it to stipple and blend out foundation and it gives the most flawless airbrushed finish.  It is soft and dense and everything you want a brush like this to be.  If I can recommend one thing to you it is get this brush before it disappears!


What are your favourites for May?

Empty Product Review - Nivea Cream

Hi lovelies

Finished another product!

This time it is the Nivea Cream in a 75ml tin I bought on sale for around $3.

I originally purchased this to use on my face as I was finding my normal moisturiser not quite heavy enough and I planned to use this at night.  It was much to heavy though and made me break out a little as it was so think.

I also found this to be a little thick to use on my body as it didn't spread very well.  I finally found the perfect use for this.  My feet!  I suffer dry heals most of the year (don't we all?) so I started using this and then putting on some socks for a few hours.  It works wonders to smooth the feet out.  I also think the tin is super cute and really easy to travel with.

Another great Nivea product!

My skin care routine

Hey hey pretties

Today's blog post is dedicated to my skin care routine.  Now I don't have perfect skin by any stretch of the imagination, but I have two rules when it comes to keeping my skin looking its best.

1. Always remove make up at the end of the day
2. Be consistent with your routine

Cleanser


Day and night I use my cleanser by Lush called Angels on Bare Skin.  I tried this on a whim after I was finding all regular commercial cleansers to be too harsh for me.  I was getting dry, peeling skin and was desperate to find something new.  I picked this up around Christmas last year and love it with a passion.  I think this is a brilliant product.  You take a pea sized amount, add some water and kind of mush it between your fingers and then apply to your face.  The consistency of this takes some getting used to as its quite different, but it leaves a nice feeling on your skin afterwards.  The one downside I have found to this product is that as it is a natural product, it does have 3 month expiry date.  I actually had to throw out the remainder of my first pot, but it only costs $15 which I still think is a bargain.

Morning Routine


After cleansing with my Lush Angels on Bare Skin I follow up with TN Dickson's Witch Hazel Toner.  My step mother got me on to this years ago, and I have not bought a different brand of toner since.  What I like about this toner as it does not sting like I find other brands to and is gentle enough to use over the eye area as well.

Following my toner I use Palmers Cocoa Butter Line Smoothing Eye Cream.  Now I'm 24, so eye creams are more of a preventative for me than actually trying to do anything yet, so I can't really tell if this is doing a good job or not.  It smells nice, but that's about all I can tell you.  This is the first eye cream I have tried and I'm pretty pleased with if for the $12 price tag.

My morning moisturiser is Nivea Aqua Sensation Day Cream.  To be honest I'm yet to find a Nivea product I have not liked.  I think their products are fantastic and I love the smell their blue products have.  Before trying this day cream, I was using the Nivea Young mattifying oil control moisturiser, but as I have gotten older I am no longer as oily as I was, and that moisturiser was no longer enough for my skin.  I'm very pleased with this product though.

Evening Routine


Of an evening I use a make up remover pad to remove my eye make up and then just cleanse with my Lush Angels on Bare Skin cleanser again.  While it is not designed to remove make up I still think it does a pretty good job.  It won't remove heavy mascara or anything, but it removes my foundation and other face make up in conjunction with my face washer.

After cleansing I tone again with the Witch Hazel.  This toner also removes any further traces of make up around my eyes.

Next step is my Bellamer eye balm I received as a sample in my March Bellabox (you can read about that here).  This is a balm you apply to the eye area for 15 minutes of an evening and then remove any excess.  I think this stuff is fantastic!  I can see the difference around my eye area after using.  My eyes look wider and brighter and I look more awake.  After I remove this after 15 minutes I apply my Palmers Cocoa Butter Line Smoothing Eye cream again.

The last step in my evening routine is to apply my moisturiser.  I'm currently using Palmers Cocoa Butter Night Renewal Cream.  Now I don't love this product and I don't hate it.  It does moisturising my skin nicely, but something about the smell of it bugs me.  It's a little 'nanna' smelling.  I also think it is a little too greasy on my skin.  I probably won't repurchase when I use up this tub.

Bi-Weekly products


Along with my daily skin care routine, bi-weekly I use a skin scrub and a detox mask.

The scrub I use is by Nutrimetics and it is the Deep Cleansing Exfoliant.  This product is ok, but probably a little too harsh for my skin.  I won't repurchase when this is finished.

I also use a mask twice a week.  I was using the Priceline mask (in the pink packaging) but I bought a couple of sample sachets in the Formula 10.06 Deep Down Detox Ultra-Cleansing Mud Mask and I really liked it so I picked up the full size tube today while it was 20% off at Priceline.  Hopefully I continue to enjoy this product.


How consistent are you with your skin care routine?