A few weeks ago, I received a sample of Ponds Luminous Finish BB+ in the mail, along with a coupon for $1.50. Did you get it, too? Not sure how I got on that mailing list, but thank you very much Unilever!
Yesterday morning, I was in a rush and didn’t put on any makeup or BB/CC cream or anything. When I got around to it in the afternoon, my eye fell on the Pond’s BB Cream sample, and I thought today’s the day to try it.
Several years ago, Pond’s was one of my clients (though they are not now). I conducted many, many focus groups for them, and I enjoyed working with them very much. In fact, I was involved in the research to choose a new color for the packaging and branding materials, and the participants in my research and I were supporters of the relatively new pink/purple shade that they chose. The mailer in that pretty color was appealing and modern. Nice job, Pond’s.
So I was eager to find out what Pond’s has been up to. I ripped open the sample packet and squeezed out some of the BB cream. In my eagerness, I squeezed out a little too much. The product is quite thick, and a little goes a long way. Next time, I’ll put on a bit less. Because I definitely had too much, it felt wet for quite a while especially on the side of my face where I first applied it. The other side, less so. I used it again today to see if yesterday was an anomaly. It was. Today, I applied less and I used a brush. It went on easily and smoothly.
The shade that I received, light, goes on a little light-ish, but it seems to be a good match for me. It doesn’t look too light on my face.
Pond’s BB cream provides medium to almost full coverage, depending on your skin. It covered my pores and most of my imperfections very well. Only my dark spots showed through (they show through everything!) just a little bit. In fact, the Ponds BB cream covered them better than most. Yesterday, I hit them with a little concealer afterwards, and today, I used a touch more BB cream and they’re gone. The copy on the mailer says that Luminous Finish BB+ provides “flawless, even tone skin”, and by and large, I must say it does.
I can understand why they named the product Ponds “Luminous Finish”. It does provide a very dewy finish, so if you’re looking for a matte finish, this isn’t it. But the finish isn’t shiny, it’s rather fresh-looking, “luminous” even.
When I first put it on, it felt a little sticky. But once it dries, it’s not sticky. When I touch my face, it does feel like I have something on, like a light barrier…but it’s not unpleasant. My skin feels sort of protected. It feels relatively light on the skin, and it seems to be good for those with normal or dry skin. I think it’s a good product for both young and mature skin. I’m not sure I’d recommend it for oily skin, but while searching for the ingredient list online, I noticed more than one very positive reviews from women with oily skin.
Pond’s Luminous Finish BB+ has SPF 15, a bit less than I usually look for. In the winter, it would be fine for me, but not enough for the summer. Nevertheless, I would definitely recommend this BB cream, and I would buy it if I needed some (I have two different CC creams waiting in the wings!).
I also noticed that the BB is part of a Luminous Finish line that includes cleanser and moisturizer. I’ll have to take a look when I’m at a store.
Pond’s Luminous Finish BB+ comes in a pretty 1.5 oz. tube in two shades: light and medium. It should be widely available in the US, and I imagine in Canada, at supermarkets, drugstores and mass merchandisers. The prices that I saw for the product online ranged from $9.99 at Amazon and Target to $12.99 at Walgreen’s, so it may make sense to shop around.
I don’t know whether the product is cruelty-free (my guess is no) or gluten-free (it has tocopherol and the source isn’t listed). No parabens listed.
Active Ingredients: Octinoxate (7.49%), Zinc Oxide (5.12%). Purpose: Sunscreen. Inactive Ingredients: Water (Agua), Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Potassium Chloride, PEG-10 Dimethicone, Titanium Dioxide, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Allantoin, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Extract, Tocopherol, Bisabolol, Cholesterol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Magnesium Sulfate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Stearic Acid, Fragrance (Fragancia), DMDM Hydantoin, Sucrose Distearate, Alumina, Disodium EDTA, Dimethicone, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Iron Oxides (CI 77491), Iron Oxides (CI 77492), Iron Oxides (CI 77499).
So do you have a BB cream that you love? And what do you think about the new Pond’s?
You have glorious skin, this looked amazing! I have trouble with BB,CC,DD creams because I do not have great skin even when its not breaking out hehe.. Thanks for sharing girlie!
You too sweet, Heather! Did you see how awful my hair looked? It needed to be washed so badly but I needed the pic then, lol. Thanks so much for visiting and commenting <3
It honestly looks completely natural, and in the winter season where my skin clings to any kind of foundation no matter how hydrating it claims to be/how much moisturizer I put on, I need something like this where it just glides right on.
I’m so happy that you’re enjoying the Ponds Luminous Finish BB, too, Emma! Thanks for letting me know that I’m not the only one who likes it! Yes, it did glide right on 🙂
They definitely did the smart thing by sending out these free samples. I was hooked first time I wore it too. Then I found out that there was a buy one get one FREE sale on this at CVS, (I got my sample some 3 or 4 weeks ago though, so the sale is over. Sorry!) Anyway, I needed that sale, the unfortunate thing about this bb cream is that the light is really light and the medium is really dark. So I needed both so that I can mix the shades, it’s so worth that bit of work.
I love how smooth and creamy this is and I get great medium coverage. I think this might be one of the first western bb creams that is like an asian bb cream. They are usually just tinted moisturizer, this one is more like foundation with some extras… like asian bb cream!
Donna, that is so great that you found Pond’s Luminous Finish BB Cream also through the sample in the mail. We should all let Pond’s know that their sampling program, coupled with a great product, worked! How smart of you to mix the two shades so you get the perfect match. I’m lucky that the light does work for me. Hopefully, some day they’ll expand the shade range so women with darker complexions can wear it too. I agree with you about the “smooth and creamy” feel. I also use Dr. Jart Premium BB Cream, an Asian brand, and Pond’s is similar in skinfeel. Now, if only Pond’s would increase the SPF, I’d be set for year-round, rather than only winter, use!