I'm a huge fan of Garnier BB Creams in general, for me they bridged the gap of 'not wanting to wear foundation' but wanting my skin to just look 'a bit better'. I've always opted for the medium shade, so I admit I was incredibly skeptical that this shadeless product would be a success.
Lets get that out of the way first - if you have tanned or dark skin, this isn't going to work for you. On uber-pale skin, I think you'd risk it being a bit orange. But for fair to medium skin tones will probably find success with this cream.
I tried this on my face and the back of my hand, and it really does blend to those different skin tones. It's easy to rub in and I didn't notice any tidelines on my neck, so that's good.
There is a scent - it's not unpleasant, its just a bit unexpected, but it dissipates quickly.
It feels incredibly light, I can't stress that enough. I hate the feel of layers of makeup, and even more I hate the sensation of makeup sliding down my face. This works as a smoothing base, that lightly conceals redness or blemishes, without fully covering them.
It has SPF (maybe that's the scent?), not enough for the NZ sun, but a nice boost to my daily sunscreen.
I think this would be a fantastic introduction to foundation for younger people looking to explore makeup a bit more.
The idea of a 'nude' BB Cream intrigued me, after all, aren't BB creams meant to be light / invisible anyway; what more could this bring to the table?
There are no choices of shade, this is a one shade fits all product, I was surprised when it really did blend to match my skintone, as promised on the box! The whiteness of the cream and the texture of the cream makes you feel like you're applying your usual day cream but, almost instantaneously your skin begins to smooth and even out as the particles inside change colour to a tinted moisturiser.
I actually agree with the claim of it providing 24 hour hydration - my skin really does feel good and less dry using this. And it honestly is so wonderfully light, the only evidence this isn't a day cream is my cotton pad when I cleanse my face at the end of the day.
I would use it again for sure, but it wouldn't be my go-to base for an occasion or event where I would want to conceal a bit more, and neutralise my redness. Some times a girl just needs foundation - but for every other day, this BB Cream will do the trick.