review: benefit's the big easy!

I've been searching for a good bb cream for a solid year. When the craze hit America last spring, I was thrilled to be able to finally find one without ordering from Asia. But… they were all terrible. Every drug store bb cream I tried seemed to be progressively worse than the last. Hard to apply, too liquidy, oddly orange, and after a half an hour they all seemed to turn straight into oil on my face—enjoy that disgusting mental image. I had given up on finding a bb cream without paying shipping costs from Asia. And then… It appeared.

Benefit's Big Easy is quite possibly the best product I've ever put on my skin. From the second I put it on to the second I wash my face at night, it looks perfect. My skin looks smooth and matte, despite my oily skin type. Benefit actually claims this product controls oil, which I usually roll my eyes at because you don't know me, companies. Big Easy actually does what it claims. I'm a Benefit convert--I was drawn in by their cute packaging and fun names, but I've started to really believe in their products and expect a lot from them. I worked on a project for A Big Company (name withheld but if you follow me on twitter you probably know) recently, and I was incredibly annoyed by how they constantly would say "beauty balm" instead of just "bb." It's almost inevitable that large companies eventually lose touch with their customers--look at all the bizarre crap Disney consistently pulls--and hearing someone ridiculously refer to a bb cream in full name only showcases that. So when I first saw Big Easy being marketed as "bigger than bb!" I knew I was shopping with the right company.

* Ignore how my face is three shades lighter than my arms in this picture. I wear a sunhat all summer because I'm terrified of getting more freckles and foolishly bought this bb cream in my usual winter skin color. Promise I'm wearing bronzer with this when I go out to make myself look less color blind xo. BUT LOOK HOW SMOOTH MY SKIN IS. 

Once I put this on, my skin actually starts tingling. It sounds weird and incredibly concerning, but it feels really relaxing. The formula is supposed to begin as liquid and turn to a powder finish, so I wonder if that's what I'm sensing when it starts to dry. Even if it's just in my head, I love the feeling. My skin feels so soft when I'm wearing it. It's marketed toward "light to medium" coverage, so if you have a persistent pimple you will probably need to cover it with something else in addition, but I've felt like Big Easy was more than adequate for daily wear. It doesn't really cover my nose freckles, but I guess I just need to channel my inner Rapunzel. The overall look is definitely not cakey, but is still far from the nasty, oily tinted moisturizer attempts of last spring by many mainstream beauty companies. So, long story short, I LOVE THIS BB CREAM. 

Pros to Benefit's Big Easy:

• Looks great all day long
• Feels great
• Makes my skin softer
• Protects from hot, hot sun! Hooray!
• Liquid to powder ~*~technology~*~
• Super cute circus packaging that I love looking at because I am five and love the circus omg unicycles and juggling

Cons:

• I have some trouble applying it; it doesn't blend very well with a brush and I lose a lot of product with one, so I have to apply it with my hands which isn't the most kosher way of doing it. (But I guess whatever gets the job done…)
• It comes in very, very limited shades. I want to buy a darker shade so my face can match my body, but I'm afraid jumping to the next color is going to be too big of a leap. It's definitely not one of those products that comes in 50 different skin tones.
• At the risk of sounding incredibly cheap, at $38, it's kind of steep. Especially for a product that is going to be used up quickly with everyday wear. 

HOWEVER, I think the cons far outweigh the pros on this product. And on the price note, if you're going to spend money on a product, shouldn't it be on something for your skin? Bright eyes or a fun lip color is great, but few things make up for bad skin. Might as well just spend the money and keep your skin happy and healthy! Economist Ash approves!

(Disclaimer: I wasn't paid to review this and wasn't given anything free either. But if you want to give me free stuff or money, especially around $180,000 so I can just go to law school and be satisfied with myself for trying, that'd be cool. I'd review your products.)