I’m a big fan of BB creams and light coverage base makeup in general. What are BB creams? Since BB creams have become much more prevalent outside of Asia in recent years, I’ll let the authority provide an explanation: Wikipedia. For ages, I wore the Skin79 Super Plus Beblish Balm Triple Function SPF30 PA++ (also affectionately just called the Hot Pink BB) but I always found it to be a bit too ashy / grey on me. I routinely mixed it with the now discontinued Kiehls Ultra Facial Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15 in Medium, which was too dark on its own for me. The mixture worked well, but it wasn’t ideal.
After using up my last Skin79 BB cream, on a whim, I decided to try the Charmzone Natural Skinade BB cream.
I bought this item at a local Korean grocery store, called PAT Central, in their tiny upstairs cosmetics / vitamin shop. It cost $45 CAD (taxes included) for 50ml. I have not seen this brand or item discussed online, nor have I seen it in person elsewhere aside from that particular Korean shop.
I immediately loved the formula of this BB cream – it checks all the boxes for me:
- natural coverage
- decent sun protection factor at SPF 20 PA ++ – I specifically like that it uses titanium dioxide and zinc oxide as sun protection rather than chemical sunscreen
- doesn’t cause break outs
- great colour match
- good wear time
- no added fragrance
It’s a fairly hydrating formula, containing hyaluronic acid, so it’s especially good for the winter months. One negative I would say about this BB cream is that it’s a bit on the pricier side at $45, but since I had been mixing 2 base makeup together before, the total cost is less now. Another con about this (and Asian BB creams in general) is that there is only 1 shade available. Since Asian BB creams traditionally cater to a rather homogeneous group with a narrow range of skin tones, I understand why this is the case. I would say this shade would be suitable for those in the range of MAC NC20 to NC30.
Interestingly, the item is listed on a medical product directory page, I guess for the sunscreen ingredients. The site has the full ingredients list so my work is done for me (click on the orange plus signs on that site to expand the sections). A google search also shows that it is available on Amazon.com
This tops all the other BB creams I’ve tried in the past which includes: Skin79, BRTC, Dr. Jart, Missha, Skin Food, and The Face Shop. I’m currently using up my first tube of the Charmzone and have another one stashed away. It’s a definite recommendation and repurchase for me.
Stash worthiness: 10/10
stash matters 
Can you comment on why do you like this new bb cream over skin79 and faceshop? I have both in my stash and I am pretty happy with them (but face shop>skin79 because skin 79 is pretty ashy looking if I don’t mix it with a foundation)
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Skin79 Hot Pink was my favourite before I discovered the Charmzone so it IS really good in terms of coverage and performance – just the shade match was not ideal (although, a lot of Koreans seem to favour the pale / ashy look). The Face Shop one I tried was the Power Perfection BB cream which I received as a sample – I found it made my face shiny / greasy (“radiance”?) esp in my t-zone and it felt a bit on the heavier side. Also, the colour match was still a bit ashy compared to the Charmzone. It’s just personal preference, I guess. I’ll bring the Charmzone for you to try on Friday night!
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Awesome! I actually got the Face Shop’s aura cc cream and I love it! It’s a bit lighter than my skintone but it evens my face out very nicely. I will also bring that for you to try
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