Complexion perfectors 101

What’s in a cream?

By now you’ve likely heard of BB cream (or beauty balm), the all-in-one product aimed at evening skin tone while providing sun protection and often other beauty-boosting benefits. But lately a few similar multitasking products have entered the market, including the new CC and DD creams. Confused? Don’t be. We’re breaking down all three.

The first: BB cream

The skin care darling that launched it all originated in Asia as a way to meet a variety of beauty needs — from brightening and lightening, to blemish hiding and skin tone improvement. While in the past you might have needed to layer on sunscreen, tinted moisturizer and a highlighter to get the look you want, BB cream takes all the work out of creating a smooth complexion with just a simple swipe.

Our pick: Too Faced Tinted Beauty Balm ($42).

The now: CC cream

The next generation of complexion perfectors, otherwise known as “color corrector” or “coverage control” creams, offer lighter but better coverage than BB cream. These new kids on the beauty block act as a primer, brightener and foundation, while also providing sun protection and anti-aging ingredients, making them even heavier hitters than BB cream. In fact, some CC creams boast as many as 12 functions in one product.

Our pick: Juice Beauty Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream ($39).

The next: DD cream

First we had BB, then CC and now get ready for DD cream! Unlike BB and CC cream, recent reports have indicated that DD creams won’t target the complexion, but rather focus on feet and body. These creams are said to be fairly heavy duty in texture (likely for extra hydration) and are known as “daily defense” creams. We don’t have a pick yet since they have yet to hit the market in the U.S., but we’ll keep you posted!

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