Maybelline Dream Bronze BB Review and Swatches

Maybelline Dream Bronze BB ($6.99) is a brand new 8-in-1 Beauty Balm that adds a sunkissed glow to your skin, just in time for summer. I recently spotted this at Bed, Bath and Beyond and couldn't resist buying one to try. Let's take a closer look...

Dream Bronze claims to give you 8 benefits in 1 product:
1. Illuminates
2. Warms Skintone
3. Evens
4. Veils Imperfections
5. Protects with SPF 25
6. Hydrates
7. Smoothes
8. Refreshes

It comes in a squeeze tube that's almost identical to the Dream Fresh and Dream Pure BB cream, except this one is white with bronze accents. It comes in two shades: Light Medium and Medium Deep and I was happy about that because a lot of bronzing products come in a one-shade-fits-all formula and most are too dark for my fair skin.

Dream Bronze in Light/Medium starts out a medium tan shade that's just a little deeper than my own skintone.

This is what it looks like in the shade and indoors. I was impressed right away that it's not orange at all, it leans more toward brown/tan and I couldn't see any shimmer.

Here it is blended out a little bit more...still no shimmer or orange tone.

Until I went into the sun...woah! It actually sparkles a lot in the sunlight and looks a little more orange, which bummed me out a bit.

Here it is completely blended out, and it's a little bit better. You can still see my original skin color near the top of the photo.

Even though I'm not crazy about the shimmer, that's not my main concern with this product. What I don't like about it is the lack of coverage. I have some sun spots and freckling on my face that I don't need to cover completely but I do like to tone them down a bit. When I used this, it just looked like I had applied a bronzing gel, there was no coverage at all (at least that I could tell). So I really don't think I would wear this alone unless I had flawless skin that didn't need any coverage (like when I was a teenager). 

I suppose I could mix it with my foundation to create a deeper tone, but honestly, I could just go and buy a foundation that's a few shades darker which I tend to do in the summer anyway.  Then at least I wouldn't have all the shimmer. 

Overall, I do like the feel of the formula...it's light, hydrating and makes my skin feel soft.  But for me, the lack of coverage means that I probably won't be using this on my face. But that being said, I may repurpose this as a body bronzing gel! It's a nice color and I could use it to warm up my pasty pale legs and add a little glow. :) 

What do you think? Have you tried this yet? Do you want to?