Julep DD Creme Review

I'm a fan of BB creams, so when Julep announced their "DD" cream (really just another BB ceam, or tinted moisturizer with some skincare benefits) in their June Maven box, I was really looking forward to trying it.  Unfortunately, all my excitement just got me all the more disappointed when I actually received the product, and the disappointment began when I took the tube out of the box... Click the jump to read why...



First impression when I took the tube out of the box: wow this is LIGHT...(as in weight-wise). Either there is not much product is the packaging is especially low-quality. Turns out it's both! It only gives 1 oz of product (even deluxe samples have at least 0.5 oz), and the plastic tubing and cap is incredibly thin and malleable, making the tube hard to open without twisting. Even worse, my lid is warped slightly and so the product doesn't even stand upright properly! (I managed to balance it upright for the photo, but it easily falls over with the slightest nudge).  Aargh, so annoyance with packaging aside, I went on to try out the product.

 First impression of the dot of product I put on my hand: wow this is DARK...(and I have the shade "Light"). As I blended it out, it didn't seem so dark on my skin which was good, but it was also obvious from my hand that there wasn't going to be much coverage. It felt a lot like any runny/sticky sunscreen, and didn't seem to minimize any lines on my hand.

When I tried it on my face, it felt quite moisturizing, but made my T-zone look greasy so I had to powder over it. I don't have to powder over my favorite Smashbox and Dr. Jart+ BB creams on most days so I'm not liking the need for powdering already. My guess about the coverage was right. It didn't really do any covering or evening out on first layer. When I added another layer it did even out my skintone slightly, but it also became more evident that this "light" shade was too dark for me. And by dark I mean it looks kind of brown-orange.  I've never used fake-tan before but I imagine it may look something like this. When I checked the mirror again after about an hour, it did seem to lighten every so slightly so it didn't look as bad as initially, though still appeared too dark for my skintone.  My T-zone also was greasy again at that point.

This product also claims to dimish dark spots over time, but unfortunately I don't think I can use it day to day long enough to test this...

Overall impression: Let's just say I'm glad I didn't actually spend $36 buying this! It was a good try from Julep jumping on the BB cream wagon, but it's just not for me. Too greasy (I have dry/combo skin), too little coverage, packaging is too flimsy and doesn't stand up properly, too expensive for the amount of product ($72/oz), I could go on... The only plus of this product is that it does blend well (but so does my regular sunscreen that has no pigment in it...).  This might work for you if you have very dry skin (with no oiliness in your T-zone) and/or if the shade happens to match your skintone and/or if you have nearly perfect skin that doesn't need much coverage/evening out. 

Also, this product contains all chemical sunscreens, so be mindful of that if you prefer physical sunscreens.

Please excuse my lack of reviewing the entire June box here, as this product stood out so much it deserved its own post. The nail polishes were lovely as usual though and I will continue my Maven subscription due to the nail polishes.  I still recommend Julep Maven program if you like nail polish and Julep does also make some lovely manicure/pedicure products.

Disclosure: none, products were bought by me and I'm not affliated with the company.

Have you tried this DD Creme? Let me know your thoughts! If you liked it, let me know how you've been using it in case there's something I can do to make it work better...