Does the It Cosmetics CC Cream Live Up to the Hype?

Let me tell you the story of how I came to be reviewing this CC cream. Last year, I was sent a tube of it—in the shade called Light—but after trying it once and realizing the shade was nowhere close to my definition of “light”, it immediately went into one of my product bins. The one called Maybe Get Around to Reviewing These Someday. I prioritize writing about the stuff I'm in love with first, obviously!

Then I started hearing all this buzz around the blogosphere. OMGItCosmeticsBestCCcreamGetItNow—that was the gist of it. YouTubers/bloggers like Tiffany D and Beautezine were saying it was the best thing ever. And wow, it has a 4.2 (out of 5) rating from 59 people on MakeupAlley.

I thought, did I pass up It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC Cream too quickly?

When I discovered they actually made a lighter shade than Light—named Fair—I thought “Aha! This is going to be IT!!” (Get it? It Cosmetics… too easy.) I promptly emailed the PR and finally, my sample arrived in the mail. Here are my CC sisters sitting pretty in their boxes:

Note that this product also comes in three other shades: Medium, Tan and Rich.

But I'll get back to their wacky shade system in a moment. First, a look at the box. Check out how many ingredients are in this, yo!

I do like that it contains SPF 50 mineral sunscreen (titanium dioxide and zinc oxide), but I'm turned off right away by any product that has a million ingredients in it. I'll just cut and paste so you can appreciate how many there are:

Active Ingredients: Titanium Dioxide 9.015%. Zinc Oxide 6.305%. Snail Secretion Filtrate, Butylene Glycol, Phenyl Trimethicone, Dimethicone, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Orbignya Oleifera Seed Oil, Butyloctyl Salicylate, Cetyl PEG/PPG-10/1 Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cyclohexasiloxane, Magnesium Sulfate, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Aluminum Hydroxide, Hexyl Laurate, Stearic Acid, Calcium Stearate, Caprylyl Glycol, Triethoxycaprylylsilane, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Citrus Medica Limonum (Lemon) Peel Oil, Tocopheryl Acetate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia (Bergamot) Fruit Oil, 1,2-Hexanediol, Water, Disodium EDTA, Citrus aurantium dulcis (orange) peel oil, Citrus Aurantifolia (Lime) Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Punica Granatum Seed Oil, Pinus Sylvestris Leaf Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Niacinamide, Citrus Grandis (Grapefruit) Peel Oil, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Water, Lactobacillus/Honeysuckle Flower/Licorice Root/Morus Alba Root/Pueraria Lobata Root/Schizandra Chinensis Fruit/Scutellaria Baicalensis Root/Sophora Japonica Flower Extract Ferment Filtrate, Perfluorohexane, Olea Europaea (Olive) Leaf Extract, Glycerin, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil, Cholesteryl Isostearate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Chrysanthemum Indicum flower Extract, Cholesteryl Nonanoate, Cholesteryl Chloride, Pueraria Lobata Root Extract, Perfluorodecalin, Morus Alba Fruit Extract, Magnolia Kobus Bark Extract, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Sprout Extract, Diospyros Kaki Leaf Extract, Cinnamomum Cassia Bark Extract, Artemisia Princeps Leaf Extract, Pentafluoropropane, Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract, Steareth-20, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Colloidal Oatmeal, Hydrolyzed Silk, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Silica, BHT, Potassium sorbate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, N-Hydroxysuccinimide, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Tocopherol, Thiamine HCl, Riboflavin, Retinyl Palmitate, Pantothenic Acid, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Niacin, Folic Acid, Chrysin, Carnitine HCl, Biotin, Ascorbic Acid, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Chlorhexidine Digluconate. May Contain: Red 7 Lake (CI 15850:1), Iron Oxides (CI 77492, CI 77491, CI 77499).

Is that not INSANE?! I suppose the reason is because they claim it does so many things. It's a…

• full-coverage foundation
• brightening colour (I feel like this is a stretch!)
• anti-aging serum
• pore-minimizing primer (but I say, why would you apply any more makeup on top of makeup that's already high-coverage?)
• dark spot corrector
• moisturizing day cream
• UVA/UVB broad-spectrum physical sunscreen

They also claim it will increase skin hydration by 179 percent.

Moving on, here's a look at the 32 mL tubes. Already, you can see a big difference in the colours:

It features a pump to dispense the product, and comes out fairly thick and creamy:

I would say it's a similar texture to the Cover FX foundation I reviewed the other day; maybe a fraction more liquidy.

Here's the shade comparison on my skin:

So I already knew the Light shade was more like what I consider a medium. Fair was looking like a definite possibility.

But then I started to blend, and this is what happened:

I'm not sure if this comes across in the photo, but let me tell you: Fair was ASHY and GREY. Surprisingly so, and much more than any makeup I've tried that I can remember. Usually, the problem with foundations is that they're too pink/orange/yellow—but grey really is the worst. Nooobody wants to look grey. Yikes! I usually go for shades that are in between warm and cool, so if it couldn't work on me, then what skin tone would this be for? I can't imagine.

Rather telling is that their website mentions the product was formulated by plastic surgeons. So it may have all those nice anti-aging and hydrating ingredients in it, but plastic surgeons sure don't know about colours and skin tones.

As for how the formula felt, well, it seems like it's going to be too greasy at first but then dries down to a very slightly powdery feel on the skin. The coverage is adequate (I would say medium-ish but not full, once you blend properly). However, it just looked and felt too heavy and makeup-y for my liking, and I wanted to wash it off my face right away. Which I did, because there's no way I can test-drive products that make my complexion look grey. #sorrynotsorry

Who might this work for? Someone with a darker skin tone, drier skin type and who likes the feel of higher-coverage face makeup. I really wanted to love it, but this is a resounding no for me.

If you're looking for something great from It Cosmetics, I highly recommend the Bye Bye Under Eye waterproof concealer, which has much better colours, and the Bye Bye Pores translucent setting powder.

Where to Buy

Find the It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC Cream online at the following retailers:

• Canada: The Shopping Channel
• USA: Ulta, Beauty.com, B-Glowing, QVC

Have Your Say

Have you tried the It Cosmetics CC Cream?

Which CC cream is your current #1?