New Brand: Bell Cosmetics brings hypoallergenic makeup from Poland to Manila

Features

Sep 29

As a beauty addict, I eat, sleep, and breathe makeup recommendations. To be specific, I really love giving them! But while I can dash off a laundry list of fave eyeshadows and lippies, foundations have always posed a bit of a problem for me. See, while I have generally resilient skin (combination-oily, with a tendency for breakouts now controlled by the In Her Element Low pH Rose Gel Cleanser), many of my friends fall on the more sensitive side of the spectrum, meaning I don’t often have recommendations - especially for liquid formulations - I feel I can safely recommend.

Imagine my excitement, then, when I discovered that there was an affordable, easily-accessible hypoallergenic foundation brand readily available at my favorite department store! Sensitive-skinned ladies, meet Bell Cosmetics, which is now available in select Watsons and SM Beauty Stores!

Billed as “makeup for the sensitive,” Bell Cosmetics (or Bell Hypoallergenic) is a line of dermatologist-tested makeup products from Poland. The brand is famous for its Skin Adapting Makeup and primers, but they also offer lippies, color correctors, BB creams, and two other formulations of their foundation: the Mat and Cover, and their newer release, the Mat and Soft.

I got to test out the Mat and Soft Make-up (P949), in the shade 02. As someone who is notorious for consistently being the “01” of any and every foundation, I was concerned that this might be a bit dark on me, but I found it surprisingly close to my skin shade, settling beautifully into my skin. Other sites have noted that the Mat and Soft formulation has a slight pink tone to it, which I felt added to my glowing look.

True to its claims, the Mat and Soft foundation felt very light on the skin. However, it was also very light on coverage, looking very sheer, almost like a BB cream. Unlike a BB cream though, Bell’s foundation did not make any explicit SPF claims, despite having both Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide in its list of ingredients. I found this quite strange, considering that most dermatologists recommend daily sun protection. Still, it's generally a good idea to wear a separate sunscreen, and I found that the formula applied quite well over my HG Biore Watery Gel sunscreen.

The HYPOallergenic Eye Brow Set (P699), which was also in shade 02, comes equipped with what seems to be a wax or pomade, and two powders for shading. I must admit this was not my favorite among the products: the wax was unable to hold my thick unruly brow hairs down (note the flyaways at the tail), and I found the lighter brow powder shade too reddish for me. The darker shade, however, applied beautifully and was able to give me the bold, straight brows I favor.

If there’s anything from Bell Cosmetics that I can’t stop talking about, however, it’s their mascara. The HYPOallergenic Thickening Mascara (P649) is OUT OF THIS WORLD. Not only did it deliver on clump-free thickness, but it also gave my lashes a curl and held it practically the whole day! I didn’t even have to wear eyeliner - that’s just how good it is! It’s quickly become my go-to daily mascara, and I definitely will repurchase once I finish this tube. The only downside of this formula might be that it isn’t waterproof, but I actually like that about it, as it makes cleaning my face at the end of the day so much easier.

Because the overall feel of Bell Cosmetics was so fresh and light, I went with a minimal makeup look for my FOTD. After seven hours of wear, while I was a bit shiny (something I experience with most foundations), the makeup had more or less held and did not feel greasy or heavy. While I probably would mattify with a bit of powder, I was pleasantly surprised by how put together - ”matte and soft” indeed - I still looked. Also, because of the “light” feeling, I definitely did not get the impression that I would break out from it. In fact, it felt like I wasn’t wearing anything on my face!