Flower Beauty Balm BB Cream review

Flower Beauty is a new cosmetics line launched by Hollywood actress Drew Barrymore. With a focus on affordable luxury, all products are priced under $15.
Currently available exclusively in US Walmarts, the entire line is made in the USA and products are not tested on animals. No word yet on when or if the line will be available at Canadian Walmarts, but I have been seeing bits and pieces pop up on E(vil)bay.
I managed to pick up a few items from the line and will be reviewing them in the next few weeks (with luck heh).
The Flower Beauty Balm BB Cream is available in 4 shades and retails for $12.98.
From the Walmart website:

"Flower Beauty Balm BB Cream can be used daily to eliminate skin dullness. It covers imperfections, pores and discolorations.

Flower Beauty Balm BB Cream:

• Smoothes and softens skin
• Helps eliminate unwanted shine
• Primer, foundation, and concealer in 1
• Talc free"

 Hide yo kids, hide yo wife and hide yo husband for the before photo:

 After:

 Look left, look right:

After about 5 or 6 hours of wear time:

I've been using this BB Cream for the past 2 weeks and haven't been able to stop raving about it!
I got shade 01 and find it a bit too light for my NC20ish skin so I either use bronzer or mix it with a darker foundation if I want a better colour match, however, the colour difference isn't severe and it gets less noticeable after a while (oxidation perhaps?). Definitely look into shade 01 if you have fair, yellow toned skin. Next time I'll try 02.
Texture wise it reminds me a bit of the Coffret D'or Soft Gel Foundation, it's quite thick and feels almost like a gel. It's definitely not like thin tinted moisturisers that Western cosmetics brands have been passing as a BB cream.
Due to the thicker formula, it does feel a little heavier than some of my lighter foundations and takes longer to set. A little goes a long way with this BB cream, too much and it'll look cakey and mask-like, especially on areas with dryer skin such as the under eye area. I use a wide, flat top brush and work from the middle of my face outwards. I did find that it required a bit more work to blend and that if you don't blend it well, it has a tendency to sink into fine lines.
I would rate the coverage as medium and buildable, most redness and imperfections are covered by this BB cream alone without the addition of concealer. Finish is matte.
Unlike Asian BB creams the Flower Beauty Balm BB cream does not have any skincare properties or SPF.
The oil control of the BB cream is amazing, the matte finish lasts about 6 hours before it started showing shine. For reference I had this on from 7am in the morning and this was what I looked like by 9pm after a full day of work and a heavy cardio class with no blotting:

Close up:

Pros:

• Amazing oil control;
• Great coverage;
• Long lasting; 
• Yellow based;
• Lightest shade will match palest of the pale;
• Affordable.

Cons:

• Small colour range;
• Thicker formula;
• Not available outside of America;
• No SPF;
• Contains parabens and silicones;

I really love this BB cream for it's oil control properties and its long-lasting ability and would recommend the Flower Beauty Balm BB Cream for anyone with oily or combination skin looking for an affordable Western BB cream.

p.s Don't forget to enter my contest to win $100 worth of Shu Uemura products! Last day for entry is 30 April, 2013!