How often do you look at Max Factor products? Well I most certainly mostly pass by the brand rather than checking out what they have to offer. And depending on where you live, you may not even have access. In the US many Max Factor products are still available though as the Cover Girl line is owned by the same company as Max Factor. In fact, in the history of my blog I have only written a handful reviews about the brand. So how well does their creme bronzer work for me?
Review: Max Factor Creme Bronzer 05 Light Gold
One of the reasons why Max Factor is never my favorite brand to check out at my local drugstore is how expensive it is. It is easily one of the most expensive lines available at the Dutch drugstore. Often, it is even more expensive than L’Oreal. This bronzer in particular retails for nearly €13 and for that price point you only get 3 grams of product. So when it comes to how much product you get and how much money you pay it is not the most economically viable options on the market for sure.
What does this bronzer have to offer?
So I remember when I bought this bronzer came in multiple shades. Now when I go to look it up it seems that there is only one left and it is not this one but one shade darker. So that is a bit of a shame. Because I bought this, because this particular bronzer in this particular shade was recommended as a great option for fair skin. So that made me want to try it. Why is this supposed to be a good bronzer for fair skin? For three reasons: it has a light enough color, has a lovely sheen and is not too pigmented.
How does this bronzer work?
This bronzer is what is known to be a baked bronzer and baked products can be very hit or miss. Baked products can be very lightly pigmented, get hard pan and/ or be difficult to pick up with a brush. In short, in my experience, baked products can be a little problematic. This one I had no issues with but I did find it sometimes looked a bit darker after a few hours than when I first applied it. I didn’t feel like that happened every time, but it did happen a few times. It never looked orange though: at all times this bronzer looked natural on the skin.
How does this bronzer swatch?
I think this swatch shows you what I mean. This bronzer has a warm undertone, but is not too orange. The product has a very light sheen, but without being super glowy or shimmery. This is what makes the product look much more natural on the skin. I used this a ton in October when I put this in my shop my stash. It was simply just right for what I needed: it has a nice, smooth structure, is easy to apply and looks natural on the skin while adding just the right amount of color and healthy glow.
How does this product apply?
For this product I felt I needed to show you a before and after of my full face. This way you can clearly see the effect this product has. On the left there is my face without any product on expect for my base and my brows. On the right is the effect the bronzer gives. It has a natural look and a summery vibe that worked well in the first full month of fall. I love trying to maintain that sunkissed glow but many bronzer can start looking like too much very quickly. This never did.
My final thoughts
While the Max Factor Creme bronzer did not make it to my top 10 favorite bronzers of all time, I still like this plenty. It has a lot going for it. I just think the shade is not right for me all the time. If I keep this around, I would only be able to use it a few weeks in the year. Plus I think I own other bronzers that I feel work just as well or even better that are much more affordable than this. However, I still struggle finding a good bronzer at the drugstore that has the right texture, tone and wearability as some of my favorite high end ones.
Would I recommend the Max Factor Creme bronzer?
Since I had trouble finding this in some stores, I think this may actually be on its way out. So I find it difficult to recommend this product as I don’t think it would be worth tracking it down if it is no longer widely available. That said, if you find it and you want a bronzer that has a lovely sheen that does remind me of some of my high end bronzers while still being a little more affordable than you can of course try this. However, this bronzer is not a firm favorite so I would not go out of my way to try get my hands on it.
2 responses to “Max Factor Creme bronzer review”
Max Factor is expensive and boring. We always complain that in the Netherlands we either get stuff very late or not at all for drugstore brands, but Max Factor tops that list I think. Can’t recall them releasing anything exithing new products.
So true! They remind me of old ladies 🤣