I had every intention of getting this post up during the late summer, however I failed. So I have now pretty thoroughly tested these sunscreens. You can check out post number one HERE for this year. I’m not going to get into the mineral versus chemical debate or which filter is better or if it leaves a white cast on a POC, I can only tell you if it leaves a white cast on my light medium skin. This is purely about texture and my overall thoughts. I definitely ventured more into mineral sunscreens this year than ever before trying to find my favorites. Heliocare had some definite hits as well as misses for me. Their Age Active Fluid is a combination (mineral/chemical with Tinosorb A2B plus nano zinc and titanium dioxide) sunscreen with a fluid texture. It has the Heliocare light banana scent (which I like because it’s light and better than floral for me), plus antioxidants like vitamin C and E and hydrating ingredients like urea, glycerin and sodium hyaluronate. This one is waterproof and sweat resistant, it doesn’t sting my eyes. This one goes on essentially with no white cast for me, there’s a hint while I rub it in, but it goes away quickly. It’s got a nice silky feel once it sets and they call it soft focus blurring effect. It’s easily one of my favorites in a long time. It’s not heavy or greasy, plus it’s not drying. It’s just really nice and comfortable. All the Heliocare SPFs in that flattened style bottle have been really great for me texture wise, the tubes is another story. This one is SPF 50 plus it’s alcohol free and has a hint of a beige tint.
Heliocare Pigment Solution Fluid is very similar to the above. It has the same combination of filters plus antioxidants and hydrators but it’s also got niacinamide and ellagic acid (can help with pigmentation). This one has a slightly more nude tint but it’s really barely noticeable. It has the same fluid texture as the Age Active Fluid with a hint of white cast that disappears after rubbed in and it sets. Same scent, no alcohol, water proof and sweat resistant, no eye stinging. These two virtually feel the same on my skin texture wise there’s not much difference. There’s no reason why you need both of these, pick one. Both are excellent products and I would repurchase easily. No pilling at all on both ever. I tried three tube style Heliocare sunscreens as well, they have a cheaper price. I grabbed Gel, Gel Oil-Free and Gel Oil-Free Color in Beige. Gel is the heaviest which I think just got discontinued as I cannot find it online anymore. It looks like there’s some repackaging and maybe renaming going on. That’s great as I didn’t like this one at all and wouldn’t have recommended it. It was a hybrid from what I remember with the same banana scent, no alcohol. I don’t remember the other details. It was white cast free but it was so sticky and heavy on my face, caused pilling. It was an easy try it twice and I was done trying it kind of sunscreen. Gel Oil-Free is still around and is similar except it is the dry touch version. No white cast, same scent, alcohol free. This is listed as dry touch, mattifying and seboregulating. This one is a hybrid that’s white cast free for me on the skin. it’s not as sticky but it really didn’t feel that dry touch for me to be honest. It was still sticky as well. I wasn’t a fan of the texture. Plus it pilled for me. I was done after two tries as well. Next I tried the Gel Oil-Free Color in Beige. This comes in Beige, Bronze or Pearl. It’s alcohol free, same banana scent, combination mineral/chemical filters and it has a gel like texture with a beige tint. It’s got tons of antioxidants and vitamin C but it’s so sticky. There’s no way you can put enough of this on your face to get the right protection. It never sets down with that sticky feeling. Not a fan at all. Yes you could layer this over another for a hint of color but even that small amount was way too sticky. There are far better tinted SPFs for that purpose. Easy pass after two uses for me. As I said earlier, get the other kinds in the flattened bottles, they’re all really great. Skip these ones. I’m sure I’ll try one or two other ones by the brand some day.
I tried two other Bioderma ones this year. The Photoderm Nude Touch recently got repackaged in this flattened shape. I grabbed shade Light (Natural is actually lightest, Light is middle, Golden darkest). This is a mineral sunscreen with a hefty tint and a powdery velvet finish on the skin. It’s alcohol and fragrance free. It leaves no white cast for me nor pills. It has oil absorbing powders and salicylic acid so oily skin might quite enjoy this one. It feels very silky on the skin. It does have a touch of silicone. It wasn’t what I was looking for though it was nice. I did find this one transferred color very easily onto clothing and masks so I ditched it since I wear the mask all day right now. It transfers color worse than any color tinted one I’ve tried. Photoderm M is a tinted cream formulated for skin with hyperpigmentation. It’s a combination sunscreen with chemical and physical filters. It’s alcohol and fragrance free. This has a light cream texture and a nude tint. It has licorice (glabridin) for brightening. I found this too creamy and heavy for me, maybe best for dry skin or a dry climate? It’s not heavy heavy or greasy, and it doesn’t pill. It just was more hydrating than I was looking for.
Innisfree Daily UV Defense is a lightweight lotion with cica, green tea and sunflower oil. It’s alcohol and fragrance free plus a chemical sunscreen. It has no white cast as it’s chemical only. This is a hydrating sunscreen, it’s lotion weight meaning it’s not overtly dewy but not super lightweight either. I would consider it lightly dewy. This has US based chemical filters so it can sting my eyes (US based chemical filters tend to do that to me). I liked it but there are some non-US based chemical filters I like more is all. I think it’s a nice one for the price ($15). I finally decided to try ISDIN this year. I grabbed the Fusion Water Pediatrics version. This was easily one of my favorite sunscreen purchases this year. This is a chemical sunscreen that’s alcohol and fragrance free and you can actually apply it to wet skin and it’s still effective (claimed by the brand). It has a light fluid texture, no white cast, doesn’t pill and it sets down to a dewy satin finish. It also doesn’t sting my eyes. It’s really a nice product and I’ve already purchased a second.
Make P:rem makes some of my favorite sunscreens. I tried the new UV Defense me. Calmine Sun Milk instead of my regular version. This is a mineral sunscreen with panthenol and calamine which gives it a pink tint and is soothing. I find this one slightly thicker than the original. It’s still quite fluid and suitable for face and body. It has a minimal white cast that doesn’t last long and a satin finish once it sets. It never pills. I still prefer the original Blue Ray Sun Fluid. It’s slightly thinner, less white cast (none for me) and is a holy grail. I finally caved and grabbed First Aid Beauty Weightless Mineral Sunscreen. It’s a tinted fluid mineral sunscreen. This is so lightweight, it goes into the skin beautifully. Gives a nice satin finish and never pills. No white cast either. It’s also fragrance and alcohol free. Literally the only thing I didn’t like about it was this weird slightly gritty texture when I rub it on. That’s the only reason this wasn’t a huge favorite for me. I really liked the Sente tinted sunscreen so I happened to get the Invisible Shield Full Physical as a gift with purchase and figured it would be similar. It’s not. The tinted version is amazing, it’s a mineral with a dewy satin finish, doesn’t pill and isn’t drying (this is as well). The difference is that this non-tinted version has a huge white cast that you can’t get past. It has a light creamy texture. The tinted version does not. I would highly suggest the tinted version and I gave this one away. Both are alcohol and fragrance free.
Something with a similar texture and finish as the tinted Sente is the Elta MD UV Elements. I finally caved and grabbed this one. It’s easily my favorite Elta MD one, with UV Clear Tinted right behind. UV Elements is a mineral tinted sunscreen, it’s alcohol and fragrance free, has a dewy satin finish and isn’t drying for a mineral. It’s got a thicker texture but it’s not heavy plus it doesn’t pill. This is a great weekend sunscreen because it doubles as foundation. Great on a no makeup day. VERSED launched Guards Up a mineral sunscreen this year. It has a faint beige tint and light lotion texture. It goes on with no white cast and has a dewy satin finish. It’s alcohol and fragrance free. Sadly this pills badly on me. I tried it multiple ways, no fixing it. If it wasn’t for the pilling I’d still have it around. I grabbed KOA Anti-Pollution SPF 45+ as I had seen it on Instagram. It’s a mineral sunscreen that’s very fluid in texture SPF that sits lightly on the skin. I didn’t find it drying at all. It’s also alcohol and fragrance free. The tint is very light, a light pink. It has a white cast that lingers for me. If it was tinted more beige it might disappear better into the skin. I happen to prefer the Heliocare Mineral Tolerance Fluid better otherwise I liked it.
Klairs Mid-day Blue UV Shield was also new this year. It’s a lotion textured mineral sunscreen with no alcohol and it doesn’t pill. It has a kind of warm sweet nutty scent that I know many didn’t seem to like. I loved it. I would prefer that over a floral fragrance. It has guaiazulene a botanical ingredient extract from chamomile for soothing. This has a satin to more matte finish. It’s great for summer for me to control oil. I didn’t find it extremely drying but it could be to some. It has no white cast or pilling for me. I liked it for the price and for summer use it was great. OBAGI sent multiple sunscreens to me this year. The Physical Defense 40 is a a non-tinted mineral sunscreen. It seems light in texture but it leaves the biggest white cast. It’s also pretty dewy in the finish. No alcohol or pilling plus it’s water resistant. It’s really only the white cast that kills this one for me though it’s also a touch too dewy for my normal preferences. The Physical Defense Tinted 50 was my favorite of the two. This has a light creamy lotion texture (slightly lighter than the 40), it’s water-resistant and a tinted mineral. It’s also alcohol and fragrance free. It doesn’t leave any white cast one me and has a dewy finish that’s not too heavy. It doesn’t pill on me either plus I’m able to apply enough to get the recommended coverage and it doesn’t make me look too tinted, orange or tan. It matches my skin tone well.
Overall this year I was really branching out into more European brands as typically I do Asian sunscreens. I also looked for minimal scents or none and no alcohol. That’s only because that’s what works for me, if you love fragrance and alcohol for a nice light finish and it works for you, keep doing it. I have rosacea and skin that is getting drier so I need more alcohol free ones now (though I used to totally enjoy alcohol in my sunscreen even four years ago). Minerals are great for sensitive skin but they tend to dry me out more than they used to especially around the eye area as I have super dry under eyes. So I’m trying to find some more elegant chemical sunscreens that don’t irritate my eyes which I’m finding in the European approved filters. So ultimately Heliocare (non tube versions as discussed) and ISDIN really were my favorites and the stand outs. I did find a few new tinted minerals I really enjoyed (OBAGI 50, Elta MD). I couldn’t deal with the white cast on the Sente, KOA & OBAGI 40, pilling from VERSED or the overall unpleasant tacky texture of the Heliocare tubes. The tint in the Bioderma Photoderm Nude Touch was just a bit too much for me and while I wanted to love the First Aid Beauty because the texture was amazing, the weird slightly gritty texture was not my favorite.
Top to Bottom-Klairs, VERSED, Make P:rem, Sente, OBAGI Physical Defense 40:
Top to Bottom-First Aid Beauty, Bioderma Photoderm Nude Touch, Bioderma Photoderm M, OBAGI Physical Defense Tinted 50, Elta MD UV Elements, Heliocare Gel Oil-Free Beige, KOA Tinted:
Top to Bottom-InnisFree, Heliocare Gel, Heliocare Gel Oil-Free, ISDIN, Heliocare Pigmentation Solution Fluid, Heliocare Age Active Fluid:
*InnisFree & OBAGI gifted, all others I purchased. All thoughts are my own.
