Sonia Kashuk just reminded me why I have to get my air conditioner fixed. You see, with the mercury rising indoors and out, her Radiant Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 15 ($12.99) means I won’t have to wear a heavy mask of makeup in the heat.
I never thought I’d see the day when anything would come between me and my trusty tube of Laura Mercier Oil-Free Tinted Moisturizer, especially a drugstore product, but here we are. For years, Laura’s sheer-to-medium coverage has evened out my skin tone and kept my combination dry/oil skin happily hydrated and (nearly) breakout-free, but in hot and/or humid weather, it has at times looked and felt heavy on my skin.
With summer quickly approaching, I decided to keep my options open. Last week I started testing Sonia’s Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, and so far, so good.
It’s not the first drugstore tinted moisturizer I’ve tried over the years, but it is the first, in my opinion, able to hold its own against Laura’s in more ways than one. Like Laura’s entry, buildable, pigmented Radiant Tinted in Tan covers up red patches and pimples, evens out my skin tone, and helps to hide any scratches left by Edward Scissorpaws, who, by the way, is still on my sh*t list (NOTE TO SELF: work on forgiving and forgetting). And this it does with a single layer that feels lighter and more comfy than Laura’s to me.
I swear it looks like real skin, too, and isn’t heavy, thick or fake-looking at all. A touch of barely-there shimmer gives it dimension and further helps diffuse my fine lines and wrinkles.
If you have very oily skin, you could probably wear it all by itself, but if you have shiny patches on your forehead or cheeks (like I do), you might set it with a blotting powder (I like MAC Blot). That’ll take care of those oily areas. Or, for even more/better coverage, you could use a sheer powder like the MAC Studio Careblends, which I’m using in these pics.
Swatches from the left: Tan unblended and blended; Linen unblended and blended
Wearing Tan
Radiant hasn’t triggered any breakouts yet, but I have read some reviews on Makeup Alley warning about it causing pimples. If you have sensitive skin, it might be a good idea to start with a patch test for a week using a spot on your cheek. Beter safe than sorry, ya know?
As far as drawbacks or negatives, I could name a couple, and they’re both fairly annoying. Radiant isn’t moisturizing enough for me (one way in which Laura’s wins). If you suffer from dry skin, applying it on top of a layer of moisturizer should help.
And then there’s the limited shade selection of just four colors.
The product also contains a few ingredients I would love to see replaced, like various dimethicones, Peg-40 Castor Oil and parabens…
- Active ingredients — Octinoxate (7.5%) and Avobenzone (2%)
- Inactive ingredients — Purified Water, C12 – 15 Alkyl Ethylhexanoate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Dimethicone, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Emulsifying Wax, NF, Polyglyceryl-4 Isostearate, Cethyl Dimethicone Copolyol, DEA-Cetyl Phosphate, Peg-40 Castor Oil, Hexyl Laurate, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Cetyl Dimethicone, Dromiceius Oil, Tocophyeryl Acetate, Carbomer, Allantoin, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Sodium Ascorbate, Methyl Paraben, Isopropylparaben, Isobutylparaben, Butylparaben, Propylparaben. May Contain: CI 77891 (Titanium Dioxide), CI 77491 (Iron Oxide), CI 77492 (Iron Oxide, CI 77499 (Iron Oxide), Mica
PRICE: $12.99
AVAILABILITY: Available now at Target stores and also online
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+
I can see the finish line!
Can you believe it’s almost Friday? How the heck did that happen, wow!?So how’s your Thursday coming along? Whatcha been up to today?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
