Tinted moisturisers have been developing at Formula 1 speed lately: ultra-sheer, less sheer, more coverage, less coverage, mattifying, illuminating, anti-aging… (with or without SPF, madam?)
Earlier this year Laura Mercier’s Illuminating Tinted Moisturiser SPF20 won best-in-category at 2012 The Beauty Shortlist Awards. Now comes Alpha H’s Tinted Moisturiser with Sun Filters in Light, Medium and Dark which does everything a tinted moisturiser should do, and more. It illuminates, protects and hydrates, virtually airbrushing away imperfections and the formula seems to hit the sometimes difficult-to-find sweet spot between good coverage and a natural, translucent look.
Organic Sunflower Sprout Extract, Bitter Orange and Grapefruit energise the skin and combat age spots and environmental stress; Advanced Lipo-Peptide Matrixyl 6 helps diffuse expression lines; and natural light reflecting particles provide even coverage to help ‘blot out’ uneven patches, while HA (Hyaluronic Acid) ‘holds in’ moisture so it’s great in dry climates. (“Dry climate” may not apply to Britain or Ireland but office air and central heating can be sneaky skin dehydrators).
Last but not least, Titanium Dioxide is your sun filter factor here, but you’ll probably want to use an SPF as well in strong sun because tinted moisturisers are technically not substitutes for SPFs.
Verdict? A good daily skin tint for late summer-into-autumn when you’re looking for a subtle “touch of sun” if you’re fair-skinned – or, if you just want a brighter, smoother, more luminous look with the added benefit of anti-agers and gentle sun protection year round then this ticks lots of boxes.
ALPHA H Tinted Moisturiser £34.95/50ml at BeautyBay.com and other retailers.