If there’s one thing, we at The Sissociate are constantly talking about, or trying to explore regularly, it has got to be “sunscreen”. We’re constantly on the lookout for the best sunscreen in the market, something with good texture, something that’ll provide adequate sun protection and won’t break your bank at the same time.
Here’s a link to our previous post about sunscreens we have tried – https://thesissociate.com/2021/07/16/my-search-for-the-best-sunscreen/
This post however isn’t a continuation of that list. Instead, it is a single product review which you may have guessed from the title of the post. So, let’s delve right into it.
This is the first tinted sunscreen I have tried. I came across this brand one fine day as I was randomly scrolling on Instagram and I was almost instantly sold. I had actually been on the lookout for tinted sunscreens since I didn’t want to wear makeup to work, because I wanted to be able to reapply sunscreen throughout my day. But at the same time, I also wanted something to cover the blemishes and acne scars on my face for a spot free look during the day. And this popped up on my Instagram explore page at the right time. I can’t really tell if this showed up because, around that time I had been searching for and reading about tinted sunscreens, or it was a mere coincidence. Either way I’m glad it did.
The photos of products on the brand’s website are phenomenal. They’ve shown swatches of their wide variety of shades on various skin colors, and skin undertones.
They have a wide range of 30 different shades to choose from. All these images and the ease of going through an array of skin tones does make it very convenient for you to choose a product especially when it comes to complexion products (foundations, concealers, tinted moisturizers, BB creams etc.). This presentation of the beauty of different skin tones is truly noteworthy.
The product comes in a beautiful bottle with a dropper, just like you get your skincare products – especially serums. It’s called the “Super Serum Skin Tint” for a reason. The product is primarily a serum with the goodness of Niacinamide, Squalane and Hyaluronic Acid. It also happens to be a sunscreen (SPF 40) and the best part is that it is tinted with the tint shades ranging across 30 beautiful shades. A beautiful chemistry of skincare, makeup and sunscreen per se.
Below is an excerpt from the brand website.
ILIA Skin Tint is created with active levels of Hyaluronic Acid, Plant-Based Squalane, and Niacinamide to visibly improve bare skin with every wear. This superpowered skin tint doesn’t stop there: It also creates a natural barrier for your skincare, sealing in hydration, plumping skin, and boosting any antioxidant effectiveness by 200%. Plus, it’s silicone-free, fragrance-free, chemical screen-free, oil-free, non-comedogenic, and safe for sensitive skin. This is SPF, made super.
It is also a recipient of several awards as shown on the website.
Now let me take you along to my experience with the product. The first time I applied this was on a work day. I had it on the whole day. But it was at a point in time in my life where I was experiencing overall dryness on my face (because of excessive usage of retinol). My skin was quite dry and flaky and I must say that Ilia Super Serum Tint helped to combat that to an extent because of the hydrating ingredients present therein.
Thereafter I got rid of retinol and got back to my regular functioning skin barrier. And the usage of Ilia Serum Tint during the day has only made my skin glow even more. Here’s a picture of Ilia Super Serum Tint on my face where I didn’t face any dryness or flakiness as such.
Everything about the product is great. I’d like to rate it a 9/10 as a complexion product. But a 7/10 as a sunscreen product. Here’s why – The broadly recommended quantity of sunscreen for your face is about half a teaspoon. Another way to measure adequate amount of sunscreen to use on your face is the “two finger method”. You draw two strips (as if you were squeezing toothpaste on your toothbrush), on your index finger and middle finger, from the top to the base, and that’s the recommended amount of sunscreen you need to be applying on your face.
But with this serum , applying this much quantity would be just too much. Since it’s also a complexion product it’s best to start with a little and take more if you feel the need to. But half a teaspoon or two fingers worth of this product is just too much product. I tried it and my face looked totally cakey and it was very visible that I had too much product therein, and since it is tinted you can’t really blend it completely into your skin, and a portion of the product just sits on top of your skin’s top layer.
The brand addresses this in their FAQ section.
Below is a depiction of how much product I used(just a dollop), and the coverage is more than enough for my entire face.
So, here’s how I work with this product. I don’t use this product alone as a sun protection product purely because of the technicality aspect concerning the recommended quantity of sunscreen. However, I use Ilia Serum Tint on top of my other sunscreen (non tinted), and use just a little dollop and spread it evenly over my face to form a sheer coverage, and this works well for me. So that was all about my experience with the product in the past two months.
Now let’s go over two more details about this product, being the SPF formulation and the pricing.
SPF FORMULATION: This product is a physical sunscreen. The main active ingredient is Zinc Oxide at a concentration of 12% in the product. It also has Titanium Dioxide. Both of these components are physical SPF filters.
PRICING: The pricing is on a slightly higher end. It’s priced at $48 for a 30 ML bottle. Yes, slightly expensive, but there’s quite a lot that this product offers so you could say it’s more or less worth it.
To conclude, this is a one of a kind product – a beautiful combination of skincare, makeup and sunscreen- all in one. A little bit on the pricier side but an occasional splurge on a good product is alright. Okay then, that was it for this time. See you soon in another blog post, hope you enjoyed this one!
