Tinted Moisturizer: The Search

I’m dedicated to slathering on moisturizer with SPF every morning, rain or shine, summer or winter. I’ve been addicted to the best-selling and highly rated Olay Complete SPF 15 for at least 15 years, at $8.69 for 6 oz. a bargain, and didn’t feel any need to change. Until.

I’ve never used a foundation, or at least not since high school. And I’m not sure why I used it then. I’m faithful to concealer, and particularly YSL Touche Éclat.

But lately I’ve been feeling the need for a little more coverage: I seem to be using a lot more concealer! But I didn’t want a heavy coverage, so I decided to investigate tinted moisturizers with SPF.

First stop CVS where I checked out Olay Total Effects Tinted Moisturizer. At twice the price and half the size, I decided to keep looking. Next stop Sephora, where I explained my need, sampled a few products, then purchased a small bottle of Lancôme Bienfait Multi-Vital Teinté SPF 30 in Sand 1.7 oz  for $45 (far more than the Olay Total Effects Tinted Moisturizer ). Back again the next morning: the coverage was way too heavy, and I felt like there was a clay mask on my face. A few days later I was jetting to Savannah for a girls tip with my sisters, sisters-in-law and The Queen Mum. Not so surprisingly, I ended up in a conversation with one sister about tinted moisturizers with SPF, and her search for the one. And she had a conversation with another sister about, you guessed it: tinted moisturizers with SPF. And this led to a post-weekend Facebook conversation with all the recommendations in writing.

All of this led me back again to Sephora and then to CVS to test the tinted moisturizers they had recommended:

• sister M: Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer with SPF 20 at Sephora. $42 for 1.5 oz, 10 shades. They have samples. So I first tried M’s color, bisque: too light. Next Sand: too dark. Then Nude: didn’t provide any coverage. At all. Next!
• sister S: Cover Girl Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 15. Not at CVS. Not at Walgreens. Not at Duane Read. Not at Sephora or anywhere else I could find in NYC. Target hadn’t yet opened in NYC. Sister S recommends Ulta, but they aren’t in NYC yet either. I found it online at drugstore.com for $6.59 for 1.35 oz. Good price, well-known brand.

But I wanted immediate gratification at a low price. I don’t have any problem ordering online, in fact I prefer it. But for cosmetics I’d like to sample the product before I buy it online, where it becomes a hassle to return it. And I’m willing to spend on my face, but without samples, I’m not willing to spend the big $$$ and end up throwing it away. As happens too often.

So what’s a girl to do? I ended up buying a bottle of Cover Girl Clean Liquid MakeUp in Beige, 1 oz for $6.99. I pour a blob of my Olay Moisturizer in my palm and add a drip of Cover Girl Clean, mix together and spread.

It actually works great: light coverage at a low price. I’ve been thinking of pre-mixing the combo in a little squeeze bottle, but so far I haven’t been quite motivated enough to do it.

Am I still looking for a tinted moisturizer with SPF? Yes! But until I find one, this works fine. When my new bottle of Olay runs out, I’ll probably search again. Drugstores. Department Stores. On-line. Cosmetics Stores. The Search continues…

Any tinted moisturizers with SPF that you’d like to recommend?

Moi Tip: I use the tinted moisturizer on my face, but not on my neck and chest. I don’t like the coverage there, and don’t need the mess on my clothing. So I’ll continue to be faithful to my Olay Complete for my neck and chest.