Brands are trying to make sunscreens more powerful by amping them up with vitamin C, the powerhouse skin care ingredient that brightens and protects skin. Ron Robinson was a cosmetic chemist for companies like Clinique and working on his beauty blog when he discovered a new stable, potent form of vitamin C. The discovery led him to quit his day job and found his own award-winning company, BeautyStat. The brand, beloved by Hailey Bieber (Robinson also consults on product development for her Rhode line), incorporates 20 percent encapsulated ascorbic acid into a mineral SPF. “It’s only when you combine sunscreen with a very powerful antioxidant that you’re really getting total protection from both UV rays and free radical damage,” he says. Universal C Skin Refiner Vitamin C Serum + SPF50 Mineral Sunscreen took nearly three years to develop and launched when Robinson was satisfied with its ability to blend into all skin tones.
Shiseido’s new Urban Environment Vita-Clear SPF 42 also incorporates vitamin C (via an ethyl form) into its formula. Described as more of an emulsion, it comes out of the bottle in a creamy white color but goes on clear when applied to the skin. And Ole Henriksen is perhaps best known for its top-selling Banana Bright+ Eye Crème, which has illuminating pigments and a vitamin C complex to enhance skin radiance and reduce the appearance of dark undereye circles. The brand’s new Banana Bright Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30 is like a new member of the family: it takes many of the same ingredients found in the Eye Crème, but adds 16.3 percent zinc oxide.
Even Glowier Sunscreen
The newest crop of tinted sunscreens ensures that you look dewy, rather than ghostly. Supergoop! Glowscreen SPF 40 sunscreen has long been loved for its ability to double as a highlighter and a primer. Two new tinted shades, Dawn and Sunset, are now part of the range. The pearlescent tones provide a hint of sun-kissed color. RMS has just launched its SuperNatural Radiance Serum Broad Spectrum SPF 30 Sunscreen, a combination of SPF and tinted moisturizer that filters out imperfections. And if you find your- self looking for sunscreen in a drugstore, there’s Neutrogena’s Purescreen+ Mineral UV Tint Face Liquid Sunscreen. It comes in four different shades, from light to deep, to provide more seamless blending with skin tones.
Whichever sunscreen you choose, there’s no shortage of new offerings this summer that are easy to apply and great for your skin. So turn around—I’ve got your back.
