I told you some of my sunscreen woes in the post, Do We Need Sunscreen?? In short, finding a suitable sunscreen has been a very bumpy road!! I know many of you can relate to finding a sunscreen that doesn't cause clogs/irritation and also wears well under makeup. Sigh.

Anyway!! I'm very happy to report that I finally have found a sunscreen option that I'm loving!! Woooo!!! Seriously...it's about darn time! In this post I'll tell you about 2 sunscreen options, the one that I'm loving and the other one that was nice but not quite right...

***All items purchased by me. 

Totally wish I was in that picture right now...soaking up the warm sun :-)  But...whether you are lucky enough to be in a beautiful place like the picture or are in the midst of Fall...anytime is a good time to think about sunscreen. So onto the reviews! 

Vichy Capital Soleil Mattifying Face Fluid Dry Touch SPF50 (European version)

It's important to note, this is the European version. There is a US version, but I don't know how that one compares. Unfortunately this one isn't so easy to get hold of. If you know someone in Europe who can get it for you that's perfect, otherwise I found it on Amazon from THIS seller. From what I can tell the seller does get their product from Europe, but my package actually shipped from Florida. Total shipping time was 6 days from date of order, so that's not bad! Google will provide you with other sellers, but this was my first time purchasing so I'm not sure about any other sellers. I paid $26.99 + $2.99 shipping for a 50ml tube, which I'm sure you can find it cheaper but I was impatient and am comfortable buying from Amazon. If anyone knows of a reputable seller that has it for less, please let me know! 

You'll see quite a few sample packets in the picture above! Super big THANK YOU to the lovely  Daria @ Wade Ashore who was so kind and sent a veritable smorgasbord of sunscreen samples!! She said this particular Vichy sunscreen doesn't clog or irritate her skin, so I was really excited to try it. And I liked it so much that I purchased a full sized tube before the samples ran out! You can also find Daria on Twitter @delight00 and Instagram @wadeashore :-) 

This has a mix of physical and chemical sunscreens - titanium dioxide and Mexoryl-based chemical sunscreen to provide both UVA/UVB protection. The picture below shows the ingredients, and for some of you that might be concerned it does list both regular and nano titanium dioxide. Whether or not you are ok with nanoparticles in your sunscreen is for you to decide :-)  And for those of you who may not know and are curious...the quick n' dirty version is that there is some concern that nanoparticles could be absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream, causing who knows what to happen in our bodies.

After an amount of Googling, I was unable to find a UVA/PPD rating for this sunscreen, but in general European sunscreens (and ones from Vichy, LRP, Avene, Bioderma specifically) tend to have higher PPD ratings than those in the US. So while I don't know the specific rating, I'm guessing I'm still getting a good amount of protection from UVA rays (the rays that cause more aging). If there's anyone out there that is more knowledgable and would like to chime in, please do!! 

Bottom line: I'm very happy to have found this Vichy sunscreen! I can go a good week of solid use before I start seeing teeny tiny clogs on my nose, but after a couple of days off they go away. In order to combat this I've been using this mainly on work days. Other than that, I find no irritation or ill effects. I mentioned this to Daria, and she said her derm recommended trying the SPF30 version if the SPF50 was clogging, so I'll probably try that after I finish this tube. 

For those that are oily, you will probably be fine using this alone or with a light serum underneath. If you are dry, I've found it works very well over my regular skincare routine...on my slightly oily nose and chin I usually don't use anything underneath, but on occasion will use my African Botanics Pure Marula Oil (blotted down). What I really, really love is that while it at first applies as a white cream, it leaves no actual white cast. I can also apply makeup right after application with no problems - usually there's an amount of dry down time but not with this. The finish is definitely matte, and I've found I have to use a little more liquid foundation than normal. I don't feel like this keeps me matte, but it also doesn't make me more oily! 

This does have a thicker cream consistency, so if you like something more lotion-like you might try the milk version. Scroll to the bottom to see a consistency comparison between the 2 sunscreens I'm reviewing. 

Ok, so there are a couple of nitpicky things about this sunscreen, but overall I'm very happy and am so relieved to have found something that works!! I feel like this gives me a good base to work from, and I'll be protected while looking for something HG...you know...that perpetual search ha ha!! 

Ingredients for Vichy Capital Soleil Mattifying Face Fluid Dry Touch SPF50 (European version):

Replenix Ultra Sheer Sunscreen SPF50+ , $30/2oz @ dermstore.com, skincarerx.com. Both sites constantly have sales, so be on the lookout! 

This is a chemical based sunscreen (octinoxate 7.5%, octisalate 5%, oxybenzone 5%, avobenzone 3%) with a super runny, liquid consistency...scroll to the bottom for a pic. You do have to shake this up really well before use - it's got shaker balls inside that you'll hear bouncing around. For that reason I don't like that you can't decant into a smaller bottle, but not a deal breaker since the bottle is small enough to fit into TSA carry-on guidelines.  

I wanted to try this because in addition to the SPF50, it's got Vitamins C & E, CoQ10, green tea and Resveratrol to amp up the protection with antioxidants and also help repair the skin. And I like the idea of having a very thin, liquid consistency...I feel like in theory it would work better under makeup and it also wouldn't feel like I have a ton of product on my face. 

Buuuut...in a weird way I could actually 'feel' this more on my skin than the Vichy. I think it's because it took awhile for it to dry down and the slight tackiness stayed until it was absorbed. Which by the way it never completely did, at least not while wearing my regular skincare underneath. It dried down and was absorbed within 5-10 minutes without product underneath, but then my dry areas didn't feel moisturized enough. Oily skins might have no problem with this. Makeup wore nicely over this when used alone, but layered over my regular skincare it was a little difficult to get things to apply right (I'm guessing because of it never drying down?). 

After a couple of days I start to see irritation bumps, so I haven't used this very consistently. I try to still use it every once in awhile simply to use it up, but I am unable to use this for any length of time. On days I do use this, I only top it off with concealer and powder. 

I think this could be a good sunscreen for the right skin type, but for me it's just not a good fit. I'll try my best to finish this, but it's definitely not my first choice. If it wore better under makeup I'd be likely to use it more often. 

Replenix Ultra Sheer Sunscreen SPF50+ ingredients:

Active Ingredients: Octinoxate 7.5%, Octisalate 5.0%, Oxybenzone 5.0%, Avobenzone 3.0%.

Inactive Ingredients: Ascorbic Acid, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Biotin, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Polyphenols, Caprylyl Glycol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Ceteth-20 Phosphate, Dicetyl Phosphate, Disodium EDTA, Emblica Officinalis Fruit Extract, Ethylhexyl Benzoate, Ethylhexyl Methoxycrylene, Phenoxyethanol, Phospholipids, Potassium Hydroxide, Purified Water, Resveratrol, Retinyl Palmitate, Sorbic Acid, Tocopheryl Acetate, Ubiquinone (Coenzyme Q-10).

See below for consistency comparison pic between the Vichy and Replenix...

Whew! Disappointed the Replenix didn't work out so much, but I'm thrilled to have found the Vichy!! How's your sunscreen hunt going...or do you already have a favorite?!!