Is your sunscreen whitening? One tip could help against the nasty white haze

Some sun protection products literally turn you into a ghost. My mineral sun cream by Curél, for example. A bad purchase I made in Japan. No matter how thoroughly I work the UV milk into my skin, a bluish-white haze always remains. Nevertheless, I refuse to give up and dispose of my holiday souvenir just yet.

The other day, my TikTok algorithm showed me a clip by make-up artist Painted by Spencer. Apparently, he has the solution to this problem. The idea behind it is so simple that I could’ve thought of it myself. All I have to do is mix a little liquid bronzer into my sunscreen.

But does it really work? Well, yes and no.

Of course, I wanted answers quick and immediately tried it out. And not just with my bronzer. Various foundations and tinted products also had their turn. Pretty much anything that can reduce the white a little. I wanted to see what would give me the best result. The problem is, the pigments help to keep the white in check, but what comes out of the mix doesn’t match my skin tone either.

If I combine the UV protection with my bronzer, a grey tint creeps into the cream, which would be great if I was working on a ghost train. When I mix some foundation in, I have to use one that’s a few shades darker than my skin tone, as the white from the cream has a brightening effect. And here, too, I realise it looks different. If I apply enough cream to ensure the declared protection of 50+, streaky residue remains on my skin. With medium to dark skin tones, the ratio might not even come close.

In conclusion, you can reduce the whitening somewhat, but the result isn’t very natural. Nevertheless, it’s certainly worth a try before throwing the sunscreen out. And who knows, maybe you’ll find the perfect mix-match. I definitely haven’t.