SPECIALIST testing VICHY IDEAL SOLEIL MATTIFYING FACE DRY TOUCH SUN CREAM SPF 50+: Review

In this blog post, I’m going to write about mattifying sunscreen that was recommended to me by my friend who has oily skin, so I decided to test it myself. I’m talking about VICHY Ideal Soleil SPF50 mattifying dry touch face fluid. Vichy claims that this product is a Paraben-free, Hypoallergenic, and Non-comedogenic formula with Mexoryl-based broad-spectrum UVA and UVB filters, and it is also enriched with Vichy Thermal Spa Water.

What is creating that mattifying effect in this sunscreen? This formulation has Silica, Aluminium Starch Octenylsuccinate which both have great Oil-Absorbing abilities, and they are responsible for creating that matt effect on the skin.

How well is this sunscreen protecting us from the sun?

Let’s check the ingredients quickly: this sunscreen has 9 UVA filters, and this particular one that I’m testing today is from Europe, and I know that the USA version is different so just be warned – the USA version is quite different, and it does have Alcohol in it and it has 3 fewer UV filters than this one, so that’s just a little heads up in case you’re watching from the States. So, the European version of the sunscreen has 4 UVB filters, 3 combined UVA/UVB filters, and 2 UVA filters. Some of the important UV filters that I would like to mention are Tinosorb M, Mexoryl XL, Mexoryl SX, Titanium Dioxide, and Avobenzone.

Avobenzone is a globally available chemical sunscreen agent that provides you with proper UVA protection. So, this is a great UVA filter, but the problem is that it’s NOT photostable and it degrades in the sunlight. It can be stabilized with Octocrylene, which is also included in this formulation. Then we have TINOSORB M. This is a hybrid sunscreen agent because it has properties of chemical sunscreen and physical sunscreen agent, and this is a new word-generation that gives you a nice broad spectrum coverage and it is HIGHLY PHOTOSTABILE.

Then we have two L’Oreal group exclusives agents: Mexoryl SX, which protects you from UVA, and Mexoryl XL, which protects you from both UVA and UVB and it’s highly photostable – these two are patented by L’Oreal and only L’Oreal own companies can include them in their products.

The last one that I want to mention here is TITANIUM DIOXIDE – this is an old-school physical sunscreen agent, and this one gives you a nice broad spectrum coverage and is also highly stable, and has a great safety profile.

So based on the UV filters we can see that this one is providing us with some serious UVA and UVB protection, and as I mentioned in the previous video, for some reason they didn’t include a separated UVA rating but they did put the claim that this is a broad-spectrum sunscreen. Broad-spectrum means that the UVA protection has to be at least 1/3 of the claimed SPF (UVB) protection. UVB rating is included and it is very high – it’s SPF 50.

If you would like to know more about UVA and UVB ratings and the difference between UVA and UVB rays, you can check this video.

Vichy claims that this is NON-COMEDOGENIC and this does not have a lot of comedogenic ingredients. It only has a couple of comedogenic ingredients: Dimethicone 1*, Steric Acid 2-3*, Stearyl Alcohol 2*, Tocopherol 0-3*, Triethanolamine 2*, and luckily they are not highly comedogenic so in theory, it shouldn’t give you breakouts.

I have to mention that this formulation has PARFUM so in case you are sensitive to Fragrance in your products then be worn.

How it performs on the skin?

You can see the DEMO application in the video below.

As you can see, the formulation is on the thicker side but it’s easily spreadable at first it feels moisturizing and it gives you a subtle glow, but don’t worry, after a while it goes matt and your skin is completely mattified. As the name says – it is indeed DRY TOUCH.

How does it perform underneath makeup?

This depends on your skin type. If you’re oily – you will love it, and if you have dry skin, like me, you will not enjoy it that much. This makes my foundation look patchy and my friend that has oily skin loves it.

FINAL VERDICT

As you may know, it often happens with sunscreens that they have a claim they’re matte and they are not matte in the end, but this one truly is mattifying and it does have the ingredients that have great oil-absorbing abilities that mattify your skin: Silica, Aluminium Starch, and Octenylsuccinate.

How this sunscreen will perform under your makeup depends on your skin type. If you have oily skin then you will love this for underneath makeup. It is great for this skin type. And actually, my friend who has oily skin recommended it to me, and she loves it, she says that her makeup looks amazing, she’s matte, and she doesn’t get shiny throughout the day. But if you have dry skin like me then you will not love it that much underneath your makeup, or at least you will not love it during winter and colder days, cause throughout the day foundation will start looking patchy and it will crack all over my face. You can maybe try it during the summer if you have dry skin.

How high is the protection?

This is SPF 50 broad-spectrum UVA/ UVB which means that UVA is at least 1/3 of the claimed SPF protection. Unfortunately, they didn’t include a separate UVA rating, and I’m sad about that because UV filters promise a lot. At least we know that UVA protection is 1/3 of the claimed UVB protection. So, you both have UVA and UVB protection here and that’s good.

Cons regarding this sunscreen

The first con is that you cannot apply this cream to your under-eye area, so you have to use a separate sunscreen for your under eyes. Another con is that it can’t be layered on dry skin because it starts to peel off – that was my personal experience. Based on the experience of my friend who has oily skin – this sunscreen can be layered on oily skin. The third con is that during cold days dry skin cannot handle this sunscreen cause it’s too mattifying for it. If you have dry skin you can try this one out in the summer.

So, my final verdict regarding this sunscreen is that this is a great sunscreen, it does have some great UVA and UVB filters, it does provide you with high broad-spectrum protection and it is a truly mattifying sunscreen, and if you have oily skin you’re going to love it, but if you have dry skin then use it during the summer.

Thanks for reading!

Text adapted from Pharmacy&Makeup’s Youtube Video by Katarina Savković