Smashbox Halo Healthy Glow All In One Tinted Moisturizer
THERE’S A NEW TINTED MOISTURIZER ON THE BLOCK, AND IT’S GOT PEOPLE DIVIDED.
But here’s the thing, I really like it… but I didn’t at first.
Smashbox Halo Healthy Glow All in One Tinted Moisturizer* claims to have a built-in primer, and be full of good-for-skin ingredients like hyaluronic acid, niacinamide and peptides. It’s also oil-free, which had me concerned that it wouldn’t be suitable for my dry skin.
SMASHBOX HALO HEALTHY GLOW ALL IN ONE TINTED MOISTURIZER
AVAILABLE AT: SEPHORA | ULTA | SHOPPERS DRUG MART
First and foremost, can we all agree that tinted moisturizers seem to have the longest names of life? I’ll be referring to it as Smashbox Halo going forward to give my fingers a break.
Smashbox reached out to me and asked me if I would be interested trying Halo, and I’ll be honest, it’s been a long time since the brand did anything that interested me! Their Primerizer and Primer Water are some of my all-time favourite products, but it’s been a minute…
WHAT THE BRAND SAYS: “An all-in-one, SPF primer-infused tinted moisturizer with lightweight, natural-looking dewy coverage that hydrates skin for up to 24 hours.
Primer-infused for all-day wear and a healthy glow, this skin tint primes, perfects, protects, and hydrates. It has rose extract, hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, goji berries, gold, and peptides. The breathable, vegan, and oil-free formula moisturizes, conditions, and protects.” – Sephora
THE COVERAGE: Light to medium buildable.
THE FINISH: Natural skin like on my dry skin, likely dewy on oil skin.
THE TEXTURE: Liquid that thickens quickly.
THE SHADE RANGE: 12 shades, with a heavy emphasis on light-medium. Could you more in fair and definitely more in the deep representation. I am considering that tinted moisturizers are easier to adapt, but there is most certainly some room for inclusivity needed here.
I was sent the shade Light, which suits me but its very yellow. Most of the range looks to be yellow leaning.
THE VALUE: $48 CND/40mls (standard foundation size is usually 50ml)
MY THOUGHTS: I mentioned at the beginning of this post that I didn’t like Halo at first; Application was most definitely at play there. I went to apply it with my hands, as I usually would do with a tinted moisturizer. I noticed immediately that the formula thickens very quickly on the skin and I found it really hard to blend with my fingers. It was actually very surprising, I’ve not ever had a formula be so chameleon! When you first squeeze it out of the tube it seems liquidy, but it’s definitely something I would recommend applying in sections.
The second time around, I buffed in with this brush, and that’s where the magic happened! The brush doesn’t warm up the product as quickly, activating it to thicken. I was able to buff product into one side of my face then the other and get the most gorgeous skin-like look. It blurred pores and settled beautifully over fine lines and creases. Because I have dry skin, I was able to get away with just strategic powdering in areas that need it.
One thing worth noting is that the shade range does lean very yellow. Think NARS yellow. While I can get away with that, it might be worth considering if you feel your skin needs something in a cool-toned category. Speaking of NARS (who makes my all-time fave tinted moisturizer that I even wore through my C Section!), if you’re familiar with the Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer – it is more hydrating that this formula, and is a lighter formula. Sadly, it also has a crummy shade range (seriously brands, get it together!).
I’ve worked this now for the last couple of weeks with really good results. It wears well for a tinted moisturizer (as in, I expect 8 hours and am thrilled with more) only really wearing off around my mouth and jawline by the end of the night (application at 8am, removal at 10pm). If you have combination or oily skin, you will likely need to set this well, but I do feel that the formula can handle that well.
Finally, it does have an SPF 25 in it, which is fine for this time of year for me in the Pacific North West (ie, Raincouver) but likely anywhere else you’re going to need to rely on a dedicated SPF.
Overall, its a win for me! I love a good lightweight base and I’ve successfully built up the coverage to medium. In fact, in the picture above I forgot undereye concealer… which NEVER happens!
Have you tried Smashbox Halo Tinted Moisturizer yet?
