Bronzer Innovation from Phytosurgence

Lately, my makeup feed has been stacked with themes around complexion like “the difference between contour and bronzer” with Milk Makeup sticks and teaching us “how to color correct” with Huda Beauty’s new color correctors. Sarah Novio (@sarah_novio) covers the often overlooked olive skin tone and Monica Ravichandran (@makeupbymonicaa) dedicates her platform to “Brown Girl Friendly” shades while educating us on color theory. The makeup industry is finally catching up to to the nuances of skin tone.

Phytosurgence has been that kind of brand innovating while considering undertones, especially with their Spectral Sunlight Cream Bronzers serving those with either rosy, pink undertones or golden, warm undertones. They’ve been available for some time now and I finally got my hands on Shade 7: Golden Heatwave and Shade 8: Rose Heatwave.

I have more recently discovered my skin tone is actually more neutral than I thought so I was curious to see how either shade looked on me.

Formula

Mimicking their Spectral Shine Radiance Balms, these are super stiff cream bronzers that actually come with instructions. To load up your brush, you’ve got to get a little rough with it. Holding the base of the brush, you’d swirl it over the product with a good amount of pressure. This was off putting for me at first. A bit more effort to get the color but the results come through!

Tapping this onto the skin immediately leaves a blurred and blended effect. It’s hard to go heavy handed because, instead, it allows you to build it up while maintaining a natural finish.

SHADES

I’ve never met a pink toned bronzer! What made me finally pull the trigger was hearing about how people loved to wear it for the Fall/Winter season. And I get it. It gives a “sat by the fireplace for too long” kind of tint. Like a warmth from within. Like an “Asian Glow” after a shot of Henny, but only on the spots you’d want it.

I’m more accustomed to a golden bronzer - which of course is what we have all been using. I actually chose a deeper shade than I thought I needed and I’m glad I did. The golden shade blends so well into my skin that it looks the most natural. In my reel, you can see how light of a tint it gave my cheeks while naturally contouring my nose.

Final Thoughts

I can imagine the biggest challenge is the user experience of loading up the brush versus tapping into a soft, powder bronzer you can swiftly swipe on. However, with some getting used to and appreciation for the results, you can add this to your daily makeup routine.

I think because of how subtle and buildable it is, this format is perfect for someone who simply wants to throw on makeup to get out the door. It’s fool proof in that you don’t have to worry too much about placement or blending since it’ll never get too heavy.

I am reflexively picking up the Golden Heatwave but Rose Heatwave gives me a pretty blushy tint, more fitting for the colder, overcast days.

Shade 8: Rose Heatwave (left), Shade 7: Golden Heatwave (right)