This New Clear Sunscreen Is One of the Best SPFs You Can Get in the U.S.
They say necessity is the mother of invention. In the case of Allies of Skin’s new clear sunscreen, necessity is a guy with a JD degree named Mark.
For years, the innovative skin care company’s founder, Nicolas Travis, had been in a holding pattern in developing his own SPF. In 2021, when the actor Henry Golding invested in the brand, Golding’s friend and lawyer Mark reached out to Travis with a request.
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“He was like, ‘I really like to go hiking, but I’ve been using all these SPFs and they make my skin really white and get stuck in my beard. So what can I do?,'” Travis recalled in an interview with Robb Report. “And I was just like, you know what? I’m going to fix it for you.”
Since 2018, Travis had been working with four labs in Korea, the mecca of skin care formulators, on a sunscreen that he could sell in his biggest market: the United States. Because of this country’s outdated regulations regarding sunscreen filters, that meant Korea’s advanced chemicals were off the table.
Allies of Skin The One Invisible Sunscreen Gel
The challenge was developing a version miming the elegance of more up-to-date sunscreens without contraband ingredients. After producing over 60 versions, Travis arrived at the product his company would end up naming The One: a clear, water-resistant, broad-spectrum option that worked for a really wide range of people.
“We set out intentionally to create what I imagined to be the most universal SPF I could possibly make,” Travis said. “So the first thing I said is, zero white cast, so it would work on every skin tone.”
The clear formula guarantees that even people with the darkest skin can wear it, but it has a host of benefits that others will find helpful. It uses an aloe vera gel base, which makes it incredibly soothing for people with sensitive skin. It also includes Vitamin C, which enhances how well sunscreen protects the skin, and brightening niacinamide, which can help reduce the appearance of pores and fine lines.
In a month of testing, we’ve found that The One glides easily over the skin, and while you can feel it upon application, it dries down quickly and wears lightly. It’s also water resistant up to 80 minutes, and we’ve worn it on rainy days, on the beach, and by the pool without burning.
As for its primary filter, the somewhat controversial avobenzone, and concerns that it might pass into the blood barrier, Travis is direct. “Skin care does not cause cancer,” he said. “I think there’s a lot of misconception floating around right now. And the truth of the matter is that people actually get more cancer from not wearing SPF.”
The most reliable way to prevent the aging and disease the sun’s rays can cause? “Ask any dermatologist and they’re like, ‘Wear SPF,'” Travis says. “Pick an SPF that you like, that gives you joy, and wear that.”
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