A miracle product that I use for a very specific effect and one reason only: it makes the tackiest, stickiest, oiliest sunscreen wearable. Incredible? Yes! Here’s my Paula’s Choice Shine Stopper review!
What it is and what I want it to do
I think the word I’ve used the most in my sunscreen reviews this year was “tacky”. Did I have exceptional bad luck this year with my SPF purchases?! I don’t know, but nearly everything was uncomfortable to wear, because it turned me into human fly paper. Also, it made applying foundation or wearing a mask over it REALLY difficult, and I was on the verge of binning them all – when in one of my beauty message boards someone casually mentioned the PC Shine Stopper as a miracle solution to make sunscreen wearable. And I really had to test it, hadn’t I?!
I also have to admit that this is a rather niche usage of the PC Shine Stopper, which is marketed as an oil-control, mattifying primer that can be worn on its own, under makeup or even applied over makeup to keep your skin matte.
Official description
This oil-control primer gives you a silky, powder-like finish that controls oil, minimizes the appearance of pores, and wears beautifully.
Paula’s Choice
Unique MICROSPONGE® Technology controls shine
Can be worn alone or under makeup
Keeps oil under control for hours
Ingredients
Water, Methyl Methacrylate/Glycol Dimethacrylate Crosspolymer (texture-enhancing/absorbent), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride (emollient/texture-enhancing), Dimethicone (hydration), Cetearyl Alcohol (emollient/texture-enhancing), Glycerin (hydration/skin replenishing), PEG-100 Stearate (emollient/texture-enhancing), Magnesium Aluminum Silicate (absorbent), Glyceryl Stearate, Myristyl Myristate (texture-enhancing), Ceteareth-20 (texture-enhancing), Xanthan Gum (texture-enhancing), Disodium EDTA (stabilizer), Benzyl Alcohol (preservative), Phenoxyethanol (preservative).
Paula’s Choice Shine Stopper review: Usage
“Dispense a pea-sized amount and using clean fingers or a foundation sponge, dab (do not rub) lightly over oily areas as the last step of your skincare routine or over your foundation. If you wish to apply powder or blush over SHINE STOPPER, let SHINE STOPPER set completely first. Reapply as needed.”
Paula’s Choice
I put this quote up as everyone and their kitchen sink who ever used the Shine Stopper stressed that you ABSOLUTELY have to dab, not rub. I put the (pea-sized) amount I use on my palms, smush them together and press them onto my skin lightly and repeatedly until I have covered all areas I wanted to cover.
Funnily, this isn’t as siliconey as I had thought (think Smashbox OG primer), but has a light, lotion-like texture. I let it set for about 10 minutes and then go on and apply my makeup as instructed. Again, if you don’t rub, there’s no problem at all to use a foundation over the Shine Stopper. I’ve used both powders and liquid foundation and didn’t run into any problems.
Effect
You know, I was convinced that this wouldn’t work at all or become a horrible mess on my skin that would pill and flake. I was absolutely floored when it didn’t. It does, in fact, exactly what I want it to do: “set” my horrible tacky sunscreens and turn them non-shiny and non-sticky. I can then proceed and apply foundation over it. Don’t rub your face though, or layers will start to flake off. Also, there’s a learning curve to when to stop patting the primer into your skin. At one point, you’ll see it ball up in your hands when you do it too long.
Does it make my pores look smaller though? No, not really. As every primer, though, it does have a bit of a smoothing effect.
Great side effect? SPF won’t seep anymore into my eyes over the day.
Worth it?
I use PC’s Shine Stopper to set my sticky, shiny and oily sunscreens and it works wonderfully well for that. I can also imagine it working well to set overly dewy foundations. Now, keep in mind that I don’t have oily skin and don’t use it to generally mattify my face. But I could also see this working in very hot and humid environments. For me, testing as many sunscreens (and finding many, many duds in the process) as I do, this is heaven-sent as it turns the nearly unwearable ones into – wearable ones!
Rating
Conclusion: give this a try even if your skin isn’t overly oily, but you don’t want tacky or sticky textures on your skin. This turns them into matte ones. And finally, of course: if you’ve got oily skin, I can imagine this product really, really helpful.
I’ve tried to replicate the effect with other primers I have in my stash right now (Hourglass, Smashbox), and nope – it didn’t work nearly as well.
Price & Availability
1oz is $24/30ml is 28€ on the Paula’s Choice website.
Please note that this post is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods or money for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.
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