Kosas founder Sheena Zadeh-Daly has spent her life committing the cardinal beauty sin: skipping out on SPF. “I’ve never been able to find an SPF that works for me,” says Zadeh-Daly. She has sensitive skin, and found that the formulas out there were always too greasy and uncomfortable. Plus, they didn’t play well with makeup, which is a major issue for a makeup-brand founder. So she created her own sunscreen, DreamBeam, and it’s finally here for the world to try.
“I only wear elastic waistbands and my makeup and my skin care need to feel like that too. So this really melts into skin,” says Zadeh-Daly. “This is a mineral formula, so it creates an actual physical barrier between you and the sun, almost like putting a curtain on your face.”
In typical Kosas fashion, Zadeh-Daly really wanted the DreamBeam Comfy Smooth Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 40 ($40) to function as skin care, “and skin care for me means that it has to create a positive, measurable change in the skin,” she says. “DreamBeam does just that, and the way that we did that was by using ceramides and peptides.”
The ceramides strengthen the skin barrier while the type of peptide used plumps the skin. Plus, it’s enhanced with hyaluronic acid to hydrate your complexion and lock in moisture, leaving it softer and more supple. It also has allantoin, a soothing and hydrating compound that protects against irritation. The formula is hypoallergenic, non-acnegenic, fragrance-free, and water-resistant.
It’s made with non-nano zinc oxide to provide SPF 40, PA++++ protection. SPF 40 means it protects against just over 97 percent of UVB rays, which are the type of ultraviolet rays that primarily cause burning and redness. PA++++ denotes the amount of UVA protection, and four plus signs are the best—it means it provides extremely high UVA protection. UVA rays penetrate deeper than UVB rays, and are responsible for pigment changes, skin cancer, and premature aging.
Because the minerals used in physical sunscreen are naturally white, Zadeh-Daly played with the formula to neutralize any white cast.”Dream Beam has a peachy pink hue,” she says. “We use peachy pink, the opposite on the color wheel [of blue] to really help neutralize that blueish-white cast.”
To get perfect coverage, Zadeh-Daly says to use a quarter-size amount, warm it up in your hands, and then smooth it all over your face. “Any part that you miss is not gonna have that physical barrier, so what’s important is that you cover fully [your face] and then allow three to five minutes for it to absorb and set before applying makeup,” she says. This ensures that the SPF has dried down enough so makeup application won’t disturb it.
How our editors feel about the Kosas DreamBeam Comfy Smooth Sunscreen
Kara Jillian Brown, beauty writer
I can’t even count how many times a mineral sunscreen has done me dirty. Despite claims of “sheer” or “tinted,” they’ve left me with a ghastly white hue. I’ve tried enough to know that a little cast is par for the course especially if you’re using the right amount (I use two fingers worth), but with more cosmetically elegant mineral formulas, when you blend the SPF into your skin, that cast all but disappears. That has been my experience with DreamBeam— it blends into my skin beautifully. The pinky-peach hue does its job, and I honestly think it’s genius to use color theory to cancel out the hue instead of adding complexion pigment to hide it. It looks wonderful on its own (I’m wearing it sans makeup in the pic above) but it also pairs beautifully with makeup. I’m also in love with the applicator tip. It’s not messy or drippy and leaves me confident that I’m using the right amount every time.
Zoë Weiner, senior beauty editor
My skin-care cabinet has no less than 30 sunscreens in it, but this is the one I’ve reached for every single day since it landed on my desk. Suffice to say I have high standards when it comes to SPF, but Dreambeam has exceeded all expectations. I love love love the way it looks and feels on my skin—it’s got the prettiest dewy finish that dries down beautifully and helps to even out discoloration—and honestly, the fact that it’s got sun protection feels like an added bonus to a product I’d love regardless. My sister and best friend also fell in love with the formula, even though I only let them use a few drops for fear of it ever running out.
Gina Vaynshteyn, editorial commerce director
I’m super impressed with this mineral sunscreen! I actually had to double-check on the label that it was mineral, not chemical—it goes on that smoothly and with no white cast. Plus? It hydrates like a moisturizer, which I rarely experience from a sunscreen, and certainly not a physical one. You can use it by itself or as a primer—I accidentally used it on top of my CC cream (because I forgot to apply SPF first, oops), and it blended beautifully (no pilling!) and gave my skin such a natural dewy finish. TBD on whether it breaks out my blemish-prone skin, but so far, I’m a major fan—it’s a beach bag must for sure.