Beauty on the Block: The Sun Care Edit
If you use actives (AHAs, PHAs, retinoids, retinols) or you're working to fade and prevent post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, sunscreen isn't a suggestion. You know the rule by now: every day, reapplied. But life happens, and some mornings "can't be bothered" simply wins. Let summer be your reminder to take it a little more seriously.
And while we have your attention: book that annual skin exam with your dermatologist. Now, back to the good part.
The market is crowded, so we did the narrowing for you, with a focus on formulas that actually work on melanated skin. Everything from a half-marathon-proof SPF to something with just enough glow for our Harlem block party.
We can't wait for you to experience the activations we've planned for Beauty on the Block. If you're here to discover your next sun care obsession, start with our partners: Good Weather Skin, Blue Water Girls, and My Block Skin.
My Block Skin
1n 2026, no one should be left looking ashy by their SPF. My Block Skin settles the matter with two options that pair real protection with real wearability. Clear Coat Body SPF 50 is a lightweight gel that hydrates and calms, thanks to aloe vera, green tea, and centella. Clear Coat Crème SPF 30 leads with moisture, formulated with glycerin, coconut-based emollients, and vitamin E for skin on the drier end of the spectrum. Keep it in rotation through the colder months too.
Good Weather Skin
Good Weather Skin built its mineral collection for everyone who loves the idea of mineral SPF but not the infamous white cast. Can't decide? Co-founder Franchesca Hashim walked us through the lineup.
The One Daily Sun Cream SPF 30 is the everyday face SPF: dewy, clean, and quick to disappear into the skin, with squalane, sea buckthorn oil, peptides, and niacinamide to keep skin hydrated all day.
The One Warm Glow uses the same formula, with added bronzing elements for a sun-kissed finish.
All-Over Sun Milk is a tinted, "milky and golden" SPF 50 made for, well, all over.
For a tan on a deadline, reach for Blue Water Girls' multi-serum tan accelerator. Squalane, shea butter, and antioxidant-rich oils keep skin nourished and hydrated while the formula speeds up melanogenesis.
In plain terms: it helps your skin produce melanin faster, whereas most accelerators are oil-based and only fake the glow without actually stimulating melanin, according to co-founder Sade Parham.
Apply your sunscreen first (the founders suggest SPF 30+) to protect your skin, then layer Private Island Glow on top.
The Black Beauty Club's Favorite Sunscreens
Biore UV Aqua Rich Lightweight, smooth, no white cast, SPF 50, and easy on the wallet. Pro tip: if you can find the Japanese formulation, grab it. The U.S. version is a touch different.
Tula Protect and Glow Daily Sunscreen Gel: Lightweight, white-cast-free, and glowy in exactly the right measure.
Tonal Cosmetics Sunveil Skin Defense: This long-lasting, heat and humidity-resistant foundation almost feels too good to be true. SPF 50-powered, and the foundation side genuinely delivers. A little goes a long way, and your skin will be skin-ing.
Vacation Baby Oil: A sunscreen-oil situation we're fully devoted to. It hydrates without the grease, comes in at SPF 30, and somehow always leaves me with the best post-beach tan. The cost per use earns its keep, too: I've been in Brazil a year and a half, use it at least twice a week, and still have product to spare.