When Glossier launched solar paints a few years ago, there was a serious buzz in the beauty world. The liquid-cream bronzer hybrid came in four shades, with its own stick applicator and it took out all the mess and misunderstandings about how to use a non-powder bronzer. However, over the last few weeks, we noticed the cult favourite had started to disappear from the brand’s website. Before you spiral into a panic, it seems Glossier won’t be depriving us from being able to bronze forever. Although it does appears to have ditched solar paints as a line, it has instead added five shades to its very successful cloud paint range.
This liquid blush line currently comes in 18 different shades, but differs quite a lot in terms of application and finish. Cloud paint is definitely more matte than the old solar paint and from first glance, the shades appear to be very different in texture and hue. The question is will they stand up to the test and replace the Solar Paint shaped hole in our heart? We got three editors, with different skin tones to try them out.
Glossier Cloud Paint in Sail (£22)
“As a die hard fan of the solar paints (I use flare every day!), I was gutted when I found out they were being discontinued. The new cloud paint bronzers are a lot less pigmented which means it blends out seamlessly but I couldn’t really use it for contouring. I really liked the stick applicator on the solar paints whereas these you just squeeze straight out the tube onto your hand or brush. They have a really creamy texture and give a nice glow but I think I need to play around with them to find the right shade and amount for the perfect bronzed look.” Chloe Dunn, Senior Content Producer
Glossier Cloud Paint in Coast (£22)
“Glossier’s new cloud paint is a great easy to apply product for bronzing and contouring. I’ve used the shade Coast for bronzing and the golden undertones really work to bring some more warmth to my skin. I could definitely also use Drift to contour and sculpt. However, my only worry is with the lack of deeper shades. Whilst I have two options to choose from, anyone with a darker complexion might struggle.” Aayliah Harry, Associate Editor
Glossier Cloud Paint in Dune (£22)
“I feel like when it comes to testing bronzers, I’m your gal. Come rain or shine, I will always reach for a bronzer to warm up my skin. When I first tried solar paints, I did really like them, however I found they dried up quite quickly and if you didn’t blend immediately they sometimes went a tad patchy. However, I was a big fan of the colour and finish, which I found to be quite unique in the liquid bronze space.
On first application of the cloud paint bronze, in the shade Dune, I could see this was not a like for like replacement. The texture was much wetter and didn’t have any of the metallic pigments found in the solar paint. I applied in an ‘S’ shape starting from my forehead, along my cheekbone and then under my chin. I used a sculpting brush as this gave me complete control over the product and I was able to really buff it into the skin. The finish was very natural, more of a bronzing drop than a high pigment colour. But I really liked it. I can see myself using it most days, especially when I want to wear minimal makeup, but still want my skin to look sunkissed and awake.” Lauren Ezekiel, Associate Editor
