I have never really bothered with tinted moisturisers. It’s not that I didn’t see the appeal – I love the idea of a hybrid make-up product that shaves time off my morning routine and promises the look of real skin, only better. The problem was, until recently, most of the products that fell into the “tinted moisturiser” category were either too foundation-like in finish or so sheer I’d still need a proper concealer to do the heavy lifting under my eyes, or for any areas of redness. Then there’s the textures, which would slip and slide all over the place so that my skin would be a shiny mess come midday. (And that’s without any summer heatwaves.)

But my mind has been changed. The old-fashioned tinted moisturiser has been reimagined, with utterly brilliant “skin tints” now part of the wider family. Take Lisa Eldridge’s Seamless Skin Enhancing Tint (£37, Liberty), which launched last year. I am a huge fan of most of Eldridge’s make-up products, and this tint gives enough coverage to even out the skin tone without looking cakey. A couple of drops are all you need, but if you feel you require more, it is truly buildable. I find this is best applied with a brush, starting from the centre of the face and working your way out, depending on how much you want to use.

A pricier option is the Super Tinted Hydrator by U Beauty (£98, Cult Beauty), which Jennifer Aniston recently declared one of her summer beauty must-haves. Having tried it, I agree it’s brilliant, but at almost £100 it’s an awful lot to spend on a skin tint. If you’re considering it, think of this product as a really effective face cream with added make-up as a bonus. It is supremely moisturising, so I would skip your ordinary face cream and just apply this (over sun protection in the daytime, of course). One pump is plenty for your whole face.

The option I’ve been really taken with of late is the Hydro Grip Gel Tint by Milk Makeup (£34, Boots). It’s an extension of the brand’s bestselling Hydro Grip Primer, which is one of the best primers on the market (it really does allow your make-up to stay in place all day). The tint is equally impressive: it grips on to the skin, making it particularly good in warmer weather, and imparts a decent amount of coverage. It feels fresh and hydrating, too, and if you are really keen to ensure that your make-up looks as good at the end of the day as it does in the morning, sandwich this product in between the primer and the brand’s Hydro Grip setting spray. This has become my go-to complexion technique when the weather hits the 30s in London.

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Now, I can’t write about skin tints without mentioning the Unreal Skin Sheer Glow Tint Hydrating Foundation Stick by Charlotte Tilbury (£35, John Lewis). If you’re a fan of Tilbury’s award-winning Hollywood Flawless Filter – the sheeny lotion that comes in a glass bottle and imparts a glowy finish on the skin – I’d say that this is a portable stick version of it. It doesn’t give tons of coverage, but then it doesn’t need to: it gives the skin a blurring, luminous, hydrated look. In other words, you’re left with a complexion that appears smooth and well-rested.

When I spoke to her at the product’s launch, Tilbury advised that I try a shade deeper than my usual colour in her foundations for a more summery, bronzed effect. And because the coverage is sheer, it works a treat. No filter required.

Three more to try