Drunk Elephant was founded in 2012 by Tiffany Masterson, and it had its public launch in August 2013. Shiseido bought the company in October 2019. D-Bronzi came in 2018, and Byrdie writes that it has often been credited with establishing drunk elephant bronzing drops as a category in its own right.

Refinery29 says it was born from Masterson's wish for a bronzing product that followed the same philosophy as her skincare. It is also fragrance-free, which she felt was radical, since so many bronzing liquids smell like chocolate or coconut. The brand lists cocoa extract and peptides, and calls it an antioxidant-rich, peptide-infused serum that delivers a bronzy wash of color.

What matters for a shopper is that these are drops, not a finished makeup product. The brand says its color serum drops are designed to be mixed with any Drunk Elephant moisturizer, serum or oil, or with each other. Refinery29 adds that D-Bronzi is highly pigmented, but sheers out substantially when mixed with a moisturizer.

The first grid is all Drunk Elephant, with the drops and the things you might mix them with. The second grid is other liquid bronzers and bronzing serums. My tip: start with one drop in your moisturizer and add slowly. Never apply the drops alone, and blend it in well before you add anything else.

Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi Bronzing Drops with Peptides is the one that started this. It is for a bronzy wash and it is good for skin with dark spots or dullness, according to the product listing. B-Goldi Bright Illuminating Drops have 5% niacinamide and add an easy golden finish while evening skin tone. O-Bloos Rosi Blush Drops are the pink-red one, an omega-rich serum that gives an allover rosy flush, colored with a vegan pigment from sappanwood.

Kamo Triple-Peptide Multi-Use Serum Foundation is the odd one out, a full-coverage complexion drop with 18 percent amino-acid-coated pigments and four percent peptides, for a natural finish that the brand says lasts 12 hours. It is the one I would pick if you want a base instead of a flush, and it is meant to be used in small amounts, not layered thickly.

The rest are your mix-in partners. Lala Retro Nourishing Whipped Refillable Moisturizer has ceramides and five African oils, for dry skin. Protini Polypeptide Firming Refillable Moisturizer has nine signal peptides, for normal, combination and oily skin. Virgin Marula Luxury Face Oil is a face oil with omegas 6 and 9. Protini Powerpeptide Resurfacing Serum is a daily 10% lactic acid serum.

What I would skip: mixing the Protini Powerpeptide serum with a bronzing drop. It is an exfoliating acid serum, not a vehicle for color.

Westman Atelier Sun Tone is a featherlight matte bronzing drop that leaves a hydrated, shimmer-free wash of warmth. Iconic London Instant Sunshine is a super-concentrated elixir that the brand made to mix with other base products, with a radiant finish. Isle of Paradise Sunny Serum is a hydrating liquid bronzing serum with niacinamide and squalane, and it is the glow pick.

For makeup-style bronzers, Saie Dew Bronze is a lightweight liquid-cream with a dewy, soft-focus finish, buildable. MAKEUP BY MARIO Softsculpt is a multi-use bronzing and shaping serum with hyaluronic acid for a sheer, natural, second-skin finish. MAC Cosmetics Strobe Beam Bronzelighter is an illuminating liquid with sheer, buildable coverage, in a small tube. NATASHA DENONA HY-SCULPT is a serum-infused liquid bronzer with a blurred, natural-matte finish that is water-resistant.

St. Tropez Sunlit Skin is the different one, a self-tan face serum. It gives a glow in as little as one hour, and a medium tan that fully develops in three hours.

Test any of these on your jaw first and blend down your neck, so the line between face and neck disappears. Drops that go on sheer are the forgiving ones.

What I would skip: St. Tropez if you want a color you can wash off at night. It is a self-tan, so it develops on your skin.

I think bronzing drops are the best way to learn how much color you actually like. You can go sheer with a moisturizer, add a second drop on a bright day, and stop whenever it looks like you. D-Bronzi is the category starter, and the second grid gives you matte, glowy and self-tan versions of the same idea. Start with less than you think you need, and stop the moment your skin looks like itself on a good day. A moisturizer and one drop is a better first try than a full routine, and you can always add another. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Cécred Hair Drops, Beyoncé's Edge Serum and More and Marula Oil, From Drunk Elephant's Face Oil to Body Wash and Lipstick.