If (perish the thought) I had to take only one product with me to a desert island, it would be sunscreen. Preferably an inexhaustible supply. There is no more important bottle in your beauty closet. And if you don't have a bottle (or six) in your beauty closet, then stop reading now, because the sun will destroy all of the work that even the most expensive products can do to keep your skin healthy and youthful. And then there's that whole pesky cancer thing.
Now that I've set myself up with "one product", I have to add a disclaimer. There is no one sunscreen that works for every occasion. So for this post, I'll cover sunscreens for daily walking-around purposes. And no, unless you commute via subway, don't go out for meetings, and don't go to lunch, the sunscreen in your facial moisturizer isn't sufficient. Even if you do commute by subway, if you go out to lunch, you do need to reapply! And don't even get me started on sunscreen in foundation; it isn't close to enough on its own, plus most women don't wear foundation over their entire faces, let alone on their necks and decolletes. OK, rant over. For the moment.
FACE, NECK, DECOLLETE: My top pick is Neova DNA Damage Control Everyday SPF 43. We're woefully limited here in the U.S. as regards effective broad-spectrum sunscreens compared to those available in Europe, but transparent Zinc Oxide is pretty fantastic on the broad-spectrum front. Plus it is great for sensitive skin, and works instantly. This particular sunscreen also has anti-oxidants and active enzymes that work to repair your skin while protecting from further damage. For those who have acne, I LOVE EltaMD UV clear. More transparent Zinc Oxide, AND anti-acnegenics. For eyes, I swear by Shiseido Sun Protection Eye Cream SPF 32 (yes, yet more Zinc Oxide....) Protecting your lips is a must; they burn extremely easily. There are many, many lip balms, glosses, sticks on the market with SPF, so just choose one you like and reapply frequently. My one suggestion would be to avoid products with parabens, you do eat everything that goes on your lips, after all. I like Jane Iredale Lip Drink and Coola LipLux; the first organic, the second paraben free, both smell good. Tip: don't let the Jane Iredale melt; when it re-solidifies, it will forever after leave a weird white sheen on your lips.
BODY: For body, I have yet to find anything as good as EltaMD daily body moisturizer SPF 30+. I've tried Yes to Carrots, and frankly, I hated it. Its just impossible to rub in, and the texture is somewhere between lumpy and grainy. The upside? Its about a quarter of the price of the EltaMD, which is absurdly expensive. I used to love the Alba Botanicals Daily Shade moisturizer, despite it being a chemical sunscreen, as it had a gentle AHA and antioxidants and an inoffensive scent, was affordable, and came in a half-gallon size. Sadly, they changed the scent this year such that it now smells like Vaseline Intensive Care, which I personally can't stand. As soon as I find something affordable that works as well as EltaMD's, I will post it immediately!
HANDS: At least as exposed as our faces, and ultra-thin skinned. So why are there so few hand-specific products out there?? For a while, Peter Thomas Roth made a great one, called "Hands That Lie". Loaded with anti-oxidants, lightening ingredients, and SPF 15. Very moisturizing, not greasy, and it didn't take off nail polish. (Why do so many sunscreens have this effect?? No clue.) Neutrogena makes their classic with SPF, but while being small enough to get past the TSA, the texture is so thick it takes way too long to absorb. B.Kamins makes a cream with SPF that is easier to apply than Neutrogena's, but is too greasy for year round use and has the unfortunate tendency to remove one's nail polish. I still have three tubes of Hands That Lie stockpiled, so I will revisit this one when it starts to become critical... Next up: the ultimate sunscreen challenge, the golf course.
FACE, NECK, DECOLLETE: My top pick is Neova DNA Damage Control Everyday SPF 43. We're woefully limited here in the U.S. as regards effective broad-spectrum sunscreens compared to those available in Europe, but transparent Zinc Oxide is pretty fantastic on the broad-spectrum front. Plus it is great for sensitive skin, and works instantly. This particular sunscreen also has anti-oxidants and active enzymes that work to repair your skin while protecting from further damage. For those who have acne, I LOVE EltaMD UV clear. More transparent Zinc Oxide, AND anti-acnegenics. For eyes, I swear by Shiseido Sun Protection Eye Cream SPF 32 (yes, yet more Zinc Oxide....) Protecting your lips is a must; they burn extremely easily. There are many, many lip balms, glosses, sticks on the market with SPF, so just choose one you like and reapply frequently. My one suggestion would be to avoid products with parabens, you do eat everything that goes on your lips, after all. I like Jane Iredale Lip Drink and Coola LipLux; the first organic, the second paraben free, both smell good. Tip: don't let the Jane Iredale melt; when it re-solidifies, it will forever after leave a weird white sheen on your lips.
BODY: For body, I have yet to find anything as good as EltaMD daily body moisturizer SPF 30+. I've tried Yes to Carrots, and frankly, I hated it. Its just impossible to rub in, and the texture is somewhere between lumpy and grainy. The upside? Its about a quarter of the price of the EltaMD, which is absurdly expensive. I used to love the Alba Botanicals Daily Shade moisturizer, despite it being a chemical sunscreen, as it had a gentle AHA and antioxidants and an inoffensive scent, was affordable, and came in a half-gallon size. Sadly, they changed the scent this year such that it now smells like Vaseline Intensive Care, which I personally can't stand. As soon as I find something affordable that works as well as EltaMD's, I will post it immediately!
HANDS: At least as exposed as our faces, and ultra-thin skinned. So why are there so few hand-specific products out there?? For a while, Peter Thomas Roth made a great one, called "Hands That Lie". Loaded with anti-oxidants, lightening ingredients, and SPF 15. Very moisturizing, not greasy, and it didn't take off nail polish. (Why do so many sunscreens have this effect?? No clue.) Neutrogena makes their classic with SPF, but while being small enough to get past the TSA, the texture is so thick it takes way too long to absorb. B.Kamins makes a cream with SPF that is easier to apply than Neutrogena's, but is too greasy for year round use and has the unfortunate tendency to remove one's nail polish. I still have three tubes of Hands That Lie stockpiled, so I will revisit this one when it starts to become critical... Next up: the ultimate sunscreen challenge, the golf course.
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