Monday, April 26, 2010

SPF must-haves

Last Sunday was the first time this year when I digged out my serious sun protection products. With the summer approaching, I thought I could share some of my favorite skincare and make-up products with built-in SPF protection, which is crucial for those sunny days!


1. First up, my favorite product as of this week: Sleek Makeup Pout Polish in Perfect Plum. I got this tinted lip conditioner from one of my fav bloggers ever, Loveaudrey, who might possibly know my make-up taste better than I do! I know it's also Cami's favorite, and she knows her darker but still wearable shades :) I wasn't swayed at the first glance, as the color seems to be a bit murky, brownish red, but on the lips it can look as either a soft wash of my-lips-but-better loveliness, or dabbed on more heavily, a perfect daytime red. It's very creamy without any sparkles and smells faintly of vanilla. And, more importantly for this post, it has SPF 15!


2. Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist Sunscreen SPF 45. It does exactly what it says on the can: it has a non-greasy, fast absorbing formula and thanks to the aerosol applicator, can be easily used at every angle on even those difficult to reach areas, and on the face as well! My husband likes this one too as it helped a lot with a sun allergy he developped on our holidays in Cyprus. It has quite a strong smell when you first spray it, but it does fade on the skin.


3. Dove Summer Glow Beauty Body Lotion SPF 15. It's a moisturizing gradual self-tanner with added sun protection, which I think is pure genius! It protects your skin from sun damage while tanning it at the same time, a perfect solution for the pale me. The mouldy biscuit smell is quite bearable in this one and it makes my skin feel soft and hydrated. They also have other versions in the range catering for different skin tones as well as a shimmery one, and I think Dove's self-tanning lotions are among the best on the market.


4. Softlips Lip Balm SPF 20. What can I say? I love it so much that I already have a back-up, as you can see in the photo. I wear it every day under lipstick, it provides a great, smooth, moisturizing base for any lip products. It also feels a bit tingly on the lips and comes in the most yummy flavors. They also have an organic one too, but unfortunately without any SPF.


5. MAC Studio Finish concealer SPF 35. It's not that obvious that a concealer should have an SPF in it, but it is a great idea in fact: it's always a good idea to wear a high SPF on the delicate under eye area to prevent premature wrinkles, and if you use it to conceal redness such as broken capillaries, it protects those problem areas as well. I've raved about other qualities of this concealer in other posts, so I'm not going to repeat myself here, but yes, it is my HG concealer (so far).

What are your favorite products with SPF? I'm on the lookout for a good, oil-free moisturizer for my face with SPF of at least 30 - would you have any recommendations? I'd really appreciate your help! xxx

8 comments:

  1. That Neutrogena spray sounds like a must-have! I'd love to try it.
    Thank you for the review of Dove, I have their tanning products but forgot they I bought them, need to try them out soon:)
    I like Bioderma cream for face and Garnier for body. x

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  2. Everybody raves about that Dove self-tanning product and I tried it a few years ago, I really didn't like the texture :( Too bad as it was cheap and working well. I'm awfully sensitive to smells.

    When I need to use SPF on my face, I use either my MUFE spf 50+ primer, or La Roche Posay sun protective face lotion, SPF 50 as well. Other than that, I use a regular daycream (estee lauder) with spf 15, that has worked well for me so far.

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  3. @Marina: I really like their products in general and has been happy with the self-tanner for the past 2 years, so try it out and let me know what you think! Bioderma sounds interesting... x

    @Musing on Beauty: Hmm, maybe they improved the texture since then? Also products work differently for different people... Thanks for the recommendation, I like La Roche Posay products a lot, so I might check this one out! xxx

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  4. I am the biggest fan of that wonderful Neutrogena sunblock when we lived in new york I didn't go out without it - summer there was so hot and I am so pale. Unfortunately, it doesn't yet seem to be sold in the UK :-(

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  5. thanks for the reminder--i need to go through my moisturizers and make sure they're ready! (although i should have been concerned about that all winter, right?). i agree with you on the dove tinted moisturizers--they're so easy to work with!

    the sleek pot looks really nice--i'm interested in this deeper-tone-but-wearable thing you speak of.

    i have the korres watermelon stick which is an spf..i'd like to use it up, but it seems to suffocate my skin a bit. tbh, i'm a little worried about the actual chemicals in spf, and whether or not i want them on my face..hmm..

    xx

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  6. @Ondine: I know, I got my Neutrogena in Canada, it's not availabe in Poland as well, which is a shame, such a great product!

    @fantastic: Nude lips look terrible on me, so I'm always interested in something deeper but daytime appropriate. I guess the chemicals in SPF might not be the most natural thing in the world, but still, not wearing them can be actually painful for me, sun just burns my skin so easily! xxx

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  7. We need to start bothering Neutrogena until they start shipping their stocks to Poland the UK :-)
    I have an amazing sunblock I bought on hols that didn't irritate my face at all. I'll go and look it up and report back..

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  8. Thank you so much sweetie, that would be very appreciated! I should start preventing my freckles, I have so many on my forehead that SPF15 is certainly not cutting it :) xxx

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