Sunscreen
Sun Protection for Hair: Beauty Trend 2008
What: Fighting the good fight against damaging UV rays also applies to hair.
What the experts say: What’s the use of spending a good deal of cash on a great dye job if the sun is going to rob it of its vibrant hue? Jon Patrick, the “go-to guy”? for color correction for such celebs as Elizabeth Banks and Kristen Chenoweth, laments to us,
“People often forget that they have to protect their hair just like they protect their skin, especially in the summer when overexposure to sun, chlorine and heat is rampant.”
He recommends coating the top layer of hair with sun-protecting conditioners and not rinsing. Then roll hair into a French twist and allow the warmth of the sun to help conditioners penetrate the hair cuticle.
What we say: Slathering our face and chest with SPF-packed creams has become so automatic, we don’t even think twice about doing it. But, we’ll admit: We’ve slacked when it comes to protecting our tresses from UV distress. Thankfully, a crush of haircare and styling products contain UV inhibitors to keep our crimson, chestnut and pearl dye-jobs vibrant, and our strands healthy. We’ll be introducing sun care for hair into our daily beauty line up, and on our radar is new Joico K-Pak Sun Therapy Protective Sun Milk, which staves off current and future UV damage with only a few mists. At $12.99, it’s worth its weight in protection. When we hit the beach, we’ll be tossing KMS California Sol Perfection Survival Creme in our tote and applying it each time we take a dip—it’s that lightweight! Also lightweight—the $10.99 price tag. If you’d like an even better deal, Garnier Fructis Style Shine Spray with UV Filters, Color Shield not only protects our locks from summer’s accosting rays, but also shines up our tresses to rival the sun’s brilliance. Priced at $6.29, it’s a sun saver that keeps on saving…us money!
High vs. Low: Tinted Moisturizer
This summer, we’re looking for a multi-use moisturizer. Layering moisturizer and foundation and sunscreen that will just melt off in the sun isn’t our idea of a relaxing day strolling a boardwalk or playing soccer in the backyard. A moisturizer that moonlights as light foundation and sun protection sounds perfect—a high SPF, a tint of color and the ability to cover up blemishes adequately are requirements. Here are two options—choose the one that fits your budget.
Stila Sheer Color Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 30, $36.00
This oil-free moisturizer protects skin from the sun and evens skin tone while absorbing oil and providing medium coverage. Plus, the moisturizer smooths skin with amino acids. This moisturizer comes in six shades.
jane Nearly Foundation Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 30, $4.99
This oil-free moisturizer, 31 dollars less than Stila’s, triples as a light foundation, moisturizer and protection from the sun. Our fellow consumers at Walgreen’s reviewed it, giving it three and a half out of five stars. This moisturizer comes in three shades: fair, medium and deep.
Photos from stila.com and walgreens.com
Best Sunscreen on a Budget: Reader Advice
Sure, sunscreen can be had on the cheap—but we want one that A) works, B) stays on as long as humanly possible, and C) smells more like a Hawaiian vacation, less like Aspercreme. But we don’t intend to pay a small fortune to satisfy those reasonable demands, and that’s where you come in. You tell us—what’s your favorite effective, long-lasting, awesome-smelling sunscreen for less?
An updated standby: Coppertone Oil Free Sunscreen Lotion @ Drugstore.com
Armada Face and Body Shield 60
What: Angela smooths on Armada Face and Body Shield 60, $40 for 3 fluid ounces.
The Lowdown: The Armada Face and Body Shield makes some big claims: full-spectrum light protection, elimination of wrinkles, fine lines and other signs of photo-aging, melasma-erasing, and, curiously, skin-lightening.
From what I can gather, an SPF of 60 is a bit of overkill (or fear-based marketing) since anything over 30, it seems, offers only a minimal amount of extra protection. This is heavy-duty stuff, however, intended for protection against “skin darkening, skin cancer, photoageing, and melasma.” It also purports to be good for skin recovering from clinical procedures or undergoing treatments.
Honestly, I’m hard-pressed to say that many among us should dump $40 into a product like this if all you really need is a little moisturizing and sun protection, which can be had for a whole lot less. The Pros: fragrance free and hypoallergenic, it’s light and non-greasy. The Cons: big price and big claims that are more than most of us would need for every day.
Yea or Nay: Overall nay. A possible yea for those with serious sun-related skin damage issues, but only after checking with a dermatologist to see if it can really live up to the claims.
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