Posts Tagged sunscreen
Beyond Coastal Sun Care – Sunscreen, Lip Balm, Face Screen, Moisturizer
I avoid using sunblock that a) smells like a pina colada, b) washes off too quickly while swimming or c) dries my skin out. Beyond Coastal sun care products fit the bill as far as my “don’t” criteria go. In fact, Beyond Coastal sunscreen, lip balm, face screen and moisturizer are chock full of good stuff: natural ingredients like aloe vera, jojoba oil, cocoa butter, safflower oil, green tea and Vitamins A, C & E. And there’s none of the bad stuff: products are fragrance free, petroleum-oil free, paraben free and they’re made with no harsh, drying chemicals.
Another big bonus for folks who do a lot of ocean swimming on their vacations: Beyond Coastal natural formulas won’t harm marine environments. And the sunscreens come in 2.5-oz containers for carry-on travel.
I tested Beyond Coastal products during January trips to Jamaica and Lake Tahoe. Here’s the skinny (retail prices are from GearPipline.com, for the 2.5 oz variety, where applicable):
Daily Active Sunscreen: SPF 15 I used this version of the sunscreen — on my face and body — for walking around town. Like its marketing message promises, the silky lotion goes on smooth and absorbs quickly. It protects against both UVA and UVB rays, just as all the other Beyond Coastal sunblocks do. I like it. $9.99
Active Sunscreen: SPF 30 This is what I used on my face for skiing and snowshoeing on sunny days, and what I put on before playing in the ocean. With the higher SPF, it obviously protects you longer before having to re-apply. Like its sister SPF 15 lotion, it’s non-greasy and fragrance free. $9.99
Natural Sunscreen: SPF 30 My husband rubbed this sunscreen all over his face, arms and chest one day while were in the Caribbean. When I saw him afterward he got a, “Dude. “What’s with the ghost look?” This formula contains zinc oxide and titanium dioxides (the products above do not), so it leaves behind a white sheen unless you rub it in really, really good. It’s the least favorite Beyond Coastal product I sampled (since I’m pale enough as it is), but I’d wear it on a snorkeling trip since the natural ingredients are safe for reefs and marine life. I’d also use this sunscreen on my kids — they don’t care what they look like, and I appreciate the natural ingredients on their sensitive skin. (There is a Beyond Coastal made-for-kids product with extra cocoa butter and shea butter.) $11.99
Natural Lip & Face Screen: SPF 30. This solid product comes in a handy little 1-oz tin. Its active ingredients are also zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, and it’s peach-white color and waxy consistency don’t translate very well on the face, since it leaves that white residue behind. I’d only use this product if I were outside skiing under harsh conditions (lots of wind) or planning a day-long excursion on the water and wanted extra protection for my nose, lips and ears. $9.99
Natural Lip Balm: SPF 15. I love, love, love this lip balm. It does have some zinc oxide in it (but no whiteness on my lips!) for natural protection, but it also has a citrus flavor that makes it good enough to eat. The mix of oils, butters and even honey in this product create a consistency super smooth and soothing; I just feel like my lips are uber-protected when I smear this stuff on them. It comes in an oversized .25-oz tube ($4.99), as well as a standard .15-oz tube ($2.99).
After-Sun Moisturizer. I find most tiny-bottle, freebie hotel moisturizers are too runny and they smell too perfumey, so I always pack my own. This product has all sorts of awesome hydrating and nourishing ingredients: Vitamin B5, algae extract, safflower oil and aloe, among others. And it’s thick, but not too thick. Yummy stuff. $9.99
Search this store locator to find Beyond Coastal products in your local neck of the woods. Also check out Backcountry.com, where different combinations of ideal-for-travel trial-size kits are sold.
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Posted by Kara in Travel Light on February 12th, 2010
Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion with SPF 15
We’re huge fans of double-duty items here at Practical Travel Gear. If one product can do the work of two, it earns points in our book. We’re all about packing as little as possible.
That’s why I was eager to sample Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion + Sunscreen SPF 15 — moisturizer and sunscreen are two products I always travel with. Plus, living in Colorado’s mountains, at high altitude and in an arid climate, I moisturize and sunscreen my skin all the time. Even in the winter months, I keep SPF on my face when I’m outside — especially on the ski slopes, where snow reflects the sun’s harmful rays.
Skin MD Natural calls this product a “shielding lotion,” rather than a simple moisturizer, because it purports to “enhance the skin’s own natural protective abilities by turning the outer layer of skin into what could be described as a hydrating invisible shield.”
I’ve been using the lotion at home and away for the past couple weeks now, mostly on my face and hands. When applied, the lotion feels silky smooth and it absorbs super quickly — not greasy or oily at all. A huge bonus: it doesn’t smell like sunscreen at all. In fact, the product is completely odorless. It’s also got some nice naturally healing ingredients, like aloe vera, Vitamin E and chamomile.
Unfortunately, this product comes in 4-oz bottles, so it’s not ideal for packing on its own when you only want to carry on. It’s also not cheap: it retails for $25/bottle on the Skin MD Natural website, which does offer special pricing for bulk orders.
Notoriously thrifty, I think that due to its price, I likely wouldn’t purchase this product on my own (I’d been sent review products from the company). That said, there are dozens of testimonials and “before and after” photos on the Skin MD website from users who have suffered from eczema and psoriasis, whose skin improved immensely after using its original flagship product ($18). If you suffer from extremely dry skin, if you wash your hands a lot (say, as a health-care professional, or a mom who does too many dishes by hand), or if you garden a bunch and quickly develop cracked skin from handling soil, you might consider asking for a couple of free samples to see if the shielding lotion works for you. (See the website for details.) There’s also a store locater to find a pharmacy near you — some stores also have samples on hand.
Posted by Kara in Travel Light on December 9th, 2009
Look Ma, No Sunscreen! Body Glove Swim Shirts
Among my list of least favorite things to do on vacation is to repeatedly slather on sunscreen. Yeah, I know there are a dozen good reasons why I need to do it, but sometimes it’s a lot easier to just sit in the shade or wear a shirt.
So when I saw this Body Glove shirt featured on a half-price sale at Sierra Trading Post, I tossed it into my virtual shopping cart. I have been using it the past few weeks when I went snorkeling, boogie boarding, and playing with my kid in swimming pools. I don’t wear it all the time as that’s a surefire way to end up with a clearly delinated farmer’s tan, but it has seriously lessened the amount of sunscreen I’ve had to apply to my body on heavy swimming days.
There’s nothing very complicated about these shirts. They cling to your body, staying in place while you move around, and keep the sun’s rays from hitting your skin. Some Spandex, some nylon, and a little pull tab at the bottom to help you get it off your wet body.
That “cling to your body” part means they work better for some body types than others, however. When I pulled mine out of the box I thought they had sent a kid’s size by mistake. It fit though, exposing every little bulge in the process.
If you’ve got a hardbody and six-pack abs, you’ll look fantastic in one of these. If you’ve got a little extra around the middle like me, it’s all going to show. If you’ve got more flab than that or need some enhancing/downplaying of some area in normal clothes, well, this won’t exactly flatter your figure.
Body Glove shirts come in a wide variety of styles and colors, so you can probably find one that matches your bathing suit bottom reasonably well. There’s a whole professional line for surfers and scuba divers, so it’s kind of hard to find what you need on the Body Glove site. Dig around elsewhere instead if your patience is limited.
For kids you might as well go all the way and get the long-sleeve version. That way you spend less time hearing them whine each time you need to apply sunscreen. With their whole upper body covered, you’ve got less skin to deal with.
Search the sale rack for Body Glove clothing at Sierra Trading Post, or see the kid’s apparel section.
Posted by Tim in Adventure Gear, General Gear, Kids and Family on July 29th, 2009
