theNotice: a beauty blog

Sephora’s yearly Sun Safety Kit is a constant bestseller, and for good reason – I  mean, where else are you going to find that many adorable sample-sized sunscreens and fake-sun creams in one set? (I wanted to say sunscreens, sun creams, and [something else], but then I ran out of relevant word pairs starting with “sun.” Sun dreams? Sun teams?)

Anyhow, more relevant topics; this year brings the sixth edition of the kit, with 100% of the net proceeds going to the Skin Cancer Foundation. As far as I know, this item is not yet available on the Canadian Sephora site, but it’s $30 on the US one.

The 17-piece 2012 Sun Safety Kit includes…

⇒ SPF 20 and over

- Bare Escentuals bareMinerals SPF 25 Mineral Veil + brush

The ultimate finishing powder just got an extra dose of sun protection, for even more beautiful benefits. Apply using the Mini Flawless Application Brush that’s included to ensure medium-to-full sun protection.

Ingredients

Paraben and silicone-free.

- Dr. Jart+  Premium Beauty Balm SPF 45 PA+++

A moisturizer, sunscreen, and treatment serum, this all-in-one product includes advanced brightening properties and  mineral sunscreens to provide broad spectrum sun protection from both UVA and UVB rays so that skin is left looking smooth, perfect, and natural.

Ingredients

- Peter Thomas Roth Max Sheer All Day Defense Moisture Lotion – SPF 30

An ultra-light, two-in-one antioxidant sunblock and hydrator that is oil and fragrance-free enriched with hydrators, anti-oxidant vitamins and SPF 30 protection.

Ingredients

Keep reading! »

Okay, so maybe, mayyyybe the title for this post existed before the post itself did. What can I say; a good pun’s a good pun! (And this one, well, it was too good to pass up.)

Anyhow: these are the products that I’m loving right now. For most of them, said love is highly dependent on the fact that it’s summer; for others, I just happen to be loving them while it’s summer.

Body products I’m loving

Emjoi Emagine epilator { $99 | review } and Johnson’s Baby Powder mini { $2 }

I’ll be honest: when it comes to hair, I have a lot of it. (Well, not so much on my scalp anymore, but… everywhere else, still!) I’ve landed the unfortunate combination of pale skin, dark hair, and chronic fatigue – so shaving everyday isn’t an option, but neither is ignoring hair removal altogether.

The cherry on top is that after a year of epilating, I can honestly say that I have finer hairs now than I did when I started. It’s a ridiculously boring task, but totally worth it in the end!

Upper Canada Soap Fruit Frappé Body Lotion in Pear with mangosteen { $12 | review } and Vaseline Cocoa Butter Vitalizing Gel Body Oil { $7 }

When it’s really hot out, I prefer to go with subtle scents that stay close to the skin, and body products do a great job of fitting the bill. The Fruit Frappé has a deliciously fresh, juicy pear fragrance, and the gel-oil has a wonderfully rich (but not too heavy) cocoa fragrance. They both make me want to eat my own arm, of course, but so far I’ve been able to resist. 

(Keep reading…)

The product: Clarins Sunscreen Care Spray, SPF 50+

One of the many things that I’m crazy over (as you might already know) is sunscreen. I try my best not to leave the house without it, especially in the summer, but I have a really hard time finding comfortable ones – I hate the thick, generic-sunscreen-scented layer that most of them leave on your skin, so it can be a bit of a trial to find new products to use!

I’m a fan of this milk-lotion formula because it’s easy to apply, sinks in quickly, and doesn’t leave your skin sunscreen-sticky… but what makes me crazy about it is the scent. It’s a little powdery but quite fresh, sort of tropical, and while it does eventually fade down to the generic “sunscreen scent,” it takes a good five or six hours to do so and the residual smell is faint.

The verdict?

I think this is a pretty good buy if you like the scent and struggle to find comfortable body sunscreens. At $32US, it’s not exactly cheap, but the 5.3oz size makes the price a lot more manageable. (The other suncreen that comes to mind whenever I’m recommending sun care is Shiseido’s Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion, which is $39US for only 3.3oz. Though, that one makes an awesome facial suncreen, so that may balance the scales a bit.)

While this isn’t my favourite Clarins sun product (their UV Plus HP Day Screen will always fill that role, even though I can no longer use it due to its silicone content), it’s still one of my favourite body sunscreens this season, so I’d definitely say it’s worth checking out!

Immediately after being liberally applied & rubbed in – no white cast or shininess!

(Ingredients and more…)

I can’t say this any better than the National Council on Skin Cancer can, so…

In an effort to raise awareness about a health issue that is largely preventable: skin cancer, the Council is naming the Friday before Memorial Day Don’t Fry Day.

…

“Any change in your skin, whether burned or slightly tanned, is a sign of UV damage,” says Drusilla Hufford, Council co‐chair. “The good news is: you can protect yourself and your family members from skin cancer’s main cause: too much sun. In the same way we teach kids to wear bike helmets, we can also teach them to wear wide‐brimmed hats.”

Skin cancer is the most common of all cancers in the United States. More people will be diagnosed with skin cancer this year than breast, prostate, lung, and colon cancer combined. Whether from the sun or an artificial light source, ultraviolet radiation is a carcinogen. According to a recent study, in 2006, in the 116 largest (most populous) U.S. cities, there were, on average, more tanning salons than there were Starbucks^® coffee shops.

…

For more information, including additional statistics and other resources, visit the Council’s site:
www.skincancerprevention.org. 

Read everything under theNotice’s “Skincare: sun” label here, or check out our favourite sunscreens here!

What it is: Biore‘s SkinPreservation Dual Fusion Moisture Lotion + SPF 30

The feel + moisture factors: The moisture factor isn’t something to complain about, but it’s not totally fabulous, either. While I was using this, I needed a heavier moisturizer at night, though it was fine for the daytime! I think it would be fine for anyone with slightly-dry to oily skin. This strange white-and-green mixture looks like an Asian dessert sinks in like a dream, and kept me a lot less oily than the moisturizer I had been using previously (Olay Complete for Sensitive Skin lotion.)

The other factors: What initially attracted my attention to this one was the SPF — it’s hard to find a good lotion with anything over SPF15, at least in the drugstore! SPF 30 definitely put it in my good books, and it’s the reason why I think the price (about $15) is still pretty damn reasonable, even for just 50ml. What held my attention, though? Well, the packaging is awesome (and hygienic,) the lotions smells lovely (but fades, instead of inducing migraines,) the SPF doesn’t flash out in photographs… y’know. Pretty much everything about it did the holding!

The one problem you might run into is that the two sides don’t always dispense evenly at first; to get around this, hit it on the countertop a few times (hard, and make sure it’s landing flat!) Then, pop off the lid and pump the sides separately to get them both flowing, before putting the pump-lid-thingy back on. They tell you to pump 7-9 times to get both going; I say that’s a waste of product! (Yep, I’m cheap like that.)

And, the ingredients — it’s quite the list!

ACTIVE INGREDIENTS: Zinc oxide 3.9%, octinoxate 3.0%.
INACTIVE INGREDIENTS: Water, cyclopentasiloxane, dimethicone, glycerin, isohexadecane, aluminum starch octenylsuccinate, butylene glycol, phenyl trimethicone, cetyl-pg hydroxyethyl palmitamide, camellia sinensis leaf extract, nymphaea coerulea flower extract, melissa officinalis leaf extract, hordeum distichon (barley) extract, disodium rutinyl disulfate, PEG-3 dimethicone, polyacrylamide, dimethicone/vinyl dimethicone crosspolymer, C13-14 isoparaffin, sodium stearoxy PG-hydroxyethylcellulose sulfonate, dimethicone/methicone copolymer, laureth-7, propylene glycol, iron oxides, disodium EDTA, 1,2-hexanediol, caprylyl glycol, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate, tropolone, fragrance, Green 5, Yellow 5, Green 3.

The verdict? While I’m not using this anymore (‘cones,) I would definitely recommend it… and I have been recommending it; like crazy! If you’re not on my diet with me, and you’re looking for a new moisturizer with SPF for the summer, please do give this one a try. I love it!