Beauty LAT: Sunscreen Rundown Part 2

So part 2 of my big sunscreen review is here! These reviews are a little longer (I don't have as many new ones to review) but I'm sure there will be a part 3 at some point (I'm a bit obsessed with sunscreen).

Clarins Spf 40 UV Plus Day Screen

The astute and ample memoried of those among you might think 'hang on... wasn't this reviewed before?'. That was the new version, this one is the old one (consequences of buying on ebay without proper research). It's not as matte as the new version, but sinks in well after 10 minutes (and that's over a moisturiser). The proof is in the using- I've been using this daily for a good few months and it's good. It's not perhaps exceptionally, but it fits in very well and does what I want it to. Obviously don't seek this out (I'd probably just get the new one) but it isn't the end of the world if you accidentally buy the old one. 9/10


La Roche-Posay Spf 50+ Fluide Extreme Anthelios XL

I've read so many rave reviews of this, talking about how light and non-greasy it is. I find this SO greasy! Ok, I'm maybe overexaggerating a tad, but it isn't matte by any stretch of the imagination. The only way I can wear this is with a very mattifying moisturiser on top and that keeps it in check. On the plus side, even on bare skin this isn't irritating (I might even say soothing) and it's lovely for dry/sensitive skin. I wouldn't recommend it for the oily skinned, but for cold winters when we get dry and sore skin, this might just be a winner. 7/10 (with room for improvement).


Avene Eau Thermale Spf 50+ Emulsion

A bit of a disappointment. I love Avene (they make my favourite ever moisturiser) but I wasn't a fan of this. I found a little irritating on bare skin (not like 'OW' but tingly) and it's quite greasy (though I will review a product soon which can make it more usable). The big bugbear of this for me is the smell. You know that Vitamin E smell (I'm thinking mostly of the Body Shop range). This smells of that really strongly. Smells don't bother me much, but I really hate this one. It's not the worst sunscreen ever, but there's enough negatives that mean it isn't really worth it for me. 4/10

Garnier Ambre Solaire Sheer Protect Face Spf 30

I barely even tried this before I threw it away. Greasy, greasy, greasy. 1/10

Garnier Ambre Solaire Light & Silky Spf 20 Protection Milk

The first body sunscreen! I really like this. It's somewhere between a sunscreen and body lotion. It sinks in well (though my skin is normal rather than dry), has a light fragrance which won't destroy your perfume, and is nicely usable on a daily basis as opposed to just on a beach. I only have the Spf 20 version (that was all that was in stock and I want to try and use it up) but there are higher versions. Very good. 8/10


The Sun Mousse Spf 30

I wanted to adore this, as it promised to be easy to use and non-greasy. Unfortunately I find this a little sticky on my skin upon application, and it doesn't leave my skin as smooth or non-tacky as I'd like. It isn't horrendous by any means, this is particularly good on large areas (like say legs if you're wearing shorts or a skirt) and it is easy to spread. 6/10

Dr Brandt UV Spf 30 High Protection Face

I acquired this through a swap with the rather amazing (in every way) Charlotte from Lipglossiping. Sadly I'm rather disappointed with it (especially as its rather pricey at £30). This is very greasy on me, so much so to be pretty much unusable. The worst thing is the packaging. It comes with an airless pump, which is supposed to be hygienic, but the seal has come apart meaning that you pretty much have to open it up to get it out. Totally not worth it in my opinion. 1/10

Phew! No doubt there'll a part 3... I really need to stop buying sunscreens!

Love B xxx

Beauty LAT: Clarins UV Plus HP Day Screen SPF 40- Initial Thoughts

Via www.sephora.com

I’ve had the Clarins UV Plus HP Day Screen on my lust list for so so long… but I’ve always stopped short of actually buying it. Mainly it was the price, a pretty hefty (to me) £29.99 for a 30ml bottle. Not only was it an initial purchase price (what if I don’t like it etc) but also the repurchase price (if I do like it I’ll have to buy it again). Eventually (412 other sunscreens later) I decided to get a sample off eBay and see whether it was actually any good. And…

I’m a bit split. On the first day, I wrote half a rapturous review declaring my love… and then went back a bit over the next 2 days. So this (more balanced effort) is what I decided:

I do really really like this. It’s not quite HG standard yet, but it’s one of the best face sunscreens for me in terms of what I want from a product. My main concerns are: does it work over a moisturiser? Is it light and non-greasy (as in actually non-greasy, not just claiming it is)? Does it work well under make-up and keep it on? Does it work with a primer on top?

Does it work with a moisturiser? Yes, very well! It does differ a little from moisturiser to moisturiser, but it seemed to layer very well.

Is it light and non-greasy? Within 5 minutes of being applied this was so matte it was practically dry, although it does alter slightly (a tiny tiny bit) with different moisturisers. My skin wasn’t dried out though, although I don’t have really dry skin so it might react differently if you do.

Does it work well under make-up? It depends. The first foundation I tried looked amazing. It lasted very well, with little shine, and went on beautifully. The second day with a different foundation… I didn’t like it so much. I would say generally yes, I didn’t get any greasiness and my make-up seemed to last well, but it wasn’t perfect with all foundations (although expecting it to be is maybe a bit unrealistic).

Does it work well with a primer? Kind of. I used my Witch primer on top and got no greasiness, but the primer didn’t feel smooth like it normally does. Maybe they cancelled each other out a bit? I’d mostly be happy to use this as a primer in its own right.

Other things to note: it does have a pink tint to it, although I don’t feel it made my neutral skin any pinker than normal, I thought it evened it out nicely as it's very sheer. A little goes a long way with this, my sample lasted 3 days and there is still some left! It’s very runny, so it spreads very easily. It also claims to have anti-pollution effects which appeals to me as a city dweller, although I haven’t obviously seen any effects after such a short time. I also believe it is 100% physical rather than a chemical sunscreen, with little white cast which is always a winner!

So is this a repurchase for me? I think so yes! Although it’s not perfect, I did enjoy using it and thought it worked well within my routine. It is expensive, but I think the runny texture means it should last a long time even with a small bottle. I like this as a whole package, with the priming and anti-pollution effect thrown in. Not to say I don’t have my eye on a few others though, and will use up my other older ones on lazy days when I don’t need to look as good. This for me though seems like an amazing sunscreen and primer for days when I want to be sure of my sunscreen, and that’s worth splashing out a little more cash for.