As the weather has been hot, hot, hot recently I thought it would be a great time to address the issue of sun burn and sun safety.
Here are my 5 tips on how to best treat sunburn along with some interesting facts at the end.
1.Medicate with Ibuprofen
As soon as you notice you are burnt start taking Ibuprofen and keep doing so for the next 48 hours. This may seem a little drastic when you don't feel you are badly burnt but taking Ibuprofen will reduce the redness and swelling that can occur. It may even prevent some long-term skin damage if the sun burn is severe. Paracetamol can also be taken to treat pain and reduce fever.
2. Moisturise with Aloe Vera
An organic Aloe Vera gel is the best after sun product you can apply to sunburn. If the sunburn is severe you may have broken skin from blisters so you want a product that is organic. Also Aloe Vera helps to repair the skin whilst also being very soothing. You can even place it in the fridge to get the maximum cooling effects from it! A great product is Dr Organic Aloe Vera Gel 200ml from Holland & Barret - £5.19 here
3. Hydrate!
As sun burnt skin wants hydration, the body draws fluid to the surface of the skin and away from the rest of the body. So to prevent possible dehydration it's important to keep up your fluids (especially at night when sweating) and avoid alcohol.
4. Cool Down
Sun burn can definitely make you feel unwell or at the very least hot. So taking a cool shower or bath that brings down your temperature will relieve some symptoms you may be experiencing. You can also apply a cold flannel to the worst affected areas to cool the skin and use a water spray... however I would recommend a thermal water spray such as the one by Avene as a lot of aerosol water sprays contain quite a lot of chemicals. Another tip to cool down your body temperature is to run your pulse points on the insides of your wrists under a cold running tap until they feel very cool.
5. Cover up & Stay out of the Sun
This may be an obvious one but it is so important that the burnt skin doesn't become exposed to sun as it will be so much more likely to burn even more as it's damaged skin. Wear loose fitting clothes so not to aggravate the sun burn and cover all areas where you are sun burnt. If you're on holiday and still want to sit outside make sure it's in the shade and under a parasol.
Here are my 5 tips on how to best treat sunburn along with some interesting facts at the end.
1.Medicate with Ibuprofen
As soon as you notice you are burnt start taking Ibuprofen and keep doing so for the next 48 hours. This may seem a little drastic when you don't feel you are badly burnt but taking Ibuprofen will reduce the redness and swelling that can occur. It may even prevent some long-term skin damage if the sun burn is severe. Paracetamol can also be taken to treat pain and reduce fever.
2. Moisturise with Aloe Vera
An organic Aloe Vera gel is the best after sun product you can apply to sunburn. If the sunburn is severe you may have broken skin from blisters so you want a product that is organic. Also Aloe Vera helps to repair the skin whilst also being very soothing. You can even place it in the fridge to get the maximum cooling effects from it! A great product is Dr Organic Aloe Vera Gel 200ml from Holland & Barret - £5.19 here
3. Hydrate!
As sun burnt skin wants hydration, the body draws fluid to the surface of the skin and away from the rest of the body. So to prevent possible dehydration it's important to keep up your fluids (especially at night when sweating) and avoid alcohol.
4. Cool Down
Sun burn can definitely make you feel unwell or at the very least hot. So taking a cool shower or bath that brings down your temperature will relieve some symptoms you may be experiencing. You can also apply a cold flannel to the worst affected areas to cool the skin and use a water spray... however I would recommend a thermal water spray such as the one by Avene as a lot of aerosol water sprays contain quite a lot of chemicals. Another tip to cool down your body temperature is to run your pulse points on the insides of your wrists under a cold running tap until they feel very cool.
5. Cover up & Stay out of the Sun
This may be an obvious one but it is so important that the burnt skin doesn't become exposed to sun as it will be so much more likely to burn even more as it's damaged skin. Wear loose fitting clothes so not to aggravate the sun burn and cover all areas where you are sun burnt. If you're on holiday and still want to sit outside make sure it's in the shade and under a parasol.
Interesting information on why protecting your skin from UV rays is important!
I have a bit of an interest with anything to do with sun damage and keeping sun safe so I have looked at many sun advice infographics and found quite a few points that I don't think are shared enough!
I have a bit of an interest with anything to do with sun damage and keeping sun safe so I have looked at many sun advice infographics and found quite a few points that I don't think are shared enough!
- Reflected UV light can cause the most damage as you a receiving a double hit from both the sky and the reflective surface - Water reflects up to 100%, snow and ice reflects up to 85% and dry sand reflects up to 25%.
- You should always go for sunglasses with both UVA and UVB protection (Total UV Protection) to prevent eye damage now and in later life, such as Cataract and cancer of the eye.
- Indoor tanning (going on a sun bed!) before you're 35 increases your risk of melanoma by 75%
- A child that is under 2 that receives sun damage is 200% more likely to develop skin cancer in later life
- Seek shade when the sun is at it's highest mid-day. Remember the rule - "Watch your shadow - No shadow, Seek shade!"
- Since the mid-1970s in Great Britain, malignant melanoma incidence rates have increased more rapidly than any of the current ten most common cancers in males and females.
- Highest percentage distribution of malignant melanoma diagnosed on the body for males is the trunk (41%) (mainly back). For females it is mainly legs (39%). Between 2008-2010.
Hope you have found this informative! Especially if you are suffering from sunburn or are going on holiday this summer.
Fee xo.
PS. Remember to always wear a minimum of SPF 30 when in the sun!
Fee xo.
PS. Remember to always wear a minimum of SPF 30 when in the sun!
This is one of them posts that I have been meaning to do for months and kind of haven't got around to doing as there is no outright winner.
Both products have both good & bad points however there is a huge price difference so I thought it was a post worth writing.
The cheaper of the two products is ofcourse St Moriz (not St Moritz..which is what I thought it was called for afew months). This can be bought it spray or mousse format and costs around £2.99 for 150ml in discount shops like TK Maxx.
Xen Tan on the other hand comes it so many different formats & shades - however the one I have is a medium instant tan in Deep Bronze (slightly confusing) and costs £19.95 for 148ml.
So there is a big price difference in the products which I can hopefully point out the in's and out's of.
St. Moriz Instant Self Tanning Mousse
(One down side of St Moriz is how it stains the hands - this is the effect of it being on the skin for literally seconds. A mitt is essential with this tan!)
So St. Moriz promotes itself as -
Instant Bronzing - I have to agree with this, the mousse applies dark and gradually gets darker over afew hours. There is no need to wash of any guide colour the next morning.
Long Lasting - I'm not to sure about this one. If you exfoliate well prior to applying the mousse it lasts 4-5 days then starts to get lighter. However I have found if you don't bother exfoliating or scrubbing any dry skin the tan can start looking patching by day 3/4. So it really does depend on how well you prepare your skin!
Fast Drying - Yes! I think this is why I like St Moriz so much. It dries instantly and doesn't leave the skin tacky or sticky which means you can sit like a normal person straight after applying the tan rather than a robot! Having said that...I would not get dressed and go shopping on a hot day after applying this, as anywhere you sweat the tan will literally disappear. I find this is mainly in the inside elbow part of my arms...not a good look!
No Streaks - Well if you apply any tan badly or quickly there will be streaks. If you spend time though applying the tan it will be even...however the tan does have a tendency to fade patchy.
(For some reason I photographed my arm with the WRONG product...I used the mousse here and not the spray. As you can see there is some build up near my wrist. This was the result of re-applying it on the 4th day)
So here is a quick summary of the positive and negatives of St Moriz
+ Natural tan..no orange however much you apply
+ Only £2.99 a bottle need I say more
+ The bottle lasts a fairly long time
+ Applies evenly and you can see it going on
+ Soaks into the skin and dries instantly
+ No smell
- The main negative - it fades patchy!
- Stains hands so you do need a mitt.
- Can be hard to do the face with a mousse or a spray
- If you want to use this continuously over afew months you can see a build up in drier areas.
- Not available in high street shops so abit hit & miss
- The bottles leak around the cap!
- The spray version is messy
Xen-Tan Deep Bronze Instant Self-Tan
Xen-Tan Deep Bronze Instant Self Tan describes itself as -
Instant Bronzing - I cannot agree with this. As you can see the tan is a strange brown/green colour and when on the skin it looks abit muddy...nothing like the tan it turns into. So I really would say the brown/green colour is the guide colour which needs to be washed off the next day. I find if I don't my white hand towel is a lovely shade of brown once I've dried my face the next morning.
Moisturizing Ingredients - I haven't overly noticed..but thinking back it does leave the skin soft and the tan doesn't dry the skin which other tans tend to do. I also personally think this helps the tan to last longer as the skin isn't dry.
Long-wearing self tan - I definitely agree with this. This is the only tan I have found to last over a week and still look good. It also fades evenly and just goes lighter and lighter.
(As you can see the Xen Tan is very natural looking - the photo was taken 4 days after applying the tan)
As for positive and negatives of the product...
+ A lovely even tan that can work on the lightest of skin and still look natural
+ Smells amazing for a self tanner - like a chocolate/vanilla scent
+ Not messy at all to apply, you can leave the bathroom as tidy as when you went in
+ As the product is a body lotion type product you can really make sure you have covered all areas
+ Easy to apply to the face and ears
+ You can apply this with your hands which gives alot more control of the product & doesn't stain the hands while tanning (just make sure to wash the hands well!)
+ The products can be purchased on there website here with 10% off & free delivery
- If you over rub the product into the skin it can remove some of the tan and look patchy.
- The same goes for using the Xen Tan mitt - It removes the tan & looks very odd.
- You have to wait for the tan to dry, so it does feel tacky on the skin for about 30 minutes
- You have to wash the tan off after it has developed for it to look it's best
- The price - £20 for a self tanner can be alot to pay for most people. However it does last a long time
- If you are darker skinned I doubt this tanner would even show up even though the product is advertised as being 'Deep Bronze' You would have look at the darker tanners in the range.
Overall - If you want a quality tan that doesn't take forever to apply and doesn't leave a mess. This is for you. However I would always apply this with my hands and not a mitt as the product doesn't react well to being over worked into the skin.
I realize I haven't covered everything so if you have any questions about either products feel free to leave them in the comments & check back after a day or so!
In a post last week I wrote about different suncreams and mentioned how I use to use Calypso Dry Oil SPF 30 and loved it so much however I hadn't found it anywhere for months and months.
However I got lots of lovely comments telling me where I could find it on and offline. So on the lovely Primp and Preen's recommendation I headed down to Bodycare and there sat on the shelf next to the stupid Carrot Oil with an SPF of 2...I found it!
Priced at a reasonable £3.99 I grabbed two bottles.
As it was really hot that day I decided to apply some over my other tacky suncream while waiting for my Penne Alla Panna to arrive...yes I actually quickly applied some to my arm in a restaurant...it was only lunchtime though!
Even ontop of my original quite sticky suncream it soaked into my skin within seconds like I remembered.
Anyway here is the proof - ofcourse applied to naked skin. It literally sprays on clear and you only need to rub it for 5 seconds at the most!
Non-greasy, non-sticky, non-suncream like formula and it's even water resistant...this is basically not like any other suncream! It is so easy to apply and it doesn't make you look white!
It also can be applied to the face as it is not greasy unlike some other oil slick suncreams I have tried in the past...Piz Buin does come to mind..ok for the body but awful once applied to the face. Applying makeup over the top was just a nightmare.
I tend to just apply 3 to 5 sprays of the dry oil to my face then rub it in and then dust some translucent powder over my anywhere that looks abit shiny before I start to apply my foundation or tinted moisturizer.
It's also great for applying to the feet,ears and hair parting...basically everywhere that suncream it hard to apply!
It really is the best sun protection I have ever used! I promise you won't be let down if you try it. Now that is abit of a bold claim, but I know it's that great.
I would like to think I have a healthy range of suncreams however truth be told I have far too many. There is a reason for this though! I have a thing about the formula of suncreams. Too runny and it goes everywhere which includes your clothes, too thick and my own hair gets stuck to the backs of my arms!
So every summer I end up buying quite alot of suncream and hating most of them. So here are my best & worst tested suncreams!
Avene Moderate Protection Emulsion SPF 20 (£9.50 from Boots -but you can find it for under £6 online) This really ticks all boxes for me as a facial suncream - It is aimed at normal to combination skintypes, it is very water/sweat resistant, it contains Cucurbita pepo which reduces oil secretion and removes any shine and it's also non-comedogenic so it won't block the pores and leave your skin feeling nasty!
As for the formula it's quite a light consistency that soaks in well, but you do have to leave it awhile before applying any makeup or your left feeling slightly tacky all day long.
The downside to the product is that it's only SPF 20 - however I have found if you go much higher the cream tends to be thicker and not as easy to work with on the face. Having said that I can wear this for upto 4 hours without burning at all and I am really fair skinned and don't tan at all.
All in all one of the better suncreams for the face - it's doesn't state that it is aimed at just the face but it's only 50ml so you wouldn't want to use it all up on the body.
Avene Moderate Protection Emulsion SPF 20 (£9.50 from Boots -but you can find it for under £6 online) This really ticks all boxes for me as a facial suncream - It is aimed at normal to combination skintypes, it is very water/sweat resistant, it contains Cucurbita pepo which reduces oil secretion and removes any shine and it's also non-comedogenic so it won't block the pores and leave your skin feeling nasty!
As for the formula it's quite a light consistency that soaks in well, but you do have to leave it awhile before applying any makeup or your left feeling slightly tacky all day long.
The downside to the product is that it's only SPF 20 - however I have found if you go much higher the cream tends to be thicker and not as easy to work with on the face. Having said that I can wear this for upto 4 hours without burning at all and I am really fair skinned and don't tan at all.
All in all one of the better suncreams for the face - it's doesn't state that it is aimed at just the face but it's only 50ml so you wouldn't want to use it all up on the body.
Soliel Beauty Hydrating Light Milk SPF 30 (Tesco's own brand) £4.00- I had previously used afew other suncreams from Tesco and liked them however this does fall into the 'stickiest sunscreen cream' category. Which was quite surprising as the formula comes out quite light looking which you would expect for a milk formula. But for me this was just so so sticky! It leaves the skin with this greasy film that picks up every bit of fluff. However Beauty Scribbler reviewed the SPF 15 of this suncream and loves it! She even compares it to using body lotion as it absorbs so easily. Which makes me wonder if the product I bought was either 'out of date' or that the formula changes the higher the SPF you go. I am really not sure, so I may have to compare it to the SPF 15 version.
On a lighter note Tesco do another range which I love which comes in a bright orange bottle with a white top. There Tesco Sun Spray SPF 30 is a must at £3.00 for 200ml! The formulation of it is quite runny so that is why I prefer the spray bottle. Also a slight warning, if you don't like a coconut smell to your suncream stay well away!
Calypso Sun Lotion SPF 30 Water Resistant £3.00 -£5.00 - Calypso is one of them hard to find brands but if you are lucky enough to find it, it will be in a discount type shop like Home Bargains and it has been none to grace the shelves of Matalan. It does leave you slightly white looking if you don't rub it in properly but overall this is a really great suncream. Also I quite the smell its like a sugary scent that isn't your typical suncream smell.
Calypso also do a Dry Oil that goes upto SPF 30 which is seriously like golddust (if you ever see it email me at makeupsavvy@live.co.uk I am not even joking) I have only ever have one bottle of this in my 22 years and I loved it beyond belief.
Obviously when the word 'oil' comes into the conversation of suncream you imagine a deeply tanned handbag ops I mean woman, laying on a beach somewhere dripping in oil to get that 'golden glow'. However this is definitely NOT one of them oils. It's clear, non-greasy, water-resistant, long lasting and did I mention that it's perfect. It's also great for spraying onto your hair parting and ears! Really if you see it -BUY IT!
Piz Buin Allergy Lotion SPF 50 £15.00 from Boots - I only ever buy Piz Buin when it's on offer and I normally go for SPF 30 but thought I would try a higher SPF. Like with most high SPF's it is abit tacky/sticky but for that high coverage it is really worth it especially when your on holiday or if it's just very hot. As our British weather is so temperamental and can go from rain to sunshine in a matter of a few hours I tend to put on the Calypso SPF 30 before I leave the house and then if it does get really hot or I am showing the tops of my shoulders or my chest I will apply this just to them areas. So I always carry this in my handbag.
A great brand that you can rely on to give good high coverage, I am just not to sure about the Allergy malarkey or really the price tag. But you do have to pay more for SPF 50 if you want anything bigger than 50ml's these days.
Ever since I burnt my chest aged 14 playing tennis (which left a red mark for years to come) I have applied sunscreen religiously. Come rain or shine I apply nothing below an SPF of 30, which I am sure some would say is unnecessary and that I am probably lacking in Vitamin D. However I would rather that than at worst develop skin cancer in the future or at best speed up the ageing process...which the sun is definitely known for doing. You only have to look at some people's lizard legs or there snake skin handbag arms to know this is true.
Having oily/combination from the age 13/14 has proven quite difficult where sunscreen is concerned. For years I applied rich every day sun creams to my face that only created more oil especially in the heat. It also caused my makeup to run and just generally undid the work I had done with oil-free moisturizer and spot treatments.
Even now after years of learning to only use an oil-free sunscreen it is still very hard not to resist purchasing cheaper brands or using whatever is lying around. But I know this just isn't an option if I want to have clear blemish-free skin.
This is where Dermologica came in with there Super Sensitive Face Block SPF30, this is a miracle for anyone with oily skin (there is also one specifically for oily skin but it is only SPF 20) as it is lightweight and chemical-free I find this as good as the oil-free version - it just doesn't soak up any excess oil on the skin so I blot beforehand.
It is only 50ml but lasts such a long time as the idea behind this is that it comes in an all most eye drops type container so the product doesn't come out all at once. This can be used on it's own or mixed in equal parts with your favourite oil-free moisturizer (which is what I do) or if you are that bit more oily you can mix this with you foundation and skip moisturizing.
I would highly recommend this, you can find it here for £21.90.
For the rest of my body I really don't mind a thicker sunscreen and normally go for the highest I can find which is normally SPF 50 with UVA & UVB protection. I tend to avoid spray bottles though as I feel it doesn't apply enough of the product on your skin even with several squirts. So I just buy something in a squeezy bottle. I always, always apply suncream to the backs of my hands and my feet as this is obviously were the skin is at its thinnest and I don't want old lady hands with liver/sun spots by the age of 50. No thank you!
However there is one product I have yet to find and doubt I will and that is something to protect my scalp - I could wear a hat...but really wearing a hat everyday all day in summer isn't an option. It's not even for age concerns it is basically because I dislike burning my scalp as it becomes red and inflamed. To cure it I use a KMS SolPerfection Aftersun Shampoo which takes the heat out of my scalp atleast. If you do know of a product that protects the scalp from sun damage I would love to hear about it!
Ok, I have rambled enough now. I will leave you with a two part video created by the wonderful Lisa Eldridge about her favourite sunscreens - which is really worth watching as there are some fabulous products/tips. She really knows what she is talking about.
I think I definitely need to invest in Peter Thomas Roth's Mineral Powder SPF 30 for Oily Problem skin after watching these videos.
Anyways, Enjoy!
I think this may be the last of my 'Quest for Perfect Skin' posts as I would really love to tailor some posts on skincare products that are aimed at improving the body ready for summer.
Such as cellulite creams!
I would love to know what you think and if there is anything you think I should touch upon.
Such as cellulite creams!
I would love to know what you think and if there is anything you think I should touch upon.
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