I’m always excited to try a new sunscreen. I run through sunscreen like water, so it’s always easy for me to flit about, even if I always find myself coming back to roost with my Holy Grail sunscreen. (Incidentally, I’m told that the new catch-phrase is ‘Ride or Die’ vs ‘Holy Grail’ vs ‘Desert Island’ – I’d rather be a little holy than ride or die so you won’t see me use that phrase any time soon! Oops, I just did didn’t I?)
The newest I put to the test was what the people from The Body Shop excitedly told me was their first ever sunscreen product. First ever! I didn’t realise that TBS never had a sunscreen before this, did you?
Except they didn’t call it a sunscreen or a sun protection. This is The Body Shop Skin Defence Multi-Protection Essence SPF50 PA++++! I was so enamoured by the high SPF and PA (UVA blocking) rating that I think I overlooked one thing. TBS did not call this one a sunscreen.
Note that it is a Multi-Protection Essence, and the texture of the product hammers this home, by being a lightweight, watery texture. Yet the promise of SPF50 and PA++++ rating really had me by the short and curlies. I HAD to know if this might be my new favourite sunscreen? Would you like to know too? 😉
Short answer: No. Not by a long shot. Not even by a short shot. This is as far from a Holy Grail as that jewelled chalice was from the clay cup in Indiana Jones The Last Crusade <- Please tell me I’m not talking to myself. Anyone else knows what I’m talking about? 😛
First the good stuff. I like the packaging. The slim, compact tube is very handy and portable. The texture of the product is also very lightweight, just like the name promises it to be – an essence. It feels like a light lotion going on skin, and here’s an interesting thing I noticed.
On contact with skin, the product breaks down a little to a more watery texture. When you rub it on your skin, it kind of breaks into water droplets. Very strange. You can see from the image, how it is already starting to break down around the edges of the product swatch.
This makes this sunscreen very lightweight, and absorbs quite easily into skin. I do find however, that it leaves a sheen on my skin, which isn’t terribly flattering. I do have to wait for it to settle before I apply makeup on, but I don’t find that it messes up my base very much as it isn’t oily. The texture also means I find it hard to use my usual amount, which is this as I showed here:
Incidentally, that product in the photo is this The Body Shop Skin Defence sunscreen, and it is a challenge for me to use that much on each part of my face. It does then feel a little heavy.
But I must point out one very important fact. I live near the equator, where the sun shines for most part of the year. Despite what the detractors say, I do not use any sunscreen of less than SPF50 PA+++ protection. I have a pigmentation problem, I don’t deny, but for the most part, diligent and regular use of my HG sunscreen has kept it under control, so I haven’t turned into one giant freckle.
So, when product does not work for me, I know immediately. This manifests itself in a few ways. First, my skin will turn warm and red if I’m exposed to the sun or heat. You might be thinking “Duh! Of course your skin will turn warm under the heat, doofus!” But this isn’t regular warmth. It’s the warmth of lightly toasted skin. If you’ve experienced it, rather like a mild sunburn, you’ll know what I mean.
That means UVB rays because that’s what makes your skin feel warm and turn red. Secondly, my sun spots or pigmentation increase in density and darkness. Unfortunately, I experienced that with this The Body Shop Skin Defence sunscreen. When exposed to the sun e.g. while driving, my facial skin would feel lightly toasted, even under my foundation. This is not something I experience with my regular sunscreen, so I noticed the difference almost immediately.
To truly test this further, I took only this sunscreen with me to Bangkok. I walk a lot in Bangkok, and I’m outdoors a lot, where the sun shines brightly and hot down on me. Much to my consternation, this did not pass my personal sunscreen test.
Even with regular reapplication, which was easy due to the lightweight texture, my skin still felt burnt at the end of the day. I also returned with I swear, a tan and more sprinkling of sun spots, which I’ve been working at to lighten ever since with my Vitamin C serum.
Now, if you read around, you may notice that this product comes highly raved and recommended by many bloggers who like it for its lightweight texture. But really, the Japanese brands do super lightweight textured sunscreens that actually WORK at protecting the skin! This is well documented online. So, what’s their excuse at not discovering it earlier? 😛
My friend Romana has a similar complaint about this product. That it did not protect her skin as well as the Shiseido Perfect UV sunscreen does. Really, this has taught me a lesson. When it comes to sunscreen, don’t play play – just stick to what works! I’ve gone back to my Shiseido Perfect UV and I’m not straying anymore. Sure, it is expensive, but so is this one, and really, for just a little extra, I’d rather have something that actually WORKS!
I’m not saying however, that this is a P.O.S (Ok, maybe I am, for me 😛 ) but if you stay indoors all day (and away from the windows) or live where the air is very dry, or live where you don’t get a lot of sun e.g. Autumn, Winter and Spring, then you might like this one because of how it feels. The high SPF50 PA++++ rating will also make you feel like you’re doing something to protect your skin from the ever-present damaging UV rays, rather than not wearing any sunscreen at all. But I’ll also suggest that you look to Shiseido – they do AMAZING sunscreens that are just as light in texture, and on top of everything else, makes a wonderful primer so you don’t even have to wear makeup base!
IN A NUTSHELL
I don’t like this. The lightweight texture that seems to break into a watery lotion on skin is comfortable, but I feel that it leaves a sheen on my skin that I don’t like. Also, I don’t find that it protects my skin as well as other sunscreens I’ve used do. This is important for me where I live. I think this one might appeal more and perhaps be better for someone living in a cooler climate, where the sun isn’t as strong and perhaps where you don’t get a lot of sun. For those who do, try something else. Oh and there’s a floral scent I dislike. But scent is a personal thing. I’m harsh with sunscreen because it’s very important to me. If it makes my skin feel hot or makes my sun spots worse, I bin it in more ways than one.
PROS: Lightweight texture, Absorbs into skin easily and quickly, Not heavy or greasy, High SPF and PA rating on paper
CONS: Scented, Pricey, Does not seem to protect my skin as well as other sunscreens I use, Strange watery texture on contact with skin, Leaves a strange sheen on skin resulting in a “glow”
WHO WILL LIKE THIS: Anyone who does not need very strong sun protection as the SPF and PA rating belies its actual efficacy
PRICE: RM125 | £16 for 40ml
WHERE TO BUY: The Body Shop stores and online (Malaysia, UK)
For those interested, this is the ingredient list for this TBS Skin Defence sunscreen.
From what my limited knowledge tells me, this is a chemical sunscreen. I have not used fully chemical sunscreen in a while (prefering to pick one that has a combination of zinc oxide and titanium dioxide for some physical protection) so it might be why I feel the difference? I don’t know. But I just don’t like this one. Sorry TBS, try again next time.
Have you tried this sunscreen offering from The Body Shop? Like it? Hate it?
I’m still a HUGE fan of the Shiseido, which I know some people like and some don’t. It’s ok. Use whatever your skin tells you it likes, even this one, if you like it. JUST USE SUNSCREEN! 😀
Paris B
Seriously, RM 125 for TBS product. Since when TBS products bcome so freaking expensive?
You said it! You know, at GBP16, it only comes up to just under RM90 so I’m not sure how the local price is justifiable 🙁
Holly Molly! (I’m not sure if I used right the expression ?) You use a lot of sunscreen, I do too but not like you.
I haven’t tried a sunscreen from Shiseido but I don’t think I’d try it soon as they are so freaking expensive. As long as I finish a sunscreen bottle every one to two months is impossible to buy from a mid or high end brand.
Right now I rely on Nivea for my base sunscreen and if I’m not wearing make up I’ll reapply every four hours. If I’m wearing makeup I reapply with a face spray I know you don’t really like them but for me they work in a pinch and is better than no sunscreen. I currently use La Roche Posay face spray.
I really like the concept of The Body Shop, but for me their products are a hit or miss for me. Their Tea tree range makes my skin crazy and their Vitamin E serum did nothing, however I love their cleansing balm and if it wasn’t because cleansing oils seems to dehydrate my skin I’d love theirs. So even though it doesn’t really surprise me, it’s awful their sunscreen didn’t work for you.
Yes I do Efrain 🙂 I’m paranoid, what can I say?! haha! Yes, Shiseido sunscreens are expensive but I stick to them because they work for me. They do have some affordable drugstore sub-brands as well that are very popular. In the alternative, the Biore brand is supposed to be good too. You’re right that I”m not a big fan of spray sunscreens but at least you’re using it as a top up, not as a primary base sunscreen! TBS has improved in recent times, I feel, but they also do stretch themselves a little thin, I find. Some good stuff, some not so good – but that happens in all bransd 😀
I think I’m paranoid too, but I think I always feel that heating sensation unless reapplying every two hours. However, I rely on hats and umbrellas to protect from the sun, I don’t live near to the equator but I live below the Tropic of Cancer and in a high city so UV index it’s awfully high in comparison with other places.
I wish the Asian Biore was easily available here, if I want to get one of their sunscreens I need to buy it from eBay or Rakutten but international shipping gets on my nerves.
I know that every brand has their hits and misses but this is the first time I feel them so accentuated, also it can be because I feel they’re a lot pricier than drugstore but without a big difference.
Haha in a way you are right. TBS is and always will be a high street brand to me. Some items are decent, some aren’t. This one isn’t, but I want to try some of their face oils and lotions. I hear those aren’t bad!
Have you tried the Clarins one ? It feels pretty good I just hope I’m totally protected…. Haha
I haven’t tried the newest SPF50 version. I used to like the previous version but because it was only SPF40 I didn’t feel sufficiently protected. My dark spots seemed to darken as well, so I never went back to them, because for the price, I’m sticking to Shiseido haha 😀
I love my Shiseido! I increased the amount of sunscreen I use because i drive more often now and the Shiseido one still feels lightweight.
Paula’s Choice has one that is very lightweight too. Less alcohol content too, compared to the shiseido one. I’m currently using both but have back ups of the little blue bottle.
This TBS sounds like a waste of $!
I love the Paula’s Choice Youth-Extending SPF 50 Sunscreen too! Saw you blogging it a while ago. I got it from wortheecosmetics.com you recommended as well. Plus, PC products are all free from alcohol.
Instead of saying this TBS sunscreen absorbs quickly into the skin, I’d say it evaporates instantly seeing alcohol is listed as the second ingredient after water. yuckss.
The alcohol content is high, but it does seem to absorb because it breaks down into that watery texture once it gets on the skin. Glad to know the Paula’s Choice works for you 🙂 PC does have a anti-alcohol stance, which I can understand, but which I do not necessarily subscribe to strictly 😉
Yep, the Shiseido one allows me to use heaps of sunscreen, without feeling heavy and that’s the only way I can use that much sunscreen as I do! LOL! I haven’t tried the PC one but I took a look at the ingredient list and I’m really not keen on sunscreens with avobenzone in it as I have a sneaky suspicion that it doesn’t work as well for me (with my pigmentation problem) as it does with a product that uses physical UV blockers (zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, both of which are present in Shiseido’s) It is however, a personal preference, and I’m glad they both work for you 🙂
Expensive and lousy, what a terrible combination!
My holy grail is the Natuko’s am+pm sunscreen after reading about it on your blog, it’s so good!!!
Might give the Shiseido one a try, after I’m done testing out Actinica! ?
You summed it up Simu! LOL! I remember that Naruko one was quite good too – glad it worked for you! (It’s affordable!) Haha I have to take a look at Actinica, but I’m not sure I want to wear anything that thick on my skin. Eeps! Hope it works for you!
I think you’d hate it LOL! It’s thick and greasy and the least cosmetically elegant of any sunscreen I’ve ever tried.
But it offers high protection(what I was looking for) so I guess I can’t complain 🙂
Haha the description of the texture does put me off, I confess. Still, I might give it a go if I’m up to placing an order and see just how greasy it can be LOL 😀
This were excluded, from the moment I read the ingredient list… second in the list ( so, high concentration) Alcohol denat. I think this was the reason you feel a burning feeling.
Actually, my skin isn’t sensitive to alcohol in general, and it doesn’t burn on contact. Only after I’ve been out in the sun which is when I get the “heated” feeling. It’s the same feeling you’d get if you venture out without any sunscreen haha 😀 But I know a lot of people don’t like the idea of alcohol in their skincare – a bit of difference of opinion in that department but I don’t have a very strong opinion either way 😉
Hello! I’m a long-time lurker who frequents your blog – I think I visit about 3-5 times a week for at least 5 years now (yikes – it sounds almost stalker-ish!). I’ve benefited from your words very often, so I hope I can share something with you this time. 🙂
From the ingredients list that you shared, the sunscreen actives in this product are octinoxate, avobenzone and octocrylene. My understanding is that this is not a very stable combination of actives at all.
Avobenzone is highly regarded because it really does provide high defense against UV rays but it degrades very rapidly in the presence of UV rays. Octinoxate actually increases the rate and extent of this degradation – you can figure what happens when the sunscreen actives degrade so fast. In addition, the degradation also releases free radicals/oxidants onto the skin.
To be fair, this can be mitigated to some extent with stabilisers such as octocrylene and antioxidants such as Vit C which this product does have – but from your description, it is likely that the incompatibility of avobenzone and octinoxate has overwhelmed the stabilisation effects which isn’t surprising as the UV index in this (our!) part of the world is often quite high.
There could certainly be other reasons for your skin’s discomfort – but I think this could very likely have been the main reason.
Wow – this comment turned out long. I paragraphed it to make it more readable… but I hope it helps! A quick disclaimer that I’m not a scientist at all, but I believe the instability of avobenzone and its incompatibility with octinoxate is universally agreed upon. I believe a quick google will turn up more tech-y explanations if you would like to read those. Futurederm has one (with diagrams and bullet points!) as does wisderm.com.
I personally can’t use avobenzone at all because my skin, both facial and body, doesn’t like it. However, I would avoid it anyway because it seems like such a finicky ingredient.
Hello hello! Thank you for leaving such an insightful comment! You’ve now made me want to do a little more research into this because it’s such an interesting topic! Incidentally, I discovered from experience that although I used to use primarily chemical sunscreens, I soon found that they weren’t working for me, and might have even contributed to the worsening of my pigmentation problem. IT is for this reason I have avoided sunscreens with oxybenzone and avobenzone for quite many years now.
I couldn’t use many mineral based sunscreen before this with zinc oxide because I discovered I was allergic to it, but Shiseido uses both Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide and my skin tolerates it well, which might explain why I’m slavishly devoted to it! Thank you again, you have certainly fed me a lot of food for thought! 😀
I am glad you found my comment helpful and that it made you want to research a little more. I think all this is quite interesting too. All-chemical sunscreens don’t work well for me too. I did read previously that you found your skin reacts badly to sunscreen with zinc oxide.
You may want to explore the idea that zinc oxide is too drying for you; I understand that zinc oxide is used in diaper cream because it is both soothing and drying. It may be possible that if you use a heavier moisturiser, you will be able to use a wider variety of sunscreens that include zinc oxide. 🙂 The type of zinc oxide may also play a role: micronised vs nano, coated vs uncoated etc.
And just let me say : thank you for your blog! So much appreciation for the work that goes into this. 🙂
Yep, if a product has very high zinc oxide content, it clogs my skin and breaks me out. So I go for those with a mix of zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, which incidentally is found in the Shiseido! Another reason I can’t move from it haha! Thank you so much for reading and finding my blog helpful. That makes me very happy to know! 😀
Thx for the review,what a price…definitely big No no..better stick to my hada labo air fresh sunscreen,why fix something that ain’t broken, isn’t it
Hey, if it works for you Wan, stick with it! The way I’m sticking with mine 😀
The way the product breaks down into water really reminds me of the Skinfood Royal Honey Serum. The serum is very thick at first and turns into a very pleasant, thin watery texture that feels like nothing on your face. Thank you for the review! I enjoyed read it.
How interesting, I’ve never come across that serum, but it sounds like a nice textured product! Glad you enjoyed the post 🙂
Biore UV Aqua Rich Watery Essence Sunscreen is my HG sunscreen. So much cheaper than Shiseido, great texture and finish, flawless protection. Fiftyshadesofsnail raves about it as well, btw.
Glad to know that works for you 🙂 Biore breaks me out every time I try it, so it’s one brand I dare not try anymore! Pity that my skin needs expensive sunscreen LOL!
Hey sweetie,
So sorry it irritated your skin 🙁 I hope you can kinda recycle it as a hand/body sunscreen, should your skin there be less sensitive.
By the name and the bottle design, the very 1st impression I got was: “Body Shop are trying to copy ‘Biore Aqua Rich Watery Essence 50+ PA++++’ sunscreen concept!”
Whereas the tiny droplet effect would relate more to some Korean goat milk essences (Tony Moly) or BB cream (touchinSOL).
Knowing your skin cannot tolerate alcohol-based sunscreen, perhaps you can try ‘Foto Ultra 100 ISDIN fluid’.
It’s a physical filter, high UVA protection, niacinamid-rich sunscreen.
No white cast, no heavy greasy feel and ultra-compatible with makeup.
The effect is satiny but not dewy per se.
It’s also sweat-proof/waterproof but personally, I’d always reapply sunscreen a bazillion times a day.
On a side note, following your review on Guerlain Météorites Base, I bought it and love it to bits over aforementionned Biore sunscreen. The finish is nicely matte, yet not flat, so scorching summer-friendly, yay 😉
Many thanks Paris xxx
Hi there! No, my skin did not feel irritated, just didn’t seem to offer enough sun protection so I use it when I know I’m staying indoors for long hours only LOL! Thanks for the rec, I’m not sure where to find the sunscreen you mention but I’ll keep an eye out for it! I’m happy you like the Guerlain Meteorites! I’ve recently rediscovered my love for them and it’s amazing right? 😀
Hi there! I’m kinda new to all this skincare stuff so I’m rather curious. I know that for many skincare products, results vary from person to person but does it work the same for sunscreens? Like say, if you think the sunscreen does not provide enough protection, does it mean it will not provide enough protection for my skin too? I’m kinda worried since I use the same sunscreen and I have absolutely no idea if it’s working (but I haven’t gotten new freckles whatsoever). I also live in the same hot and humid tropical climate as you do so I don’t know if I have enough sun protection 🙁
I would be really thankful if you could get back to me thank you!
Hi Esther, I’ve dropped you an email, but just for the reference of anyone else who might be curious, my answer in gist is that while most skincare will depend and react based on different skintypes, with sunscreen, there is less of such a variance. While skin comfort is one thing, the ingredients in this one doesn’t really cut it, in terms of UV protection, so while your skin may tolerate it (perhaps it’s slow to burn or react, different people react differently) I’d keep this for use only if you don’t plan to go outdoors. If you do, get something better. 🙂
My big problem with this product is its alcohol content (and maybe other ingredients). I avoid putting it near my eyes but in the rare chance that I accidentally rub my eyes and get a bit of the product off my cheek up to the eyes, it stings so much, I get teary-eyed for five minutes. Thanks to your post, I will switch to Shiseido as soon as I finish the Body Shop Skin Defence Essence.