The Beauty Diary: Sunscreen hack proves we’ve been applying SPF all wrong
A photo a skincare expert shared of her trick for applying enough sunscreen has left many shocked. So are you applying yours wrong too?
How much sunscreen should you be applying to your face?
It sounds like a simple enough question to answer – but it turns out, a lot of us aren’t applying enough or even any at all. (Gasp!)
Australian guidelines state you need one teaspoon of sunscreen per limb, which for your face is your head and neck. But how do you make sure you’ve measured the right amount without cracking out the kitchen utensils every morning?
Luckily, a handy hack for getting it right has been doing the rounds on Twitter – and it’s approved by skin experts.
Enter New York aesthetician Tiara Willis who recently shared her simple trick to getting her SPF measurements right.
She simply uses “two fingers” worth, squirting the sunscreen along the lengths of her index and middle fingers in a continuous motion to dispense enough product.
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It’s not an exact science, but she said it will give you “roughly” the right amount to ensure your face and neck are adequately protected from harmful UV rays.
Since her tip was posted in August, it has been shared and liked thousands of times – with many in disbelief over how little sunscreen they had been using.
“Wow, I’ve been doing this wrong,” one person replied.
“I had no idea I’ve been using way too little,” another said.
“This is so helpful, thank you,” someone else said.
While another declared: “I’m so embarrassed, I’ve been doing too little forever.”
Some credited Tiara’s two-finger rule as a “game-changer”.
RELATED: The Beauty Diary: The best facial sunscreens
Talking of facial sunscreen, a brand spanking new mineral one has just been released by Australian brand Ultra Violette and people are already going nuts for it. You can read my thoughts on it and a few other beauty newbies below.
ULTRA VIOLETTE LEAN SCREEN
Available at Sephora, ultraviolette.com and adorebeauty.com.au
Price: $45
This cult Australian sunscreen meets skincare brand have just released a mineral, zinc-only product that’s ideal for sensitive skin. Needless to say, beauty lovers have gone wild. That’s because physical sunscreens – different to lightweight chemical ones in that they reflect about five per cent of harmful UV rays in addition to absorbing them – are known for being heavy and gluggy. But this mineral SPF, which has a heavy-duty protection level of 50+, is definitely not gross and sticky. I’ve been using it every day for the last week after my tube of Supreme Screen (which is chemical) from the brand ran out – and I honestly can’t tell the difference. It’s light, breathable and doubles up as a great primer when worn over my moisturiser. Technically, you don’t need moisturiser as it is formulated with Kakadu plum and pentavitin (a plant extract) but I suffer with dry skin so I layer mine up. So if you’re someone who has sensitive skin but struggles with other mineral-based SPF products as the thick, glugginess can irritate your face – this is for you.
BENEFIT BROW MICROFILLING PEN
Available at Sephora, Myer and adorebeauty.com.au
Price: $45
If you love the fresh feathered strokes of microblading but are too broke or too scared to get it done (it’s expensive and painful) – you’re going to love this clever pen. The tip is made up of three superfine tips which create those brush-like strokes synonymous with microblading. While I usually like to fill in my brows with a powder or gel (this Anastasia one has been a firm fave in my rotation lately) I have been loving this nifty little pen – it adds so much texture to my brows and is so quick to use. It literally takes a few seconds and my brows are done which is a much speedier process than filling. After I’ve used the pen, and top tip here guys, make sure you follow the direction of your own hair otherwise you’ll end up looking like a noughts and crosses board, I like to take my superfine brow pencil and add some more strokes for added dimension.
CHARLOTTE TILBURY CHEEK TO CHIC PILLOW TALK
Available at charlottetilbury.com/au
Price: $60
I know Charlotte Tilbury is expensive and there are no makeup stores in Australia where you can swatch and have a play before you buy – but I’m giving you another of her products as a recommendation this week and I’m not even sorry about it because it’s a highlight and blush in one place, YES PLEASE! This is the cheek equivalent of the brand’s famous Pillow Talk lippie and trust me, it is just as good. The mini palette features a gorgeous rosy blush and a champagne highlight that will make your cheeks pop even on the dullest of days. It applies beautifully, not blocky streaks in sight, and has just the right amount of shimmer to it. If the soft pink isn’t your shade there’s a “Pillow Talk Intense” suitable for darker skin tones as well as other Cheek To Chic palettes in a variety of colour palettes. I honestly take this everywhere with me and use it every day.
MERMADE HAIR HEAT STYLING SPRAY
Available at myhaircare.com.au, ozhairandbeauty.com and mermadehair.com
Price: $19
You’ve probably seen this brand’s hot pink triple-barrelled wand all over Instagram – it was an exciting heat tool launched last year to create mermaid waves after Kim Kardashian made it uber trendy. The gadget gets super hot during use so it was only a matter of time before the woman behind it, Perth mum and businesswoman Tara Simich, created a heat protection spray to combat the issue. This is heat protection on steroids as it also adds gloss and shine to locks as well as having a built-in “anti-dropout formula”. For fine hair like mine it is exactly what I need when I am curling or manipulating my slippery locks into a style. While I haven’t tried it with my Mermade Wand, I used it last weekend on some loose curls and it did the trick, holding all day and only a very minimal amount of drop. I love the delicious scent too which is kind of sweet but also a little musky. While the packaging states it can reduce breakage by up to 75 per cent, I can’t vouch for that just yet – but heat protection in general can never protect your hair from damage completely. To do that you need to minimise your hair’s exposure to heat styling.
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