Sun Safety

We round up our favourite beauty buys and accessories to keep you UV protected this Summer

Here in Ireland with sunshine so rare, as soon as the weather goes beyond 20 degrees you can see us gleefully flinging off our clothes and taking a running jump into the nearest body of water. However, perhaps in our sun-induced hysteria we forget that hot weather isn’t all sunshine (excuse the pun). Although we bemoan our lack of sun, whether it is gradual unprotected exposure over time or burning it to a crisp on that one hot day, it is still enough to do some serious damage to both our skin and our overall health in the long-run. Shockingly, skin cancer is the most common cancer in Ireland, so with this in mind, we have put together some of the best beauty buys and accessories to keep you both sun safe, and stylish all Summer long.

SPF face cream

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Your face is constantly the most exposed part of your body and UV rays will cause aging and wrinkling, as well as the risk of skin cancer. Start with a SPF 30 sun cream, made especially for the sensitive skin on your face,’such as?Clinique Face Cream Spf40 for €23.00 @ Debenhams.

SPF body spray

Garnier Ambre Solaire is a SPF body spray and is perfect for all those hard to reach places. It has an SPF of 30 and is priced at €10.14. The transparent spray won’t leave you looking pastier than usual as most white sun creams can and it’s also very water resistant, perfect for days swimming at the beach, or perhaps more realistically, hot and sweaty days in the office.

SPF- infused foundations

Making sure your foundation is infused with SPF is a simple but effective way of keeping your face protected from the sun. The Irish Cancer Society recommends a sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher and UVA protection for adults so we’ve lined up four of our favorite SPF infused liquid foundations in order of price.

Mac Studio Sculpt SPF Foundation- €36.50

Clinique Even Better Makeup SPF 15 – €31.50

Olay CC Cream SPF 15 – €27.99

Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream- €11.99

SPF face powder

When wearing foundation or face powder, touching up your sun-cream can be quite bothersome, especially when the Irish Cancer Society advises it should be done every two hours. Thus, why not try touching it up with a powder, which is a great way of topping up your SPF and your makeup in one, or even as a face powder on its own. You can even try an SPF bronzer, perfect for adding a glow to match the sunny days.

Mac Mineralize Foundation SPF15- €37.50

Clarins Bronzing Duo Mineral Powder Compact SPF 15= €26.80

And don’t forget your lips…

Keep your lips moist and sun-protected too with this MAC Lip Conditioner SPF15, priced at €14.50.

Hair Spray

L’Oreal “Solar Sublime Spray”? €16.80, salons only.

During hot weather our hair can become particularly damaged and burnt, with the heat drying it out and causing frizz. Sun can especially cause damage to the sensitive skin on the scalp, burning it unknown to you. These sprays help limit that damage, protecting your hair and helping protect your scalp too.

Sunglasses

If you, like this writer, break sunglasses at every available opportunity, be that crushing them sitting down or stepping on your handbag, it’s probably best not to put all your savings into a shiny new pair of Raybans. Instead, opt for cheaper high street styles that can be changed with the season’s style, or said frequent episodes of clumsiness. At the moment, we here in Image are loving the 50’s inspired cat eye style, and love this pair from River Island, priced at €17.00. Most importantly, they are UVA protected, meaning that they protect your eyes from UV Rays, which can cause cornea damage, cataracts and even cancer. Look out for the CE mark that is the European standard of eye protection, or even better, the UV400 sign which means they offer a little bit more protection than those with the CE mark.

Some Simple Shade:

Covering up is perhaps the most simple solution to staying safe in the sun’s rays. Yet it’s not easy to cover up while keeping cool and stylish. We love this fedora hat from River Island, priced at €29.00, and this on-trend sheer kimono from Zara, priced at €59.95. However, some fabrics give better UV protection than others, with tightly woven fabrics like linen and cotton better than thin or stretched materials like sheer. Interestingly darker colours also give better protection than lighter colours because they absorb UV rays.

For more tips on staying safe in the Sun, check out The Irish Cancer Society’s sunsmart code.

Rachel Lavin @RachelLavin