Sun & Skin

A few years ago, I got a strange phone call from my stepmother.

“Thank you for teaching your kids to be so diligent about sunscreen.” 

I was a little perplexed at first, but she went on to explain about the week that they had taken our children to Florida, and how the kids were adamant about making sure they were lotioned up before leaving the hotel each day. Then she dropped this bomb on me:

“They found some spots on your dad. He goes in to have them removed tomorrow.”

My dad had skin cancer. Two different kinds, in fact, on two different spots of his body. My fair skinned, red headed father, whose coloring I have inherited, and passed on to my kids. He’s fine now, thank goodness, but will have to be carefully checked for the rest of his life.

My oldest is the most like me – we tend to burn easily, and our skin is crazy stupid sensitive, his even more than mine. The wrong laundry detergent, lotion or bug spray results in a horrid, itchy rash. Sunscreen? Same thing.

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to review a sunscreen, and we fell in LOVE with the brand. SmartShield is our go-to sun protection, and I have purchased several more bottles since that review. They’ve rolled out a new product, and asked me to give it a shot, and I couldn’t say yes fast enough!

Enter the SmartShield Rehydrating Face Cream with SPF 45. People, my face still struggles with 15 year old type issues. I break out, my skin tends to be oily, and heavy face creams? Oh my. So, this was going to be a big test! How would my face respond to a product that was first and foremost a sunscreen, but also was a moisturizer?

Beautifully.

No breakout. No rash. No greasy feel. It wore beautifully under my  makeup without causing running or caking.  My skin feels smooth and well hydrated, and I get the bonus of knowing it’s protected!

I’ve now been using it daily for a little over 2 weeks with the same results. I’ve worked in the yard, sweating it out, with no running of the product. I’ve not experienced any negative reaction, and I haven’t burned!

The cream is just that – it’s a creamier texture than I typically used as a moisturizer, but it doesn’t apply heavy. It goes on smoothly, and disappears instantly. It comes in an easy to use pump bottle, and 1-2 pumps is plenty to cover my face & neck, as well as the tops of my ears. It’s quickly becoming part of my morning routine, as sun protection should be!

Check out the SmartShield website for more details on this and their other products, including self-tanners, insect repellent products and more.

Disclosure: I was provided a bottle of SmartShield Rehydrating Face Cream with SPF 45 at no cost to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own. No other compensation was received in connection with this review.