Wotnot's New Face Sunscreen - Reviewed

Let me get straight to the point here - I LOVE this sunscreen! I honestly think that it's the first natural face sunscreen that I've used where I forget that I'm wearing it. I have a confession. Although I'm always banging on about how you should wear sunscreen every day, it's not very often that I do. I'm sun smart, and always wear a ridiculously enormous (and according to my children, embarrassing) sun hat, sunglasses and cover up. But sunscreen? Not so much. If I'm at the beach, in the garden or out on a hike, I just put sunscreen on while I'm out and remove it as soon as I can. But for everyday wear, I find sunscreens dry my already very dry skin. Most chemical absorbers irritate me, and even mineral based sunscreens with titanium dioxide irritate me.

So Wot About Wotnot's Facial Sunscreen?

Let's have a closer look at the ingredients in the Wotnot Face Sunscreen. The zinc oxide means that you get broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection, and it's SPF 30. Zinc oxide is the only active ingredient, so even super sensitive skins like mine shouldn't have a problem with this. Zinc is soothing as well as being a physical sun barrier. There's organic aloe vera leaf juice, jojoba oil, and camellia oil to keep you hydrated and moisturised. And it works. I love that my skin didn't feel dry or tight by the end of the day as it often does with sunscreens. And yet it's not at all oily, either. There's green tea extract to help brighten and even your skin tone. I can't say I noticed that, but I'm working long hours at the moment on our new website, and I reckon I'd need a miracle to brighten my tired self by now! I'm intrigued by the addition of galactoarabinan. I'd never heard of this before, so I did a bit of research. Galactoarabinan is a plant collagen extracted from North American Larch trees, and the method of extraction is through hot water. So it's completely natural, and there are no contamination concerns. It's also a natural SPF booster and a gentle natural exfoliant, which helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles. It helps to reduce water loss through the skin, so your skin feels more hydrated. And, it's a very low irritant ingredient. I'm impressed!

What's the verdict?

All in all, this is a very low irritant, mineral sunscreen that's made with natural and organic ingredients. It's moisturising, yet not oily. And it's mattifying, and works really well as a primer underneath makeup. It doesn't give you ghost face, yet it's SPF 30. I've already worn this every day for a week, under makeup and without makeup, just over the top of my moisturiser. My hilariously pale English husband wore it on a 4 hour hike. He liked it ("yeah, it's fine" is big praise from him) and I liked that he didn't look like he had a blue face when he applied it over his stubble! Three of my friends used it the next day on a 7 hour hike (don't ask - it was meant to be 3 hours!) and thought it was brilliant. No stinging, even though we were all sweating, and no irritation. Plus, no one got burnt. And my 14 year old, who will not wear sunscreen unless 3 people hold him down and apply it, actually liked it. He hates sunscreen that you can see, and grudgingly applied it after he examined my face minutely for traces of white. And when I asked him about it later in the day, he admitted that he'd forgotten that he was wearing it. Now that's a result! This is one sunscreen that already has a spot in my 'everyday' tray in my bathroom cabinet, and I can see that I'd better stock up for the summer ahead!

Ingredients

Active ingredients: Zinc oxide, 250mg/g, Inactive ingredients: Purified water, certified organic aloe vera leaf juice, diisopropyl adipate, coco caprylate, glycerin, jojoba oil, galactoarabinan, camellia oil, vitamin e, vp/eicosene copolymer, silica, polyglyceryl-3 polyricinoleate, polyglyceryl-3 diisostearate, polyhydroxystearic acid, Sorbitan Olivate, xanthan gum, green tea extract, iron oxide, epsom salt, cetyl palmitate, sorbitan palmitate, 1,2-dihydroxyoctane, octanohydroxamic acid, natural fragrance Absolutely no worrying ingredients in this. I calculated that this would score a very low 2 in the EWG database.

How to use it

Apply this over your moisturiser, then give it five minutes before you apply your makeup. That way it's not going to rub off. If you're using it in the sun, don't forget to apply 20 minutes before going out, and then reapply regularly.

Where to get it