DIY Sunscreen : Do or Don’t? | An Honest Review
Many people are turning to DIY Sunscreens for a natural alternative to the chemical filled store bought stuff but do homemade sunscreens really work? Before you buy a bunch of expensive ingredients to make your own, you might want to check out my honest review of DIY Sunscreens.
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DIY Sunscreen: Do or Don't? | An Honest Review
I have been wanting to make my own sunscreen for years. I even ordered some non-nano zinc oxide three stinking years ago and never used it. This year however, I was determined to make it happen. I was not going another summer buying so much sunscreen.
Why try a DIY sunscreen? I really don't like chemicals. We know that sunscreen protects you from skin cancer but did you know that there are SO many sunscreens out there that are horrible for you because of the cancer causing chemicals in them? So yes, it may protect you from SKIN cancer but can cause liver cancer instead......I'm not down with that.
Having said that, not everyone agrees that DIY sunscreens are a good idea. You can't accurately test for SPF and not all the ingredients used for homemade sunscreen protect against both UVB and UVA rays. This is why you should always do your own research before trying a DIY sunscreen. It comes down to your own personal choice. I feel good about homemade sunscreen so I'm giving it a try.
I did some research and checked out a bunch of homemade sunscreens. I gathered my materials and made some. It's crazy how easy it is to DIY sunscreen. After trying my sunscreen out, I for sure think homemade sunscreen has potential! The recipe I used however just isn't doing it for me.
The DIY Sunscreen Recipe I Used
There are a lot of different DIY sunscreen recipes out there and tons of different info on the SPF claims of the ingredients used to make them. I do think if you are planning on making your own sunscreen you should do your own research on the ingredients you plan on using. After doing a lot of research I feel comfortable using the ingredients that I chose.
Here's the recipe I used:
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup Shea butter
- 1/4 cup almond oil
- 1/6 cup beeswax
- 2 TB non-nano zinc oxide
- 2 tsp raspberry seed oil
- 15 drops lavender essential oil
Like I said, mine needs some tweaks but for now you can use it as a comparison to other DIY sunscreens if you plan to make your own.
Testing My DIY Sunscreen
Now you have to remember that I am a REDHEAD and I burn easily. I have used the sunscreen twice now and both times it did okay on the areas of my skin that were already tan. I darkened a little but did not burn. The area's of my skin that were fresh and didn't have a tan yet, burned pretty good.
The first time I tested out the DIY sunscreen, I was in the sun for two hours without reapplying. Part of that time was overcast so I wasn't sure how accurate my test was, even though I know you can burn in overcast. Those dark clouds pictured below were over us for a bit. I wanted full sun so I could say I really tested this stuff out.
The second time I tested out my homemade sunscreen, I decided to try it out for less time so I did 90 minutes. I stilled burned on the areas of skin that hadn't been exposed to sun yet. I have two theories for this. One, the homemade sunscreen needs that base tan first for it to protect ME enough because I'm a ginger. And two, it doesn't seem to be very water resistant. I'm wondering if it washed off of certain areas while in the pool so those spots burned.
I guess I'll be trying it again a third time for only an hour to see what happens. Maybe I just need to apply DIY sunscreen more often than the store bought stuff. I also am going to be adding in some more beeswax because that is the ingredient that makes DIY sunscreen water resistant. I'll also add in a bit more zinc oxide and see if it helps. I'll report back after making those changes.
Here's a picture of me with my burn. As you can see, my chest has a tan on most of it. I run outside a lot and I usually have a base tan there. But my bathing suit has little cut outs that go lower than my sports bra so my skin is REALLY white there. Those little squares turned a pretty good red color. I am going to have the best funky tan there. HaHa! Also you can see my face is the tiniest bit red where my hair meets my forehead but no where else. I think this is a good sign that the sunscreen is working!
Some Final Thoughts on DIY Sunscreen
- I'm not totally convinced yet that DIY Sunscreen is a great idea. I do think it has a ton of potential depending on the recipe you use. I love that most of the ingredients used are beneficial to your skin and don't have nasty chemicals in them. If your kid's wiped out after a day in the sun and has homemade sunscreen on you won't have to be too concerned.
- Also the sunscreen smells SO much better than regular sunscreen. My daughter kept smelling my shoulder. Oh and by the way I used it on my face and my face is not burned. So again, I'm wondering more if mine just got washed off in the pool water because I didn't put my face in the water today. I do love that I can use the sunscreen on my face and body without worrying about clogged pores.
- I need to have my son test it to see how it works on him. He has much darker skin than me and tans much better. I just didn't want to use my kids as test subjects! haha Plus if you're going through the trouble of making a sunscreen it should work no matter you're skin tone.
- With some tweaks I'm sure my DIY sunscreen will work. I'm really excited about that. I need to adjust the recipe to get it to work under all circumstances and to get it to work on ALL of my skin. Once I do I promise to report back with a better recipe and one that you know has been tested multiple times in different situations. I do think it needs to be reapplied every hour or so instead of 1 1/2 hours like I normally do with store bought sunscreen. Wish me luck!
- If you find a DIY sunscreen recipe you'd like to try I would suggest not staying in the sun too long. Don't go all in. Try for less time in the sun and maybe even at a time when the sun is less harsh. If it seems to work then you can try longer periods of time in the harsh sun with reapplies.
If you're not convinced that DIY sunscreen is the way to go you should buy natural & organic sunscreens. Here are a couple that we recommend:
