If you’ve been part of The Skinny Confidential community for a while you can remember years ago when I was blabbing about my obsession with caffeinated sunscreen.
Blabbed about it forever. I couldn’t get over a SPF with caffeine, something about the idea of pairing SPF with caffeine was just IT for me. Who doesn’t want their face tightened while it’s protected?
(If you want to go down memory lane: sunscreen psycho in 2013, how to apply it to your eyelids in 2017 and how to touch up your SPF in 2022 without fucking up your makeup. Not to mention the most mentions in between. From obnoxious visors, hot pink balaclavas, driving gloves and an entire book, sun protection has been the core of The Skinny Confidential).
So today’s the day. We are launching caffeinated mineral sunscreen…AND it happens to be the same day as our anniversary sale. Think of it as a way to celebrate the launch and to celebrate you, the OG readers and listeners. It’s a big moment, that’s been years in the making and strategically launching ahead of spring and summer at 20% off so you can stock up.
Backstory, because that’s always fun: when we started formulating our own sunscreen it was going to be a chemical sunscreen. I tried it. I loved it. And then I had an epiphany. We needed to switch it to mineral. That’s right, halfway through development we started realizing that we could bring you something better. Something cleaner, healthier and more efficient. So we pivoted and switched our formula to a physical, mineral-based sunscreen. Cost an arm and a leg but it had to be just right.
It pushed the timeline, but we wanted to bring you the most elevated, amazing sunscreen. One that lifts and tightens. One that protects and hydrates. One that nourishes but is non-greasy and lightweight. Most importantly- one that seamlessly fits into your skincare routine. The best part? No white cast, just a dewy glow. It will even lay nicely under your makeup, which is appreciated. The picture below is me with ONLY this caffeinated SPF on. No makeup. It’s just so good and was worth the wait.
With this upcoming launch I spent some reflecting on the past few years and, as I often do, flipped open Get The Fuck Out Of The Sun. When writing it, one of the main things that stuck out to me was that almost every single person mentioned the importance of sunscreen. That they always wear SPF, they’re telling you to wear SPF, they WISH they wore it when they were younger.
Reading Dr. Dennis Gross’ foreword gave me chills- it’s very full circle for a sunscreen launch:
Lauryn’s reputation preceded her—particularly among dermatologists. When I met her in person for the first time, I already knew about her militant skincare routine and her compulsive sun avoidance, specifically her driving gloves. I will never forget the first time that I saw those white gloves.I would never have been able to convince my teenage daughters to wear them, but it was easy after Lauryn’s endorsement. I remember thinking, How f ***ing cool is that?! She has just made sun protection trendy and stylish while also protecting her skin from UVA/UVB and the sunspots and wrinkles they cause. After speaking more with Lauryn about her skincare routine, she checked all the boxes to earn the distinction of my best patient. She was the first to admit she’s addicted to skin-care and obsessed with beauty. Her passion is a good thing. –Dr. Dennis Gross, ‘Get the Fuck Out of the Sun’
Even the mission at the end of the book is fitting:
If this book can influence ONE person to spend an extra 10 minutes a day on self-care, or even convince someone to start being preventative by wearing hats and using sunscreen, I’ll die happy.
With that:
THE SKINNY CONFIDENTIAL CAFFEINATED SUNSCREEN
BENEFITS OF CAFFEINE ON THE SKIN
Reduces the appearance of wrinkles and puffiness
An antioxidant to help fight UV damage
Lifts, tightens and firms
Decreases inflammation
Increases collagen production
Increases blood flow
Can reduce irritation and redness
And here’s why we decided to go for a physical (mineral) sunscreen opposed to a chemical. Neither is better than the other, they’re just different.
PHYSICAL VS. CHEMICAL SUNSCREEN
A physical sunscreen is a mineral based sunscreen. When you apply it to your skin, the layer sits on top and reflects the sun’s UV rays. It physically blocks them by creating a barrier on top of your skin.
A chemical sunscreen usually contains avobenzone, octinoxate and/or oxybenzone. These active ingredients absorb into the skin and absorb the sun’s rays before your skin does. It is kind of like a chemical reaction on your skin.
Both are great but for different reasons. The team and I decided to go with a mineral sunscreen so it was better suited for all skin types (usually sensitive and acne-prone skin does better with mineral SPF), and it tends to have broader UV protection than chemical ones. Plus we wanted to bring you a super clean formula.
“Avoid ingredients that are disruptive and confusing to skin, but ironically can be found in most products on the market. I refer to them as “the suspicious six,” and they are silicones, chemical sunscreens, essential oils, fragrance, dyes, SLS, and drying alcohols.” Tiffany Masterson of Drunk Elephant
Along with caffeine, we had to make sure that our SPF had ingredients with beauty benefits. One of my favorite features is that we added Spirulina extract to fight blue light damage from all our screens these days. YOU WILL LOVE.
INGREDIENTS:
Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are the two mineral sunscreen filters generally recognized as safe and effective by the FDA. These two active ingredients for a barrier on the surface of the skin to protect from the sun’s damaging UV rays.
Caffeine – reduces the appearance of wrinkles and puffiness on the skin; antioxidant which helps to tighten, firm, and combat UV damage
Spirulina Maxima Extract – combats digital aging by fighting against blue light
Antioxidant Blend (Rice Bran Extract, Rosemary Leaf Extract, Sunflower Extract, Vitamin E) – provides antioxidant protection
Squalane – provides moisturization benefits.
Plankton extract – provides even skin tone benefits.
Bisabolol – provides calming benefits for sensitive skin.
Allantoin – provides calming benefits for sensitive skin.
BENEFITS OF TSC’S CAFFEINATED SPF:
Reduces the appearance of wrinkles and puffiness on the skin
Lifts, tightens, firms and hydrates
SPF 40
No white cast
Antioxidant protection
Blue light protection
Fragrance free
Clean formula (no parabens, petrolatum, mineral oil, sulfates, phthalates, nano zinc or chemical SPF)
Non-greasy and lightweight
Provides an instant glow for a more radiant-looking skin
Helps prevent of dark spots, fine lines and wrinkles
HOW TO:
After your morning skincare routine, apply The Skinny Confidential’s Caffeinated Sunscreen as the last step. Then continue to apply your makeup. Voilá
HOT TIP: try using a damp Beautyblender to apply your SPF. It’ll give you an even layer and keep your hands clean.
Now go, enjoy the anniversary sale, stock up on SPF or get it on subscription. Caffeinated SPF straight to your doorstep for 20% off? Doesn’t get better than that.
Still want ‘sunscreen role model’ on my gravestone by the way. In the shade, of course.
x Lauryn
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++ Check out this frequency wand for healthy skin and hair growth.
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