Headline

As I mentioned yesterday, I’m vigilant about protecting my face from the sun. But what’s holding my face on my body? Is that important too? Well, it's my head, and most of the time I consider it to be important and useful. Let's put it this way: I certainly wouldn’t want to be without it! Here are the things I use to protect my head, and it’s parts, on the beach.

Subhead: Head

I’ve been through quite a few sun hats. I feel like I buy a new one every year. Last year, the one that was supposed to be great turned out to be stylish, but very hot. Also, when I took it out this year it was totally faded, and therefore not as stylish. It was black cotton canvas, and kind of on the pricey side, which I thought meant it would be good, but I was wrong. I had assorted straw hats in the past, but the ones that have any chance of not getting dented up or creased always seemed to be too floppy. This year, I was looking for a packable hat that was not hot and that had a string so it wouldn’t blow away. And, of course, it couldn’t be too dorky. I found what I was looking for in Columbia’s Sonoma hat. It has some sort of “omni-shade” technology, and a upf of 50. The brim is big enough to shield your face at most angles, but not so huge that it’s ridiculous. I got the black one, and I also ordered the one called “stone” which looks tan but is really more of a light olive/sage green.

While you shouldn't crumple this thing up, or fold it sharply, you can pack it flat and press down the crown to make it pretty compact. A review I read said they fill the hat with socks or something and put it in their suitcase, which you could do as an extra precaution. I didn’t put this in my suitcase, I actually didn’t even bring socks. I tossed it in my beach bag every day, and it held its shape really well. Better yet, it didn’t make me hot, and I didn’t have to worry about it blowing away on the beach. (I put the string in the back, under my hair and it stayed in place really well.) Best of all, it was only $17.99.

Subhead: Skin 

The “serious” sunscreen I have been using on my face for the past two years is Elta MD UV Clear SPF 46, which is for sensitive or acne-prone skin. It’s broad spectrum, paraben-free, oil-free, non-comedogenic and it doesn’t make me break out or look greasy. Perf! It has vitamin B3, which is meant to help reduce the appearance of blemishes and discoloration. It's a nice bonus, but the reason I use it is because it’s high spf and it doesn’t give me zits. The bottle says it’s ideal for daily use, but I usually go with an SPF 20 on normal days. Though I may have just convinced myself to use this on my face every day for the rest of the summer. Hmm. 

Subhead: Lips

I get around a lot when it comes to lip stuff, even when it’s beach-bag specific. I was using a Nivea something in a yellow tube, but it was too thick and had a weird flavor. Then I switched to Neutrogena SPF 15 Lip Moisturizer, which is basic, basic, basic, boring, basic, fine, whatever. I think I actually got it free with a bottle of sunscreen. I just noticed it says “Warning; Discontinue use if signs of irritation or rash appear.” Oh NO! Why does it say that?! Anyway, that's the one my husband likes to use because there is no color, no flavor, and it has sufficiently manly packaging. Of course, he probably hasn't noticed that warning either. This year I got a sample of Supergoop! SPF 30 AcaiFusion Lip Balm from Sephora, which is the squeezy kind of lip stuff. It has a fun logo, and because mine is a sample, it’s a tiny tiny tube, which is very cute. It’s not quite as tall as your average Chapstick, and standing here on my desk next to the Neutrogena stick, it looks like they are on a date. (Smooch! Let’s go to the prom! Okay!) They say it’s lightly tinted, but it’s kind of not. It’s broad spectrum and formulated without parabens, petrochemicals, phthalates, and other gross stuff. Ultimately, the Supergoop is really nice, but since it’s squeezy it doesn’t really stick (ha!) around that long.

Subhead: Eyes

I have a several pairs of sunglasses. Probably more than I need, but each pair goes in and out of favor so I keep them around. While all of them are cute and shield my eyes from the sun, none of my original collection did the one other thing I needed. Helped me to see. I can’t see far, and far keeps getting nearer. This becomes a problem when you are trying to find people on the beach and you can’t make out faces until you’re ten feet away.

I wanted to get a pair of prescription sunglasses, but I didn’t want to have to worry about them getting lost/stolen/broken on the beach. After a lot of searching I found Spex Club. All of their prescription sunglasses are $88, not cheap, but hardly expensive for prescription lenses. I ordered two pairs, but only one pair looked good. They let me return the other pair with no hassle. I’m also a fan of Warby Parker. All their glasses are $95, AND they give a pair to someone in need for every pair sold. They will also send you five pairs of frames to try on at home, for free! I have my backup pair of regular glasses from there, and they are great. Warby Parker is coming out with prescription sunglasses sometime in August, which I kind of feel like is poor planning on their part, but who knows what happened.

Subhead: Hair

I have very dark hair, and I like it that way. While the colors that it picks up in the sun are nice, eventually in the dead of winter, when the sunny part is partway down my head, it just looks dried out and unhealthy. These days, I try to protect my hair from the sun. Usually, I do this by wearing one or two low buns or braids, under my hat. This year I finally got a sunscreen spray, just for my hair. There are quite a few out there, but I went with Aveda Sun Care Protective Hair Veil because I trust the brand, and it wasn’t insanely expensive compared to other sunscreen for hair. (PS. The "list price" given on Amazon is total BS. I bought it at an Aveda store and it was $26.) It’s really lightweight; you can’t feel it in there after it has a minute to soak in. It might actually cut down on frizz a little. It’s water resistant, but as with any sunscreen, you’re going to need to reapply, especially after swimming. It has a light Aveda-ish scent, which manages to be slightly beachy smelling as well. I’m sure that’s on purpose, and I’d say they succeeded. Since I have it, I will probably use this whenever I’m outside for an extended period of time, just to be safe. 

The End
Hopefully this will help you keep a cool head, next time you’re headed to the beach. Wouldn’t want you to get a headache when you dive headfirst into packing. Just the thought of it makes me light-headed! Better make some headway. OMG, there are seriously so many words with “head” in them that I’m just going to stop right here… while I’m ahead.