It’s no secret that we love A-Beauty sunscreens here at twindly. Here’re the three favourite Japanese sunscreens that we come back to all the time.
Japanese sunscreens have a lot going on for them: they’re generally formulated to suit Japan’s hot and humid climate, so formulas tend to be lightweight and sink in quickly, without leaving an oily or sticky film. Most people in Japan use sunscreen every day, so most sunscreens work great as makeup bases, have skin loving ingredients and the famous “tone-up” effect: a slight brightening, evening out effect.
There’s a downside to that, of course: Usually, the UVA protection is quite low, and, because most sunscreens are designed to be reapplied, they have to be reapplied. Which most people in the Western world won’t do.
But: all those lightweight, easy to apply sunscreens we love are a) everyday SPFs, and not heavy-duty spending-the-whole-day-in-the-sun sunscreens, and b) (it bears repeating) are formulated with that light texture and finish to be reapplied often. Got that? Great. (If sunscreens are designed for that kind of beach-vacation-thing, it’s often marketed as extra waterproof and extra anti-friction.)
Here’re the ones we love and use often as that kind of everyday sunscreen.
Canmake Mermaid Skin
- Physical & chemical filters
- Available at: A-Beauty shops like Stylevana and YesStyle. Beware, you want the “clear” option. 40g are around 11-14$/€.
Oh, my love. I fell in love with it when I was still living in Asia, when it was cheap and easy to get. Nowadays, for me it’s a bit more difficult to buy, and the jacked-up prices at those online shops pain me. But still, so worth it: first, it has a totally unique texture. What comes out of the tube as a thick lotion turns into a watery gel on contact with skin, and then sinks in completely. It has that slight tone-up effect, and is marketed as a makeup base, which it totally is. A great one, too. It’s just a pleasure to use, hasn’t any potentially sensitizing alcohol or fragrance, and I always have a tube at hand.
Skin Aqua UV Super Moisture Milk SPF50
- Physical & chemical filters
- Available at: Available at: Various sites like Ebay, Amazon, Stylevana and YesStyle (if you don’t live in Asia). 40ml are generally around $12.
Again, this is just so good for an everyday sunscreen! I love the easy application and hassle-free finish. It takes some time to completely sinks in, but I’ll take that in exchange for the alcohol denat-free and fragrance-free formula. It has one major setback, though: you’ve to watch like a hawk to see which version you’re buying, as different regions in Asia have different formulations, all the while keeping the same name. That’s a bit of a bummer. But I’ll take it, just for the joy of applying it.
Biore UV Watery Essence SPF50
- Chemical filters
- Available at: YesStyle and Stylevana, but also on Amazon and Ebay. 50g will usually be between 10$/€ to 18$/€.
A staple in the beauty world, and rightly so. It’s comparatively cheap, has great modern filters, and has a similar texture to Canmake’s Mermaid skin: that melting, gel-like texture that’s really fun to apply. The finish, though, is slightly sub-par: It takes quite some time to absorb, and leaves a somewhat tacky finish. (Sticky for Asian sunscreens, that is. If you compare it with a lot of European or US sunscreens, we can say it leaves a slight glow.) It’s fragrance-free, but has alcohol denat.
Please note that this post is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods or money for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.
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