Sunday Sunblock: Origins A Perfect World SPF 25 Age-Defense Moisturizer with White Tea

Hi! I'm back. The first three weeks of school, and also the first cold given to me by the tiny disease vectors students, have wiped me out and made wearing and photographing makeup a lot less important than sleeping and staring at the Internet in complete and utter exhaustion.

Today, I want to talk about Origins A Perfect World SPF 25 Age-Defense Moisturizer with White Tea (that ingredient is underlined at the bottom of the list). I got it for free on Earth Day because I brought an empty lotion thing to Sephora instead of to my local recycling place. It was worth about what I paid for it.

The product is an off-white cream that smells somewhat of salad. Yes, salad. Or grass clippings. I can't decide. It's a chemical-based sunblock, or organic sunscreen, that claims an SPF of 25. It rubs in pretty clear, if a bit shiny. I've been using a half teaspoon or so on my face, neck, and ears, and another half teaspoon or so on my arms.

For the past week or two, as I've been using it steadily, I have noticed a few things:

1. A mild burning feeling upon application.
2. A raw, red feeling on my neck and upper chest, accompanied by itching. Sunburn? Or reaction to the product?

I have a couple theories on this: first, there are a ton of photosensitizing ingredients in this product, so maybe that weakens the SPF effect; second, the third inactive ingredient is chamomile water. Chamomile is related to ragweed, or the archdemon of all Plants To Whose Pollen I Am Allergic, so it's possible I've just been reacting to that. However, my arms have gotten some color recently, and I've been inside more often than not. That indicates some level of product failure - with the same amount of product and frequency of application, I've been better protected by other products.

Needless to say, I do not recommend this product, which, in case you are some sort of masochist spendthrift, is available at Sephora and department store counters.

Product specs:
Size: 1.7 oz/50 ml
Price: $39.50 (I got it free as part of an Earth Day promo)
Price per ounce: $23.24
SPF: 25
Active Ingredients: Octinoxate (5%), avobenzone (3%), octocrylene (2.7%)
Inactive Ingredients: water/aqua/eau, citrus aurantium amara (bitter orange) flower water, anthemis nobilis (chamomile) flower water, butyloctyl salicylate, ethyl macadamiate, methyl trimethicone, jojoba esters, butylene glycol, lauryl peg-9 polydimethylsiloxyethyl dimethicone, peg-100 stearate, glyceryl stearate, citrus aurantium bergamia (bergamot) fruit oil, citrus medica limonum (lemon) peel oil, citrus aurantium dulcis (sweet orange) oil, cinnamonium camphora (camphor) bark oil, mentha viridis (spearmint) leaf oil, magnolia acuminata flower extract, iris pallida (orris) root extract, rosa damascena (rose) extract, citral, linalool, limonene, camellia sinensis (white tea) leaf extract, pinus pinaster bark/bud extract, arabidopsis thaliana extract, ascorbyl tocopheryl maleate, oryzanol, ergothionene, triticum vulgare (wheat) germ extract, hordeum vulgare (barley) extract, cholesterol, caffeine, mangifera indica (mango) seed butter, butyrospermum parkii (shea butter), potassium cetyl phosphate, cetyl alcohol, ethylhexylglycerin, linoleic acid, squalane, sodium hyaluraonate, caprylyl glycol, dehydroxanthan gum, silica, ammonium acryloyldimethyltaurate/vp copolymer, citric acid, sodium stearate, sodium dehydroacetate, phenoxyethanol, mica.

I typed all of that out for you. Enjoy.