In search of a sunscreen which doesn’t smell like a chemical factory or a perfumed chemical factory, and doesn’t leave a sticky film that makes me feel dirty all day. Also, of course, must screen UV. Non-poisonous a plus.
Is there anything?
I use DDF Ultra-Lite Oil Free Moisturizing Dew with SPF 15. Doesn’t smell at all like sunscreen and it’s very light. If it wasn’t so expensive, I’d wear it all over.
Oh, and for the body I use Nutragena’s Ultra Sheer Sunblock. It’s very light as well and goes on dryer than most sunscreens.
This. They make a version for the face that’s very nice, as well.
spf 15 isn’t as high as I’ve been using . . . but webMD says (I just read), it’s a lot more important to keep re-applying than to get the highest one . . . I shall try these. I find myself avoiding putting the stuff on because it is so unpleasant, so I’m not winning with my current approach.
I can’t wear sunscreen on my face on a regular basis because of extremely sensitive skin. However, this Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Liquid is the best I have ever found for those times I have to have sunscreen on my face.
I use their Ultra Sheer Dry Touch lotion and spray for the rest of me, and both really are non-greasy.
They do still smell like sunscreen, though, which I assume is what you mean by a chemical factory. Not perfumed though.
ETA - sunscreens with physical blockers (zinc oxide and titanium oxide) instead of chemical blockers (oxybenzone, avobenzone) will smell less “sunscreen-y” They can be hard to find though.
I see that Neutrogena has a Pure & Natural product that contains titanium oxide and zinc oxide. I think I will give it a try this year. Maybe I can wear it on my face everyday. That would be a treat.
My go-to general moisturizer/SPF 15 is Olay’s Complete SPF 15 for Sensitive Skin. They have a version with 30 SPF too, but it’s a little to heavy/“greasy” for me. I like the Neutrogena Ultra Dry too for all-day protection when I’m out hiking.
Another vote for Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch (especially for face and neck).
The best “standard” brand of sunscreen is Ombrelle (Canadian brand that L’Oréal bought).
saving all these, thank you!
Consumer Reports just did a sunscreen review. The top ones were Up & Up Sport (Target), Equate Ultra Protection (Walmart), Coppertone Water Babies, and Walgreens Continuous Spray Sport. They are all SPF 50.
p.s. – Rated by UVA/UVB. Not rated by scent or touch.
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Ok, for just one post, I’m taking this problem into a different direction solution-wise.
I can’t claim credit for the idea though. Last summer, while visiting Canada, I saw the most Brilliant method of avoiding all sun damage while retaining full outdoor mobility. Its a method that meets every single expectation that the OP is asking for.
I was stunned when I saw it at first, because it was so simple, but then I just marvelled at the True Genius of it.
Some women with very fair complexions would dress up in full fashionable attire and carry / use matching parasols when the sun was at its hottest.
OK, before you beat me with an umbrella, please realize that it meets all of the OPs expectations, and if fashion is not an issue, can be found in almost any hall closet. Its a reasonable solution in terms of effectiveness, availability and cost while remaining both chemical-free and some-what green.
If someone you love sunburns easily, keep an umbrella in the car.
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The older I’ve gotten and the less I give a hoot about my “look” the more often I use the umbrella when I have to be out in the sun. Also a big brimmed sunhat if I’m in a crowd, since the umbrella is obnoxious, but the hat can make for a sweaty head.
If I have to wear sunblock (and believe me, I generally just avoid situations where I’ll be in direct sunlight for more than 15 minutes!) I found the spray-on sport formulas to be the most wearable for areas not face or neck. I’m a very oily skinned person, so I never wear moisturizers or anything of the sort, and those spray sport ones seem to be the least objectionable for me.
I do wear a big hat (cowboy hat usually) and generally, long sleeves, but really, goat herding, shoveling gravel, hiking with a small pack of dogs, and digging out brambles with a spade (what I did today in the sun) do not lend themselves to parasols, amusing as this would be to bystanders, were there any. Which there never are. If there were, I would put them work.
If I did use a parasol it would be a green one, with a ruffle, and a parrot-headed handle.
Environmental Working Group has an excellent sunscreen guide, also available as an app.
I don’t know about the rest but the Walgreens Continuous Spray Sport smells like straight up mosquito repellent. I can’t even use it the smell is so bad.
I love NoAd in SPF50. Absorbs in a few minutes, good for several hours even in water, has only a mild sun tan lotion smell. My skin is extremely sensitive to perfumes, cosmetics, and chemicals; yet I can use this all over including my face. Cheap, too.
Remember to coat all of your skin, otherwise you will get a ‘creative tanning’ pattern. I could certainly tell where I’d missed a few spots.
Sigh. This is why nobody likes science. Summary of report: would you prefer hormone-scrambling chemicals to be absorbed through your skin, or be covered with a nasty sticky paste of titanium dioxide nanoparticles? Also, Europe is better.
I’m picturing me bringing an umbrella to my next tennis match, and it’s not working for me. 
Alternatively, there’s always the trendy and fashionable ‘face-kini’. 