When I first stumbled upon this recipe for DIY sunscreen, I was a little wary because the SPF factor is unclear. But, after researching zinc oxide, I've come to find out that it is the best absorbent of both UVA and UVB light and it is photostable (meaning its chemical breakdown is unchanged upon sun exposure). The good news is that the SPF factor is quite high. The bad news is that it leaves a white mark wherever you apply it.
The original recipe doesn't call for an essential oil, but I've tweaked it a bit. I really like the way that just one drop of a powerful botanical oil can cover up that zinc smell. My pick is peppermint, but I'd also recommend rosemary or lavender. Here's what you'll need:
For step-by-step directions on how to make your own sunscreen, read more.
The Body Shop
What about people who dont want to put any kind of oil in their face? this sounds good anyway.
1So this won't leave a white mark? The oil does make me a little nervous.
And, where can I buy zinc oxide?
2yeah, does the heating and addition of oil change it for no white marks? Is it possible to overheat and break it down and make it useless?
3Hm..this is just odd to me. While, it would be nice to know exactly what goes into my sunscreen, I think I'll just stick with buying it at the store.
4I don't know if I'd get around to this- but I think I need to check out ingredients and make sure my sunscreen has zinc oxide in it.
5This looks amazing! I've always been curious about if it's possible to make my own sunblock. I might have to give this recipe a try...
6Hmm...yeah, zinc oxide is effective (it's what's in my sunblock), but I like knowing exactly what level of SPF I'm getting, and I like how my bottle prevents contamination and gives me shelf life.
There are a lot of factors in creating cosmetics...sunblock is not something I'd experiment with. You'll never know if you aren't getting enough coverage (unless it's so little that you actually burn).
7Hmm...yeah, zinc oxide is effective (it's what's in my sunblock), but I like knowing exactly what level of SPF I'm getting, and I like how my bottle prevents contamination and gives me shelf life.
There are a lot of factors in creating cosmetics...sunblock is not something I'd experiment with. You'll never know if you aren't getting enough coverage (unless it's so little that you actually burn).
8This is kind of interesting, but I think I'd feel safer just buying from the drugstore. Plus, I'd rather not have any white marks.
9I'll stick to the drugstore but neat anyways...
10I love my Neutrogena.
11I am going to stick to buying it, but I find this very interesting that you can do it on your own
12Interesting but i'll stick with what i've got. As soon as it runs out though, I really want to try the Burt's Bees Chemical-free sunscreen.
13huh.
14makes me wonder if i can an essential oil to my existing sunblock to make it smell nice...I love the idea of peppermint.
I'm with everyone else, good idea but i don't use my kitchen to cook
I've made my own before with pure zinc oxide. There are several homemade recipes online that give you the correct SPF (after all, its just a matter of proportion of zinc oxide to base recipe). However, you should order pure zinc oxide and not use the stuff in the tube if you are worried about parabens and other possibly dangerous chemicals. After all, that's usually the point of making homemade sunblock. Also you can tweak it as to the texture and scent. Furthermore, you can order micronized particles so you don't have to worry about the white mark
15is this stuff waterproof?
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