This post is sponsored by Purito.
Purito are a Korean skincare brand that’s very focused on natural skincare. I’ve reviewed some products from their Centella Green Level line before, and today I’ll be reviewing the three sunscreens in their range. There’s the Centella Green Level Safe Sun, as well as the unscented version, Centella Green Level Unscented Sun. They’ve also recently launched the Comfy Water Sun Block, a mineral sunscreen that promises low white cast and a light texture.
Korean skincare brands are known for their light textured, cosmetically elegant sunscreens with added skincare benefits. Since I’ve seen rave reviews of Purito’s sunscreens, I was really excited to try them out when Purito approached me to review them!
Here’s what I look for in a sunscreen – remember that my skin is not your skin though, so you may have different requirements:
- High UVA protection: Many sunscreens don’t report their exact UVAPF values (only “broad spectrum” is allowed), so I usually just look at the filters to try to gauge this. I prefer the newer filters (Tinosorb S & M, Mexoryl SX & XL, Uvinul A Plus).
- White cast: Needs to be minimal. My skin is NC20 for reference.
- Ease of application: It has to feel nice on my skin.
- Eye comfort: I need to apply sunscreen near my eyes since that’s where I can see the wrinkles gathering. My eyes are pretty hardy thanks to years of wearing contact lenses, but they’ll still water a bit with some sunscreens.
Related post: My Sunscreen Mini-Review Spreadsheet
Purito Centella Green Level Safe Sun
Purito Centella Green Level Safe Sun SPF 50+ PA++++ (RRP $18.90 USD for 60 mL) is an organic (“chemical”) sunscreen.
This sunscreen has two UV filters, Uvinul A Plus (diethylamino hydroxybenzoyl hexyl benzoate) and Uvinul T 150 (octyl triazone). There’s been some speculation that two filters isn’t enough for complete protection, but I think this is baseless – I’ve discussed it before here. They’re newer UV filters that are photostable, which means they don’t break down after exposure to UV light, so the protection doesn’t decrease as much (for more information on which sunscreen filters are photostable, check out the sample chapter of my Basic Skincare eBook).
Related post: All Your Sunscreen and Makeup Questions Answered (video)
The texture of this sunscreen is pleasantly light, but not so light that it feels like it’ll wear off too easily. It glides on smoothly, which I think is because of dicaprylyl carbonate, a moisturising ingredient that spreads really well without feeling greasy, and features in a few other sunscreens with amazing textures that I love (Ultraceuticals and Klairs – Safe Sun’s texture is in between these).
Another texture-related aspect I really appreciated was how easy it was to apply an adequate amount of Safe Sun on my face. One of my gripes about some sunscreens that apply smoothly is that it can feel like it isn’t sinking in and I’m just moving the sunscreen around on my face forever, so I can’t actually apply the full amount. This isn’t an issue with this sunscreen.
Related post: How Much Sunscreen Do You Need For Your Face? (video)
Purito have also included skincare ingredients in their sunscreens, so they aren’t just sun protective. After it sank in, I found that it was very hydrating on my skin – unsurprising, since there’s loads of glycerin in it, and hyaluronic acid makes an appearance too. There’s a slightly sticky finish which isn’t uncomfortable, and disappears under make-up.
Safe Sun also includes Centella asiatica extract (of course), which features in the rest of the Green Level line as well. Centella asiatica extract has been found to help heal wounds, reduce wrinkles and pigmentation, and reduce irritation, as well as acting as a protective antioxidant. There’s also tocopherol (vitamin E) for additional antioxidant and moisturising benefits, and sensitive skin-friendly all-rounder niacinamide.
The sunscreen has a moderately strong lavender scent, from the inclusion of lavender essential oil. Some people find lavender oil irritating, so Purito have released an unscented version as well. This is one of the things I really like about Purito – they seem to be very responsive to customer feedback! My skin seems to be fine with lavender oil, so I didn’t experience any irritation.
It also didn’t sting my eyes, or have any white cast, and it made a great makeup base. I also didn’t experience any clogged pores or breakouts with Safe Sun, which is rare for me and sunscreens.
Ingredients: Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Dibutyl Adipate, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, 1,2-Hexanediol, Niacinamide, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Silica, Cetearyl Olivate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Centella Asiatica Extract, Hyaluronic Acid, Tocopherol, Sorbitan Olivate, Glyceryl Stearate SE, Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Sorbitan Stearate, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Disodium EDTA, Adenosine, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin
Purito Centella Green Level Unscented Sun
Purito Centella Green Level Unscented Sun SPF 50+ PA++++ (RRP $18.90 USD for 60 mL) is another organic (“chemical”) sunscreen.
This sunscreen is very similar to the Centella Green Level Safe Sun sunscreen, and contains the same two UV filters (Uvinul A Plus and Uvinul T 150). Notably, the lavender and Roman chamomile (Anthemis nobilis) oils have been removed.
I was really impressed by the scent of this sunscreen – or rather, the complete lack of scent. “Unscented” products usually smell a bit weird or artificial, but this sunscreen is as close to genuinely unscented as anything else I’ve ever tried. If fragranced sunscreens are one of your pet peeves, this will be up your alley!
There are a few other formulation changes as well. There’s extra Centella extracts added (madecassoside, asiaticoside, madecassic acid, asiatic acid) which make it even better for protecting sensitive skin, and Purito have confirmed that it contains 2% niacinamide and has a PPD rating of 20-22. There are a few other subtle changes to the base of the formula, but the texture is virtually indistinguishable from the Safe Sun.
Ingredients: Water, Butylene Glycol, Butyloctyl Salicylate, Glycerin, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Acrylates Copolymer, Silica, 1,2-Hexanediol, Niacinamide, Dibutyl Adipate, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Cetearyl Olivate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Sorbitan Olivate, Glyceryl Stearate, Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Sorbitan Stearate, Centella Asiatica Extract (4315 ppm), Madecassoside, Asiaticoside, Madecassic Acid, Asiatic Acid, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-di-t-butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Disodium EDTA, Adenosine, Hyaluronic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tocopherol
Purito Comfy Water Sun Block
Purito Comfy Water Sun Block SPF 50+ PA++++ (RRP $18.90 for 60 mL) is a mineral (inorganic or physical) sunscreen. It contains non-nano zinc oxide and titanium dioxide as its active ingredients.
Related post: Chemical vs Physical Sunscreens: The Science (with video)
My three biggest issues with inorganic sunscreens are texture, clogged pores and white cast. I’ve never found a mineral sunscreen that measured up to chemical sunscreens for these three criteria… so how did this fare?
Texture: The first thing I noticed was that the texture of this sunscreen is incredibly light – it actually feels like a chemical sunscreen. Most mineral sunscreens I’ve tried either feel like oily butter, or a paste. Purito say it’s because of their special formula, which uses 70% water.
Clogged pores: Just a few extra ones after two weeks of use! Amazing.
White cast: Here’s where Comfy Water Sun Block didn’t get full marks, although there’s significantly less white cast than the other mineral sunscreens I’ve tried before. Here’s the full 2 mg per square centimetre application on my face – it’s less noticeable in person:
I was particularly impressed with the low white cast because this sunscreen has titanium dioxide in addition to zinc oxide. Titanium dioxide usually produces more of a white cast, but this had less white cast than a lot of zinc oxide-only sunscreens I’ve tried. Unfortunately, it’s still too much white cast for my liking. The white cast was only really apparent I applied my usual foundation on top and it didn’t match my skin, so I ended up having to apply more foundation than I usually do.
Aside from the white cast, I found that Comfy Water Sun Block was great. It worked well under make-up, and didn’t irritate my eyes. It has a light essential oil scent. The Centella actives also make an appearance here too, and niacinamide is high up on the ingredients list too.
Purito recommend using a facial cleaning tool (like a konjac sponge) to remove the sunscreen completely.
Ingredients: Water, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Dipropylene Glycol, Zinc Oxide, Silica, Niacinamide, 1,2-Hexanediol, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Stearic Acid, Madecassoside, Asiaticoside, Madecassic Acid, Asiatic Acid, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Lauroyl Lysine, Disodium EDTA, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Leaf Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Adenosine, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Verdict
I know it might sound a bit shifty since this is a sponsored review, but Purito Centella Green Level Safe Sun and Purito Centella Green Level Unscented Sun have entered my holy grail sunscreen list. They tick all of my boxes for UVA protection, white cast, texture and eye comfort.
The white cast from a full application of the Comfy Water Sun Block stops it from getting to the very top, but it’s the highest rated mineral sunscreen so far, and I don’t know if it’ll ever be beaten – I think mineral sunscreens just aren’t for me.
For more information on Purito, you can visit the Purito website.
This is a sponsored post; however, the opinions expressed are still my honest opinions. This post also contains affiliate links – if you decide to click through and support Lab Muffin financially (at no additional cost to you), thank you! For more information, see Disclosure Policy.
Dawn Siler 