Lightweight yet moisturizing: The Happy Skin UV Gel Cream

You may know by now what my HG face sunscreen is, but whenever I talk about it, people always ask me if I can recommend a more moisturizing option - but with the same lightweight feel, of course. Ain't nobody's got time for sticky sunscreen! But this is not as easy as it sounds. Cream sunscreens typically tend to feel heavy but moisturizing, while gel/watery sunscreens are typically light but can be drying. Is there something in the goldilocks zone for us exacting beauty hags?

As it turns out, there is! The Happy Skin Catch The Sun Brightening UV Gel Cream SPF40 PA++++ (P999 for 30ml) is a water-based, broad spectrum chemical sunscreen that may be just the thing drier-skinned ladies need for daily protection. It gets absorbed fast on skin and has no white cast (an acute advantage of chemical sun protection actives) once completely dry. It contains skin-brightening and moisturizing ingredients like niacinamide (also known as Vitamin B3), moringa seed extract, hyaluronic acid, shea butter, too.

It is water-based with conditioning fatty alcohols (these are kinder to skin) such as butylene glycol and cetyl alcohol. It does have some silicone ingredients but it is still primary water and alcohol, which explains its lightweight texture. This should work best for dry to combination skin types, but if you're extra oily, this may feel thicker than it should.

This sunscreen is fragrance-free; there isn't even a whiff of the distinctive sunscreen scent we're all familiar with. It also wears well under makeup as it doesn't have titanium oxide and zinc oxide particles to give you the white cast (still avoid flash photography though), nor does it have a slippery texture once it sets. It does look whitish out of the tube but this goes away once you spread it on skin and allow it to dry!

The ingredients list looks pretty good to me, and I love wearing this sunscreen since it doesn't have a shiny finish - it's more satiny. It's comfortable and it doesn't feel sticky once dry. The catch? Happy Skin's UV gel cream is quite expensive. At P999 for 30ml, this would last about roughly a month to 1.5 months of everyday wear. The instructions in the box recommend applying a pea-sized amount, but to get the full protection, it should really be more of a piso to five peso-sized amount per use.

Still, I highly recommend the Happy Skin Catch The Sun Brightening UV Gel Cream SPF40 PA++++ to those who want a lightweight, moisturizing, and high SPF daily sunscreen that wears well under makeup. It can even function as a primer, so that cuts down three products in just one tube! If you have super dry skin though, you might still need a moisturizer underneath.

The price might be a deal-breaker to some, but as always, it depends on the budget you have and how significant the product is to your personal routine. You know what they say: the best sunscreen is the one you will actually wear everyday.

Would love to know what you think of Happy Skin's first sunscreen!

PS Happy Skin just revamped its website. There's even a 30% sale right now! Go shop at happyskincosmetics.com.