It’s no secret that K-beauty reigns supreme in skincare—and sunscreens are no different. If you’re still scarred from the Purito scandal, it’s time to move on and embrace Korean SPF again! Here’s a new (to me) sun gel that I have been absolutely loving. It’s the Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel (affiliate link).
I’ve been experiencing some skin irritation (and of course have not been able to figure out what from!), and I started using this SPF in case the one I was previously using caused the irritation. My skin drank this Isntree Sun Gel right up! Here are three reasons why I loved it:
Super Lightweight Texture
It’s called a sun gel for a reason. It’s very much a gel cream, making it really easy to dispense and apply. One important thing to note: it’s not a fluid (like the Tatcha Silk Sunscreen or Summer Fridays ShadeDrops), so it is not spilling out of the tube. And thank God—I hate having a messy nozzle. It’s still got some consistency to it to hold it together.
On my skin (very much in the light-medium tone range), there is no white cast. Even when I apply throughout the day, I have yet to see any white cast. I’ve even applied 4 times in a day with this (of course with the 3 finger method)!
The finish is natural to dewy. If you’re a normal or dry skin individual, you’ll likely be good with this SPF alone without extra adjustments for the shine. I’m an oily person, so I do add some powder or more mattifying makeup after this SPF (or blot it if I don’t wear makeup). A few products I enjoy using to soak up the oil and leave my skin more natural:
Milk Makeup Pore Eclipse Matte Setting Spray
Rare Beauty Powder Kit
Another thing I do sometimes if I am really lazy is I will put a zinc oxide-based SPF on top of this Isntree sunscreen. Zinc oxide actually absorbs oil throughout the day, so it helps with some of that oil management. I’ve found the Biossance one works well, but they temporarily discontinued it due to some sensitivity issues some people experienced. Unfortunately, the Summer Fridays ShadeDrops SPF does not have that same oil absorption benefit (but it starts out with a lot more natural finish). And for those concerned, no, I am not too worried about mixing the types of SPF.
Zero Eye Sting
The Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel is a chemical sunscreen. And yes, I absolutely know chemical filters are the scary eye-stinging ones. I always approach organic filters cautiously because of this. But for scientific purposes, I applied the Isntree SPF heavily around my eye area (eye lids, corners, etc) and experienced no eye stinging. I also did not have any issues with transfer/migration throughout the day. And it did not make any weird white spots in my vision either.
And the best part? It’s SPF 50! All that sun protection without any of the eye sting is a big win in my book.
Affordable Price
On Stylevana, you can pick up a 3-pack for $35 (at time of publishing), which is an incredible price. I’m used to paying $20-60 for my American SPFs of the same size (lol @ Tatcha), so this was a welcomed change! Because I apply sunscreen once in the morning, once in the afternoon, and every time I go outside, I run through my SPF like it’s no one’s business. Having a sun gel with a price around $11 makes each application not feel as bad.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a new Korean sunscreen with zero eye sting, the Isntree Hyaluronic Acid Watery Sun Gel might be a great fit for you. I’ve been loving re-applications with this because there’s no white cast, no eye sting, and no wallet shock.
I just would not recommend this to oily people who do not want to do an extra blotting/mattifying step. This does trend on the dewy side (but it isn’t overly dewy). But for the price and the usability, I will happily go through an extra step for oil control!