*These items were sent to me as gifts but all opinions here are my own. I was not paid for this review though there are affiliate links in this post.
As I mentioned in a past post, I rarely accept gifts from skincare or makeup brands because my skin is so finicky. I’ve had decades of acne (and sadly still have highly cloggable pores, though I wouldn’t say I have acne now in my late 30’s). But I also have highly sensitive skin that easily turns red or gets a rash. So I tend to stick with the same skin regimen until a product is discontinued and I have to find a replacement. I recently wrote this post about my current skincare and makeup routine. Anyway I decided to try out Nuori after seeing it recommended by one of my favorite Instagram people, Therese. As far as I could tell she wasn’t paid to recommend the Nuori Mineral Defense sunscreen and she absolutely raved about it. So I was thinking of purchasing it myself since I’ve been on the hunt for a sunscreen that doesn’t give me mask-ne (mask acne). But then I was pleasantly surprised when out of the blue Nuori offered to send me their bestselling items, and I was able to add the sunscreen as a gift (they originally wanted to send me their cleanser or a serum).
If you’re not familiar with this small brand from Copenhagen, they focus on skincare products that are all natural and made to be “fresh". They are basically a clean beauty brand that stays aways from the term “clean beauty” (thank goodness because you know that term is overused all the time). Instead they make their products in small batches every 10-12 weeks, and all products have a limited shelf-life with an expiration date clearly labeled on their items and packaging. I’ve always wondered why cosmetics don’t have a set expiration date because you know the active ingredients are really only active for a certain amount of time. Well after reading a bit more about Nuori it’s because doing it the Nuori way is more expensive. Beauty companies rather produce a massive batch of products, loaded with preservatives like synthetic stabilizers to extend shelf-life to maximize their profits. On average, most conventional products are meant to last 2.5 years since the date of their production! Nuori products last about a year, but that shouldn’t be a problem if you use the products on a daily basis.
And this definitely won’t be a problem for me when it comes to the sunscreen because I love love looooove it. I rarely find a sunscreen product that I like so much because well sunscreen is hard to get right imo. My ideal sunscreen can’t be too greasy but has to be spreadable enough to not leave streaks, it can’t clog my pores even with a mask on, and it has to be 100% mineral based thus being good for your skin (and also reef safe—being from Hawaii this matters to me even though I visit the beach maybe three times a year lol). Finding the right one, especially since Covid, has been so hard. Pretty much every sunscreen I had broke me out so I stopped using it altogether for awhile, which really wreaked havoc on my skin. So I’m really happy to finally find Nuori’s mineral defense sunscreen. This sunscreen feels more like a BB cream in some ways: it’s slightly tinted and it’s kind of a thick, foam-like consistency that spreads on kind of whiteish but will “warm” up to your natural skin tone after a bit. It leaves my skin looking smoother and the redness evens out. I would say the only negative thing about the sunscreen is that if you don’t have a light-ish skin tone, it might not work for you (and I hope they come out with more inclusive skin tone colors in the future). But as for me, I really love this sunscreen and plan to purchase it when I’m out (I’ll let you know how long that takes in a future update).
As for their vital foaming cleanser, it’s a nice fruity-smelling cleanser that does a great job (though I haven’t tried it for taking off makeup yet because I rarely wear makeup these days). It didn’t break me out or give me a rash so it’s perfect for sensitive skins. It’s gentle and not too drying. Personally, I still love my SkinSalvation charcoal cleanser and supporting a local (SF Bay Area) Asian American woman-owned business so I won’t be converting to this one. But if you’re in the market for a gentle foaming cleanser, I highly recommend this one.
Overall I’m really impressed with my two Nuori products and love their focus on providing skincare products without the synthetic stabilizers and additives. They are also serious about their sustainability, which is a must for any brand these days. Anyway I’ll probably try out more products from them in the future when I purchase the sunscreen, so stay tuned!
{April 2022 Update: I finally finished my gifted tube of sunscreen and I’m hooked. So I just repurchased another one. I have to say, I think my skin is looking a lot better (and blemish-free) ever since I started using their sunscreen daily.}
{May 2022 Update: So after trying the new tube of sunscreen I purchased last month I have to say it feels like they reformulated so that it’s no longer as thick nor as whitening as the old formula. I do wonder if the new formula provides as much sun protection since it’s so much thinner, but it seems to be working (no sunburn yet). And I appreciate that this new formula probably works better with a wider variety of skin tones now. And luckily it still doesn’t break me out even when I’m wearing a mask. So yep, I would still recommend this reformulated sunscreen!}
{November 2022: Just purchased another tube of the sunscreen even though their prices went up quite a bit since May (I wish I had noted down the price in this post so I could compare—but I feel like it’s gone up close to $15). Now each tube is $59, which makes it a bit less palatable. But I’m addicted and cannot live without this product!}