Review: Missha All Around Safe-Block Mild Essence Sun Milk SPF45 PA+++ (sunscreen)

School has been getting busier since finals are coming up and since I've decided to enroll myself in all sorts of extra-curriculars because I just love to torture myself ha ha... Anyways, this is a sample I got from one of my internet purchases. [Update Jult 7 2013: Also bought the full version]. The only other UV/sunscreen "Milk" that I've tried is the Hadalabo Shirojyun Arbutin Whitening UV Milk SPF20 which didn't really live up to its "milk" name because it was pretty greasy and made my face pretty oily after several hours! Let's see how this fares

Description (paraphrased from missha.co.nz):

• Lightweight and refreshing mild sun protector with water-soluble essence
• Non-heavy, non-sticky, freshness
• Applied evently with less greasiness than general sun care product. 
• It keeps natural skin tone without white turbidity
• In stickiness test by scattering sesame seeds on back of hand after applying same amount: less amount of sesame is attached on the skin due to less stickiness than general sun care product
• Shake it gently 3-5 times and apply literally and gently pat to be absorbed. Reapply for long exposure. No need to double-cleanse

My impression:

I said paraphrase because there was too much information to write it down. So I just took down the points that matter the most to me when it comes to a sunscreen: absorption, stickiness, heaviness/richness, and whether I will look like a white cast after applying it (speaking from personal experience with Skinfood Gold KiwiNo Sebum Sunte Matte sunscreen).

It fares pretty well on those points. It's very runny in consistency, as expected from a UV milk. It's easy to apply because of its lightweight texture and I don't feel like my skin is suffocating after putting it on. I don't even feel like I put anything on at all. It definitely feels less greasy than the usual sunscreen. It absorbed quickly and didn't feel sticky at all.

While I didn't feel that my face was greasy, there was still oil production. But the amount was pretty much the same as what I usually get after I put cream on and don't put primer on.

The only thing I don't like about this sunscreen is the smell. In general I don't really care about what something smells like. The only thing that's really put me off up until now is Skinfood Black Raspberry Eye Cream which smelled like something I shouldn't be putting right under my eye. This sunscreen smells like.. toothpaste? I'm not sure if I'm the only person who thinks this. While I was putting it on I thought I accidentally smudged some toothpaste onto the sunscreen sample. So yeah, while I was putting it on I felt like I was putting toothpaste on my face.

Other than the smell though, this is so far the lightest sunscreen I've ever tried. No white cast, feels very light on skin, fast absorption, no stickiness, no greasiness, my face feels like I put nothing on after 10 minutes. With all these benefits..I think it's worth holding my breath while putting it on (the smell goes away after you put it on).

[Update Aug 2 2013]: After doing some research on UVA and UVB rays, I wrote a small blurb on my findings on my Innisfree Eco Safety Aqua Sun Gel review. If the ingredients list on cosdna.com is correct, it doesn't seem like this sunscreen has much protection from UVA rays despite it being PA+++ (SPF is the rating scale for UVB ray protection and PA is the rating scale for UVA protection). And UVA rays are what ages our skin so it's definitely something to be concerned about. Just some food for thought..

Summary:

Light-weight, fast absorption, no white cast, no stickiness
No greasiness, oil production same as usual day cream without primer
Smells like toothpaste
$13 for 40ml on eBay

Grade: 4/5 because it hits on all the things that I don't like about sunscreen and fixes them but there doesn't seem to be much UVA protection?

Value: 3.5/5 because it's not as cheap as Innisfree Eco Safety Aqua Sun Gel

Repurchase? I did purchase the full product but I think next time I will be more wary of the ingredients and make sure the product offers adequate UVA rays protection