The ultimate in anti-aging

It’s impossible to take even a five-minute drive from your house to the mall without seeing a beauty advertisement for the latest skincare innovation. Chances are, it promises to bring back your youthful glow. (What glow? Most of us looked haggard as hell in our youthful university days from pulling all-nighters, and we were from a generation that, save a handful, didn’t learn how to use under-eye concealer until after graduation. I have classmates who still don’t know how to make heads or tails of makeup. #HAGGARD) Or, it swears to diffuse your mostly imaginary — or at the very least, mostly negligible — fine lines and wrinkles. Or give a little lift to skin that’s starting to sag, because haven’t you heard, my dear twenty-something Millennial? We’re ancient.

I’m a junkie for creams and serums. My counter, it overflows. When a pot of La Mer Soft Crème or a bottle of Lancôme Advanced Genifique lands on my desk, I get all “Mine, mine, my preciousss!” about it like Gollum in The Lord of the Rings, except with much, much nicer skin. And these products are great for giving your face a boost of hydration, or helping your skin combat and repair damage, or both. But what I’ve learned after years of making a living off being the vainest person in any room I walk into is that most women don’t even bother with the most potent anti-aging cream of all: sunscreen.

Basically: you need it, and not just on the beach. (Especially on the beach, though!) The majority of aging — the fine lines, the wrinkles, the sag, the dullness, the discoloration — is because of the sun. It’s the one product that the most hardened beauty nerds will never, ever skip. If Christianity’s two key commandments are to love God above all things and love your neighbor as you love yourself, well, in beauty, it’s never sleep with your makeup on and always wear sunscreen. Break any of the other beauty rules, rebel girl, just not those. Your lola knew what she was doing when she went to the beach covered in a caftan from head to toe with a huge payong in her hand.

There’s just no excuse to skip sunscreen. Not going to be outdoors? You still need it. Maybe you’re not getting direct exposure like you would if you were island-hopping, but UV rays are still getting through your windows, still reflecting off the pavement as you take that brief walk from your office to wherever. The five minutes you spend in the sun when you go on your daily mocha frappucino run will still compound over time, still deal a little damage. You might not feel the effects of UVB rays, which are what give you the burn in Boracay, but it’s the UVA rays, the aging-inducing rays, that are insidious and subtly deadly to your dreams of looking fresh forever. Makeup with SPF won’t cut it. Unless you’re putting on a teaspoon worth of your SPF 30-laced foundation or BB cream, and I sincerely hope you’re not, you still need it.

All the money you’re spending on pricey anti-aging super serums is essentially wasted if you’re not putting on sunscreen, and the sooner you start, the better off you are. Many anti-aging products advertise themselves as the solution, and while I have a few on rotation in my own regimen, I’ve always believed that prevention is ultimately easier than cure.

If you hate thick textures:

Shiseido Perfect UV Protector SPF 50+/PA+++

One of the most common complaints about slathering on sunscreen is the sticky feel it tends to leave on your skin. This is the most outdated excuse ever. It’s the beach-specific sunscreens that feel sticky because of the physical sunscreens in their formulas (though newer ones have been improving on this more and more in recent years), but the SPF created for daily wear is considerably lighter. Shiseido’s has an almost water-like texture that melts right into skin and feels so comfortable you’ll forget you have it on.

If you want to get a tan:

Nivea Sun Protect & Bronze SPF 20

Yeah, we get that you want to get golden for the summer, but that isn’t a legitimate excuse to skip SPF. Donatella Versace: A Cautionary Tale. (We love her, but her skin! Her skin!) Nivea Sun’s Protect & Bronze SPF 20 provides your skin with a little UV protection (reapplication is essential if you’re going to be exposing yourself to sun, sand or sea, okay? Do it every two hours!) and contains natural plant extracts that stimulate the production of melanin to give you a bronzing boost.

Best for the beach:

Belo Essentials Sun Expert Face SPF 40/PA+++

The ads for Belo’s sunscreen show Anne Curtis using it bikini-clad on the beach, but the formula goes on so invisibly and feels so lightweight that I actually use it in the city, too. Plus, it’s non-comedogenic — meaning, it won’t clog your pores — so you don’t have to worry about it causing breakouts. (The worst thing to have in summertime is a bad breakout. Who wants to wear makeup when it’s that hot outside, right?)

If you don’t want a white cast:

Lancome UV Expert GN-Shield SPF 50/PA+++

Admittedly, no one looks attractive with that ghostly white sunscreen cast, and some traditional sunscreens tend to do that. You don’t need to worry about it anymore. Lancome’s gives skin a touch of hydration, applies clear, and doesn’t leave you looking pale or greasy. Wear it under your makeup, or if your skin’s clear enough, on its own for a fresh, dewy glow.