Ultra Violette Extreme Screen review: We tried the chic new body sunscreen that makes your skin shimmer.

After much anticipation and polite pleading, beloved Aussie sunscreen brand Ultra Violette has released its brand new sunscreen for your body.

Her name? Extreme Screen. And you’re about to see her bright blue packaging all over your Instagram feed.

This hydrating body sunscreen is the latest product from the aesthetically-pleasing brand that prides itself on making the highest protection SPF products that don’t look or feel like traditional sunscreens at all. In fact, when Ultra Violette released their innovative facial sunscreens back in late 2018, they changed the game.

Their latest offering is no different. Forget greasy, smelly sunscreens of the olden days. No, Extreme Screen is a cool sunscreen and here’s everything you need to know about her, including my review.

 

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Ultra Violette Extreme Screen Hydrating Body and Hand SPF 50+.

Retailing at $35 for 150ml, Ultra Violette Extreme Screen Hydrating Body and Hand SPF 50+ is a high-protection body sunscreen that’s marketed as a luxury beauty product. It sits within the brand’s existing family of ‘skinscreens’, a term they coined for sunscreens that feel and act more like lovely skincare products.

Speaking to Mamamia, Ultra Violette’s Ava Matthews said despite never wanting to create a body SPF (too boring, she thought!), she and her co-founder Bec Jefferd spent nine months working on Extreme Screen simply because the demand from their customers was relentless. So much so, some were resorting to using their precious UV facial sunscreen on their bod which, at $40ish a 50ml tube, was quickly becoming an expensive habit.

Matthews and Jefferd came up with 10 different prototypes of Extreme Screen before landing on the current formula that fits in with their other products: Queen Screen SPF 50+ Luminising Sun Serum ($47), Supreme Screen SPF 50+ Hydrating Facial Sunscreen ($45), Clean Screen SPF 30 Mattifying Mineral Skinscreen ($42) and Sheen Screen SPF 30 Hydrating Lip Balm ($25).

"For us, the main challenge creating Extreme Screen was making it fit the Ultra Violette proposition i.e. make it feel luxurious and more like skin/body care than your traditional SPF. The brief to our chemist was: make it feel like a hydrating, delicious body lotion you’d want to apply every morning straight out of the shower," she said.

"We wanted it to be something you’d reach for when you’re going for a walk (rather than not wearing anything which a lot of us do!), or something you could throw in your bag to apply to your chest after a long boozy lunch in the sun (we’ve all been there!)."

Now, onto the important stuff - how this sunscreen protects your skin from the sun.

• Most importantly, Ultra Violette Extreme Screen is SPF 50+, 4-hours swim-resistant and protects against UVA and UVB rays.
• Ultra Violette Extreme Screen is a chemical/organic sunscreen (more on the difference between chemical/organic and physical/mineral sunscreens here).
• The active ingredient breakdown is: Octocrylene [8.00% w/w] Homosalate [10.00% w/w] Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane [3.00% w/w] Octyl Salicylate [5.00% w/w].
• It's a hydrating sunscreen and contains Vitamin E, Aloe Vera and Pentavitin.
• Ultra Violette Extreme Screen does not contain parabens or oxybenzone, an active ingredient in some sunscreens that may be harmful to ocean ecosystems.
• This sunscreen is also cruelty-free, Australian-made and comes in a mini 30ml size for $15.

Matthews added the main difference between Extreme Screen and other body sunscreens you can get from the chemist is it was just as important for it to be a beauty product as it was a sunscreen.

"It’s a really sheer, hydrating formula with no white cast, that we wanted to feel and act like a body lotion. It’s not heavy, gloopy, greasy or whitening and also has a bit of a shimmer so it's perfect for arms, chest and legs."

You can learn more about different sunscreens and why you should wear one on your face EVERY DAY in this episode of the You Beauty podcast below. Post continues after audio.

My Ultra Violette Extreme Screen Hydrating Body and Hand SPF 50+ review.

I'll say straight up, I'm really quite obsessed with this sunscreen.

Everything from the packaging and the scent to the feel and finish is primo. Though it has nothing to do with this product's ability to effectively protect your skin against sun damage, the cobalt and light blue bottle is chic as sh*t and with the twist click lid, the packaging elevates it into the realm of beauty.

As for what it's actually like to use, let's break it down into the main questions I know you want to be answered:

What does Ultra Violette Extreme Screen smell like?

Extreme Screen has a subtle, warm, sweet, coconut scent that, in my opinion, smells more like a hand cream than a traditional sunscreen. That said, everyone registers fragrances differently so I'd say it's not completely un-sunscreeny.

How about the texture and how it sinks in? 

The texture of Extreme Screen's formula is genuinely lightweight and has a silkiness to it you'd expect from a light-to-medium body lotion. It rubs in seamlessly and while you can feel you've got something on the skin, it doesn't leave an oily, sunscreeny residue.

Also, there's no white cast or transfer so you can apply it and pop your nice clothes on almost straight away. The finish is fairly skin-like, so semi-matte.

Does Ultra Violette Extreme Screen really have shimmer in it?

Yes. Yes, it does.

The formula has just the tiniest amount of shimmer in it, which leaves a lovely, natural glow finish on the skin. It's not glowy like an actual body highlighter and doesn't provide any colour (the shimmer particles are clear/silvery), but you can definitely see the subtle sheen once applied.

This is what makes Extreme Screen great for everyday use or events when you don't want to look greasy, as well as the beach.

Final verdict on the Ultra Violette Extreme Screen...

Despite being a great all-rounder sunscreen that can handle long days at the beach or a sweaty sports session, Extreme Screen almost feels too spesh to use up and get super sandy.  I think of it more as the answer to why I don't always wear sunscreen on my body in my day-to-day life, but now will.

The seamless, shimmery and completely non-offensive formula means you can use this product as you would a body moisturiser daily to protect often-neglected bits like your arms, chest and hands from everyday incidental sun exposure. Hands especially, because they often show earlier signs of ageing (wrinkles and freckles) from driving and being out and about unprotected.

All year round, I'll be applying Extreme Screen before I leave for my work commute, on days when I'm doing errands or meeting someone for brunch, and on exposed skin for outdoor events like barbecues, parties or late afternoon drinks. I suggest you do the same.

Ultra Violette Extreme Screen Hydrating Body and Hand SPF 50+ is available now from ultraviolette.com.au, and will be from adorebeauty.com.au from Monday, January 13.

Feature image: Supplied/Ultra Violette and Mamamia.

Do you have a favourite body sunscreen? Tell us about it in the comments!