beauty

Sun safety is cool again. Thank you, Zoe Foster Blake and co.

Last time I visited the beach, there were four containers of sunscreen in my bag. Four. One was for my face, one was a spray formula for my body, and the other two were backups — you know, just in case.

Yes, I am ‘That Girl’ when it comes to sun safety. There’s one in every friendship group. After a childhood filled with rashie vests, neon zinc on the nose at the beach, and constant reminders about sunscreen — thanks mum and dad! — I’m still militant about sun protection, and my mates usually laugh at me for it.

RELATED: What you really need to look for in a sunscreen.

Every single Australian knows sun safety is important, but that doesn’t mean it’s always considered ‘cool’ to slip slop and slap. I always overhear sunbakers joking about putting their “skin cells in trauma” (a direct quote from that melanoma ad), and skipping the sunscreen in favour of a tan is still pretty common behaviour despite all the warnings.

However, it seems sun protection is gaining some serious street cred at the moment. Yesterday, author and beauty maven Zoe Foster Blake shared an island holiday snap of herself… wearing a rashie vest. And it’s had our whole office captivated.

Um... how cool is this rashie?

 

Now, if your parents made you wear a neon rashie vest until well into your high school years, you've probably sworn off them for life, haunted by the memories. I fondly recall being one of the last girls in my year wearing them to swimming carnivals, and trust me — they weren't ever considered "cool".

RELATED: This mum's skin cancer selfie will remind you why sun safety isn't a joke.

However, I never thought these words would leave my mouth, but Zoe's navy, zip-up rashie is... sexy. Really sexy, actually. And she raves about it in her caption:

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"Don't be a sun dickhead, is my motto. I wore a rash vest all day today ... and felt smug-as in the roaring sun. They don't even have to be neon and tacky anymore, though if you find an original hot mauve Hounddog one DEFINITELY WEAR IT. I have seen lots of brands start to do them, and urge you to consider one for long periods of sun/swim. UPF 50 and long sleeve ideally. (Mine is @theacquabrand and zip up: easy to put on/all grown up and chic). Your face stops at your boobs so keep that shit protected."

This is me, looking awfully proud of myself because I haven't been sunburnt in months.

 

Zoe's not the only stylish woman doing great things for the reputation of rashies — Elle Macpherson, Nicole Kidman and Cate Blanchett have all been photographed wearing them, and they look no less gorgeous than they would in just a bikini. Ditto just about every professional (and non-professional) surfer.

Clothing brands also seem to be registering the public's interest in sun safety. (Post continues after gallery.)

 

Take Idlebird, for instance — the Aussie company creating stylish garments out of SPF50+ fabric. Just this week, a French designer has developed a 'smart bikini' that tells the wearer when they need to reapply their sunscreen, and local swimwear label Seafolly sells wristbands that do the same thing by changing colour.

One of Idlebird's SPF50+ garments.

 

Then there's the skin cancer awareness campaign being fronted by Australia's favourite actor, Hugh Jackman. The Wolverine star has had four basal cell carcinomas sliced out of his nose and shoulder over the past 18 months, which he attributes to years of not wearing sunscreen as a young lad.

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RELATED: Hugh Jackman reveals he's had four skin cancers removed in 18 months.

“I go every three months for checkups. It’s the new normal for me. My doctor says I’ll likely have more [skin cancers] and if that’s your cross to bear in life, you should be so lucky,” he told People magazine, urging people to look after their skin. TV presenter Georgie Gardner has also spread the message, sharing a selfie after having a squamous sell carcinoma cut out of her lip earlier this year.

Jackman has also praised fellow Aussie Nicole Kidman for being so diligent about sun safety, despite being taunted for it.

Hugh Jackman and Georgie Gardner share selfies after having skin cancers removed to serve as a reminder to be sun safe

 

“Nicole told me when she was a kid she used to be made fun of all the time in Australia because she used to stay in the shade and she had whiter skin. And no one is making fun of her now,” he said.

“I’m really heartened to see in general the idea that to be sexy and beautiful you have to be tan is gone. Nicole has the most beautiful skin."

RELATED: 33 problems only pale girls understand.

Amen. If the likes of Hugh Jackman and Zoe Foster Blake are wrong about sun safety being cool (as well as important), then I don't want to be right. If you want to join me in being a skin safety vigilante, I'll be the one sitting in the shade under a massive floppy hat, religiously re-applying my SPF50.

As Zoe says, it's pretty simple: don't be a sun dickhead.

Are you diligent about sun safety?