skincare

The best NYC skincare shopping destinations

Whether you're living in NYC or just visiting, here are some of my favorite places to shop for skincare products.

Whenever I travel, I love getting a glimpse of local life by visiting a neighborhood grocery store or pharmacy. Everything looks exotic—even regular things like crackers, bar soap, and cough drops. The other day, I realized that I’m living in a city that hosts tons of brick-and-mortar shopping destinations that should interest locals and tourists alike. In fact, SoHo has become a hotbed for many online-first companies like Casper, Warby Parker, Everlane, and Cuyana—all of these companies…

An ingredient database for every product featured on My Dad the Chemist

Exciting news! It just became easier to learn more about every product that has been featured here on My Dad the Chemist.

This is long overdue, but I finally got around to compiling an ingredient database for every product I’ve ever written about on My Dad the Chemist. I decided to use Airtable to get the job done—if you haven’t heard of it, it’s like an aesthetically pleasing Excel spreadsheet that you can query like a database (no SQL knowledge required).

What's the best mineral sunscreen for babies?

My dad the chemist's pick is Coppertone Water Babies Pure & Simple SPF 50. But it's important to note that this is not a purely mineral sunscreen, and it contains parabens (if that matters to you).

Baby sunscreen is a hot topic, especially if you live in an area that gets a lot of sun, like my baby niece does. The problem with many baby sunscreens is that most babies don’t like the sunscreen application process—especially when it feels thick and pasty. Zinc oxide is a very effective UV filter (and is the only FDA-approved ingredient to block all three types of UV rays: UVA1, UVA2, and UVB), but it oftentimes makes sunscreen feel thick, and it leaves a white cast. My dad mentioned…