Years ago when I spent more time on the beach trying to get sun instead of trying to not get too much sun, I was forever putting on suntan lotion (as we called it back then). After a liberal application I would sit down to read, take a picture, eat or engage in some other activity that involved my hands and I would either get sunscreen all over it, sand all over it or both.
The thing that really got me thinking was when I discovered that something in sunscreen caused the ink from a National Geographic magazine come off on your hands and get on other things like towels, chairs and your knees.
I thought, wouldn't it be great if there was a way to apply the lotion without actually touching it? This was before spray on sunscreen (which, by the way, doesn't really solve the problem since to do it right you still have to spread it around a bit).
I envisioned a multi-layered glove. The inner layer protected your hand and kept it clean (like a Playtex glove), the middle layer was perforated with many small holes (a bigger Playtex glove with lots of holes). Between these two layers was a supply of sunscreen. The third layer was the outer layer and was made of something like terricloth. Finally the whole thing came in a gallon size zip-lock bag.
Here, for you folks that like pictures (which I'm guessing are the same people that like maps instead of written directions), is a highly detailed engineering drawing of the inner two layers, which I'm sure is perfect for a patent application.
Here's how it works. Open the zip lock bag, slide your clean hand into the glove, (your hand goes right into the inner glove because the wrist area is sealed). Pull your gloved hand out, make a fist a few times to squeeze lotion from the middle layer into the outer layer and then efficiently rub lotion all over your or someone elses (consenting) body. When you're done, slide the whole thing back in the bag, pull out your hand and zip it up until you need more. No more sticky bottles, no more sticky hands, no more National Geographic pictures on your thighs.
There are many advantages:
Less waste of lotion
More precise, uniform application
Clean hands
No more sand on your sandwich
Easy to carry and pack
Less leaking, it's already in a zip-lock bag
You can write your name on the bag
But I think the best part was the name I had for it: "A Touch of the Sun"
For packaging I see a golden glove in a clear bag with a few white clouds printed on it. You could even color code the glove colors, the darker the glove the lower the SPF or shades of yellow through orange to red.
I'd sell them on the beach. I see a lifeguard type person (not me), carrying a large sack and sporting one of those big foam hands like you see at sporting events. It would be yellow with the words "A Touch of the Sun" in red printed on the finger.
Unfortunately, now my preferred sunscreen is a hat, a tee-shirt and umbrella.
