When you want so badly to be tan, but for so many reasons you can’t bear to lay out in the sun and bake. We get it, and we have a tried and true solution.
Sun tanning is bad for you plain and simple. The sun radiates light to the earth, yadda yadda yadda. A portion of that light contains some serious UV rays. UV and UVB rays can seriously hurt us, which is why my mother has drilled it into my head that I should stay out of the sun and not tan. She’s right about staying out of the sun, but I am pretty fair-skinned, and sometimes a girl likes to glow a little!
So, I did us all a favor and spoke to a few fair-skinned friends of mine to gauge their level of familiarity and interest in sunless tanning products.
Always use a mitt when self tanning! A mitt will help you avoid those super-tan, patchy hands and will even out the tone of your tan.
In my own experience and in discussing with friends, here are a few tips and tricks I’ve gathered that will help you achieve the best self-tanning results:
Self tanning works best when you’ve exfoliated your skin, and have well- moisturized the driest parts of the body such as ankles, elbows etc. Make sure that you are totally dry before putting clothing on after using sunless tanning products! 5 minutes usually does the trick, but I like to wait about 20 minutes to be absolutely sure. I’ve never personally had issues with staining, but others have. So with that being said, avoid super white clothing after self-tanning!! I mean, I don’t really buy white clothing to begin with because I’m a bit of a mess… but for those daredevils who like to wear bright white shirts, avoid those after tanning. Avoid using these products if your skin is peeling from the sun, I had an experience with this that I will spare you from, but will make you aware of so that you do not make the same mistake I did… Skin peeling + fake tanner = BIG no, no. Make sure to exfoliate prior, to moisturize prior and not to scrub your skin after using the product! Moisturize a bit afterwards as well to avoid streaks!
I’ve chosen 3 products that I think you’ll really love. Any of these products are sure to deliver sun-kissed results. Here they are:
St. Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Mousse, 8 fl. oz.
This product seems to be the most popular among self-tanners. The formula goes on smooth, is great for sensitive skin, and fades gradually and come off nicely with exfoliation. Not orange at all! Looks the best when you’re already a bit tan, but works for totally sunless skin as well. If you want a darker look you can use this product more frequently, but it’s not necessary! Don’t be sloppy when applying or you’ll see streaks. The smell is pretty faint and doesn’t bother most people, but don’t expect a scentless experience. Use a mitt when applying this mousse and you’ll be streak free and beautifully bronzed within 4 to 8 hours!
Clarins Self Tanning Instant Gel 125 ml
This gel is great. The fact that it’s a gel is first and foremost one of the coolest things about it. It’s not heavy, it’s not complicated. This product is one of the first self-tanning products I had ever tried. It’s easy to use and doesn’t make a mess, but it’s sneaky because it’s clear! Make sure you wash your hands thoroughly after using it. No one likes that post-self-tan in between the fingers orange color. And wash those hands thoroughly, because despite its name, this product is certainly not instant. Not sure how Clarins came up with that name… but it usually works within 2-5 hours I’d say. The gel goes on smooth. Because it’s clear you can’t really see where you might have missed a spot. To avoid streakiness a few hours later, I usually apply lotion all over my legs/other tanned areas immediately after using the gel. The lotion will help to even out the tone and even out any streakiness or areas that may have been accidentally neglected. I find that the gel works well if I just want to do my legs or arms. This gel will work gradually, so you can use it a few days in a row to achieve a greater bronze. I might use it on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in order to achieve maximum post-vacation looking skin on Friday. Great product, definitely less labor intensive than some of the mousse style formulas.
Tanwise Dark Bronzing Sunless Mousse,7 fl. oz.
I had never heard of this product until my BFF filled me in. She loves to watch those beauty and fashion YouTube stars, and as it turns out, this product is pretty popular with that crowd. So my friend ordered a bottle and tried it out. I was skeptical, but she loved it! If she had told you she just got back from Cabo, you’d probably have believed her. She stills uses the product and with every next use and I found myself growing more and more envious. I decided to try this product myself and I absolutely fell in love with it. The formula is a more liquid mousse, but it goes on well once you get the hang of it. When you spray out the mousse it looks green, but it won’t stay that way! The first time I used it I was absolutely terrified that I would end up looking like Oscar the Grouch but I promise you this was not the case. Perfect tone, perfect color. The blending is absolutely key when using this product!!! I cannot stress the importance of the mitt enough. This product is very potent and I’ve only used it for full-body tanning. In the winter I’m sure you could get away with just upper-body usage. However, If I use this product I go all in. Head to toe. It doesn’t smell too funky either, kind of reminds me of cocoa butter mixed with sunscreen. Sounds funky, but I promise you after smelling Nair no beauty product could ever compare in scent. If I really dedicate the time, energy and effort to applying this product, my results are flawless. I highly, highly recommend this product to anyone who is willing to take the time to apply it properly. You won’t regret it. The price point is awesome too! Total steal!
Shout, shout it out
Shoutout to my friends for helping us all out with tips and tricks for achieving the best sunless-tan. Shoutout to my mother for scaring me away from the sun, and most importantly I have to give a big shoutout Tanwise for being my absolute favorite self-tanner. And remember, to achieve the BEST results from sunless-tanning you must remember that preparation and application are imperative! Happy sunless-tanning!!!