I love a tan. I can’t express that enough. However, with the whole aging and Cancer thing against sun use I prefer to get color through sunless tanners. At this point in my life I consider myself to know what I’m doing. Mistakes can still be made though. So here are some do’s and dont’s to the no sun tanning game.
Do- exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate. Oh, and when your done exfoliating do it again. This cuts down on streaking and patchiness. Depending on which kind of tanner you use, that is.
Do- research the product your about to slap on your body. You might think that because the bottle screams “tropical” so will your skin. Wrong. That bottle could be holding straight orange food coloring for all you know. Chances are online someone will have reviewed it.
Do- before you start rubbing tanner everywhere please put regular lotion around your hairline, the tops of your feet, your knee caps, elbows and hands. These places are where any excess color will sink in and are dead giveaways that your tan came from a bottle.
Do- take it as at least a two day process. The first night I always do a tinted lotion base. As in self tanners sister. It doesn’t have nearly as much color as a self tanner but I find it produces a nice base. Also, for some of you newbies it may be all the color you need. You can always add more. It’s a lot harder to take excess color away.
Do- know your skin tone. If you are whiter than a ghost don’t be thinking you can grab a medium or dark tanner and have good results. You will look like a tangerine. The trick if you are pale is to gradually build your color. Apply every night for three to four days if need be. A gradual build build can let you stop before you hit that orange mark.
Do- apply at night before bed. You can slip some old pj’s on and climb into bed. In the morning you will wake up with a tan!
Don’t- assume that the most expensive self tanners work better. I’ve fallen for this game many a time. Nice packaging can sure be a real hooker. It doesn’t always yield the best results.
Don’t- forget to wash your hands thoroughly after your done. And by this I mean twice. In hot water. With lots of soap. Unless you have a great plan on what to say as to why your palms are orange then just trust me on this one.
Don’t- forget to shower the next day. All tanner holds a bit of residue that makes putting regular lotion or makeup on harder. It’s layer after layer after layer. For the sake of your pores wash it off.
Don’t- forget to moisturizer with either tinted lotion or regular lotion every night after your tanner is on. This will just help lock the color in for a bit longer. I’m part snake so I have to live by this one.
There are many different types of self tanners. Foams, lotions, sprays, towelettes, ect. I prefer lotion myself because my skin is on the dry side. Lotion also takes a bit longer to dry so if you need to fix a mistake this is your best chance to do so. Now I can’t give you a list of my favorites because ( and I’m being honest) I haven’t come across too many that if applied correctly don’t have good results. They are usually pretty consistent color wise if you know what your doing. I will however give you list of tanning products that are sitting on my bathroom shelf at this moment in time. So grab your loofah ladies. Summers just around the corner. And if you can’t get in some time in the sun ( with sunscreen on of course) then why not try a self tanner? You might really enjoy the results.
Self Tanners I Have Personally Tried
1: Too Faced- Tanning Bed In A Tube
2: St.Tropez Bronzing Lotion
3: Olay Quench Plus Touch Of Sun
4: Nip + Fab 365 Body Glow Fix
5: Hawaiian Tropic Island Radiance Self Tanning Lotion
6: Jergens Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer
Just stumbled onto your page… Noticed you listed the self-tanning products you have tried but didn’t see your opinion on how they performed in comparison to each other. Am I missing a link? I had a lot of fragments removed from an IED and have over 300 small scars on my body. The scars don’t tan in the natural sun and end up becoming very noticeable when the rest of my skin gets dark. Around 2010 I tried Hawaiian Tropic “Dark” self tanner (with tint to see where applied). It was so good my doctor lectured me about the dangers of getting too much sun! My scars stayed the same dark color as the rest of my skin and it really made a difference for the better. Unfortunately, I can’t find it anymore and I have tried many other brands. They all have looked “fake” on me and the guys in my line of work are brutally honest when they get a sniff of “man vanity”. I’ve read reviews and tried Banana Boat, L’Oreal Sublime, and more expensive online orders such as Dave’s, etc… None worked as well as the Hawaiian Tropic. I used it for a couple years and it was very dark but so natural nobody ever knew. I can’t imagine why they discontinued it and would love to find something equal. Any suggestions? Is it possible the rebranded the same formula under the “Island Radiance” products?
Thanks for any input you can share.
Best regards,
Miles
(or as they like to call me: “Magnet Man” (given for the shrapnel I “collected”… glad I can laugh with them about it!)
Hi Miles! Thank you so much for your question! I really enjoyed the banana boat tanner too. The dark works for me very well. I’m located in Canada so its still found here in our drugstores. However, recently I wanted to see what all of the hoopla about St.tropez tanner was all about. I bought both the bronzing lotion and the bronzing mousse to try. First things first, you have to apply it before you go to bed and have time to quickly rinse the tint off in the morning. When you put it on it goes dark green. This is so that the tanner doesn’t pull any orange color. So when you apply it, use regular thin rubber gloves. They say to use the 25 dollar tanning mitt but I find it just sucks up half of the tanner. Even though you have to sleep in a shirt so you don’t wreck your sheets, its so worth it. I used to rely on banana boat and this blew it out of the water. It’s a little more pricey, but no streaks and unbelievable color. When you apply it, the tint will looks streaky to you. Don’t worry, when you rinse off in the morning it will wash them away and the tan will be completely even. The lotion is great but the mousse is absolutely phenomenal. Very light in texture and goes a long way. I hope that that helps you! And if you find any other products that you love, drop me a line and let me know. I always love to try a new tanner 🙂 xoxoxoxo
So love your list of Dos and Don’ts when self-tanning. I think it’s the most exhaustive list I’ve read. You sure looks like you know what you’re up to when it comes to self-tanning. Thanks for sharing the information.
Thank you! I’ve been an avid self tanner ever since I had my son and decided that staying out of the sun was a better option for me. He’s now six. So it’s safe to say that I’ve been doing it for a while lol! I’m so happy that you found it helpful! It’s a little bit more work but very achievable to get a believable tan that doesn’t affect your health. Thanks for the kind comment! Xoxo