I have got quite the collection of self-tanners thanks to my
pale complexion. I don’t use self-tanners to make myself that much darker. I
really just use them to take the edge off of my paleness and give myself a
“glow” (I hate that word, but I don’t know what else to call it).
Even though I
don’t use them to get incredibly dark there are times when I want more color
and times when I just want a tiny bit of color. When I’m looking to keep my tan
pretty light or to extend the tan of another self-tanner I use gradual
self-tanners. I have used quite a lot of these over the years. I loved the Dove
Energy Glow, but it got discontinued. I have also tried the Nivea one, but I
can’t stand the smell. The fragrance they used to cover up the self-tanner
smell is too strong. Right now I have the Jergens Natural Glow Firming Daily
Moisturizer for Medium to Tan Skin Tones and the Loreal Paris Sublime Glow
Daily Moisturizer for Medium Skin Tones. They both have a little bit of shimmer
in them, which I personally don’t like, but oh well. The Jergens is more
moisturizing and gives me a little more color, but smells pretty bad. The
Loreal is lighter in color and in texture and has kind of a sweet smell.
Overall, I like the Jergens one better despite the smell.
The rest of the self-tanners I have give more intense color
and have guide colors to them. The St. Tropez Bronzing Mousse is my least
favorite of the ones I own. The color is a nice dark brown with a green
undertone, but I find that it gets splotchy as it fades. It dries quickly which
is nice, but I feel that it dries out my skin. And the worst part is using it
on my face. It seems to make any dark spots or acne get even darker while the
rest of my face doesn’t seem to tan much. I don’t experience this with other
brands.
The Bare Escentuals Faux Tan and Sun Labs Self Tanning
Lotion in Ultra Dark are very similar. The Faux Tan is more orange/red based
while the Sun Labs is green based. They are both moderately moisturizing and
take longer to absorb than the St. Tropez. I find that they both last pretty
nicely on the skin without getting as splotchy as the St. Tropez.
The most recent addition to my collection is the Xen-Tan
Deep Bronze Luxe Weekly Self-Tan. This is my favorite, but I think that some
people wouldn’t like it because of the texture. It is an incredibly thick and
moisturizing lotion. The color is hard to describe. It doesn’t come out a dark
brown color, but instead a light brown color. I was worried that the lighter
guide color would lead to more streaking, but as you rub this in it seems to
get darker. I find that this gives me the darkest color of them all and lasts
the best. I like the fact that the lotion is thick because it hydrates my skin
more. It does take a bit to soak in, so you have to wait to get dressed for a
while.
I apply self-tanners with different frequencies based on my
mood at the time. I tend to go through phases where I want to be darker and
then I will stop caring about it and barely use tanners for a while. A general
rule is to apply the regular ones about once a week and gradual ones more
frequently. Of course when it comes to self-tanning regular exfoliation is
necessary as well as moisturizing dry areas before applying the tanner. I like
to exfoliate with plain white sugar when I need an intense exfoliation and
maintain it through dry body brushing. I always apply tanners at night before
bed after I take a shower. Then I wear the guide color the next day until I
shower at night. The ones with guide color can stain your sheets and clothes,
but it will come out in the wash. Although after the same thing is stained many
times it can become permanent, so you need to be aware of what color your
sheets and clothes are.
When I apply tanner, I use latex gloves on my hands to protect them from the tanner and I also use a brush to make sure the tanner is applied evenly. It helps to keep streaking to a minimum. I found just using the brush to keep my hands clean was too time consuming and caused me to use too much product although that is an option too. I use a synthetic flat top kabuki. I got it with the Bare Escentuals Faux Tan, but any large brush would work. I would suggest a synthetic one though as a natural hair brush would soak up a ton of product.
Hope this helps you if you are new to self-tanning or wanted
to know what the differences were between some of the tanners out there.
Meagan
