Self Tanner
I don't know about you... but I'm a better person when I'm tan. Unfortunately it doesn't look like anyone will really be hitting the beaches much this summer so I was on the hunt to figure out what self tanner worked the best...
For years I have been using the Jergens Natural Glow self tanner for my legs. Im going to be honest, a normal summer this would be perfectly fine, it adds a bit of color with each use and is pretty hard to mess up. This summer, since I'm not out at the beach or pool, I needed a bit of a more drastic approach and one that works for my face as well as all over my body.
According to the back of all the labels you should exfoliate the day before using any type of self tanner. I for a while decided to ignore that advice for my legs for a while simply out of laziness in not wanting to buy it. I finally bit the bullet and went ahead to get something to exfoliate with when i was at CVS. I ended up getting a Shea Moisture one that was on sale, I really like the way it smells and seems to work, my skin felt tingly and invigorated after.
The next morning after I showered, I went and used some Isle of Paradise. I have tried the mousse, water and the gradual tan lotion. My current favorite is the lotion, before I get into that let me go through the other Isle of Paradise products.
The Isle of Paradise, Self Tanning Water in Light was the first product I got from them. Overall I actually like it, it gets the job done, my only word of caution would be that it is runny, so if you have a mitt or can easily maneuver to rub it in then rock on. I have issues of not making it even on my legs so thats a me problem but overall the product is great. PLUS, if you go to the Isle of Paradise website, you can buy a refill to save plastic.
The second Isle of Paradise product I tried was the Self Tanning Mousse. Overall, I found this easier to use than the water is only because it doesn't speedy drip down my legs! I really loved using this but unfortunately I had to stop when the pump broke or something because ti stopped coming out as mousse but started coming out as water... I know Spehora has a return policy where you can return as long as the product is at least 50% full but I always feel shady doing that after I used the product a few times so I didn't end up doing that.
My current favorite is the gradual body butter. This is perfect for a simple gal like myself. I ended up getting it on QVC and it was an exclusive so the closest thing IoP offers is the Happy Tan Gradual. This is about as close as they offer to the Self Tanning Butter. Overall its so easy to use, literally just put it on like any other lotion! If you want a similar product you can buy from Sephora I would recommend Tan Luxe Gradual Tan Lotion.
Outside of Isle of Paradise (which is 100% clean beauty) I recently started using another brand that is a bit newer on the scene... Tourne Sol Beauty! This is another great brand that uses no nasties and clean ingredients. I have tried the Tanning Towelettes, which come in two colors and are amazing. They are a large size, come in two colors... Each towelette is so easy to throw into a bag or travel with and you can use one of them literally all over your body. Its great to travel with and do either a touch up or enhance your glow.
The second product from Tourne Sol I have tried and loved are the Face Tanning Pads, these come in a pack of 20. These are also really easy to travel with, just throw in your bag and go. Since all of their products have Aloe in them they are very soothing. Since there is no liquid it is a bit harder to mess up but you do need to remember to rub all areas of the pad on you as well as wash your hands after.
What are your favorite self tanning products and best tips?
