As the winter months approach, everyone is looking for a way to preserve their summer tan they’ve worked so hard on. Today I’ve got some tips for how you can maintain your summer glow year-round and self-tan at home!
The tanning routine I like to try to maintain year-round consists of using mouse self-tanners at home, about 1-2 times a month. Before I go on a trip I like to increase that to once a week about three weeks before my trip in order to get a nice dark base colour. The self-tanners I use are either the Loving Tan Deluxe Bronzing Mousse in Ultra Dark or the St. Tropez Self Tan Dark Bronzing Mousse. I prefer the Loving Tan one more as it has a red base so it’s a little easier to match to foundations; especially if you have more warmed toned skin, while the St. Tropez has a more green undertone. If this is your first time using a self-tanner I’d recommend starting out with lighter shades such as the Loving Tan mousse in Medium or the St. Tropez Classic, and working your way up to darker colours as you learn how your skin reacts to self-tanner. To apply these I like to use a tanning mitt. Any will do, Loving Tan has one here as does St. Tropez here and you can also find other brands in Sephora and even your local drugstore.
If I’m in a pinch before my trip, or am just not happy with how dark I am, I have occasionally stopped in at a Mystic Spray Booth for a spray tan. I’m not a huge fan of these as I don’t notice a difference between the results I get from the booth and doing it at home, especially for the price of s spray tan compared to the cost of doing it at home. However, if you are nervous about self-tanning, going to a professional spray tan booth can help ease your nerves as the employees there will ensure you get the colour best suited to your skin tone, and you won’t have to worry about streaks.
During my trip, I like to maintain my tan with the Jergens Natural Glow Firming Moisturizer. It’s a gradual tan developer and I find it helps to maintain my self-tanner by keeping my skin moisturized, but also enhance my tan because of the gradual self-tanning properties in the lotion. I use the medium to tan colour.
In terms of sun protection, while I’m actually out real sun tanning, I like to use the Hawaiian Tropics line, for no other reason than it smells amazing. Really any sunscreen will do, but I just prefer the smell of these products. For my body, I use either the Island Sport or the Silk Hydration, and for my face, I like to use the Silk Hydration for Face because it is oil free and extra moisturizing. I find traditional sunscreen can sometimes make my face breakout so I always like to use a face-specific one.
Remember to always, always apply sunscreen and stay safe when in the sun. Be sure to stay away from aerosol sunscreens as they are awful for our environment.
And there’s absolutely no shame in fake and baking! Stay away from those tanning beds and keep your skin healthy with my recommendations.