Let’s admit it. We all feel a little better when we have a little artificial sun on our skin. There’s something so confidence-building in bottled up glow.
And I’m not talking like the kind of fake tan that seems so processed it might as well been mixed up in a lab and poured into pixie stick packaging. That kind of oompa loompa look is reserved solely for Paris Hilton circa 2000.
For that reason, most girls shy away from self-tanner. It has a rep to turn into that orange-hued mess which bring back war-flashbacks from Junior Prom when your spray went from natural to baked in seconds. (Anyone else? No? Just me? Now that I think of it… it’s no wonder why my mom ordered those pics in black and white only.)
Luckily, I’m about to give you the inside scoop on the products that work. This line up will save you from Willy Wonka horror stories AND dangerous UV rays. You’ll be looking like you’ve been posted up by the pool when the skies have been nothing but gray.
Speaking of gray, you don’t have to be feeling fifty shades of bummed about being fifty shades of pale anymore. Here’s how:
Mousse- St. Tropez Bronzing Mousse
If you’re willing to drop a couple of extra bucks for a quality product, St. Tropez Self Tan Bronze Mousse is the way to go. It’s one of my go-tos if I want a deeper bronze that never rubs off on clothes and it only takes about three minutes to apply.
Lotion- Jergens Natural Glow
Check Target, Ulta, Walmart, CVS, and, uh, my roommate’s end table – and you can find a Jergen’s natural glow moisturiser. I love this because its color naturally sets. It builds in about three days and never gets streaky.
Wipes- L’Oréal Sublime Bronze
Okay. Buckle up. I’m about to preach about two of L’Oreal’s products like they’re pages from the Bible. I am OBSESSED (Listen… my credibility here is strong. I am literally so pale that when they recommend me a foundation color at Sephora it’s always porcelain.) It’s called Sublime Bronze and comes in two forms: Wipes and bottle. The bottle has a subtle shimmer that looks fantastic on your legs, but the wipes make application a whole lot easier.
Spray- Air-Brush Tans
When you hit up your next salon, make sure they have an applicator that has a person doing it rather than a machine. It makes SUCH a difference. No streaking. No orange. No routine crying-in-the-parking-lot after.
Just make sure to wash those hands afterwards or you’ll palms will be as easy to spot as knock-off LVs…don’t be that girl.
Happy bronzing, ladies.