Despite growing up in New Jersey, the nation’s unofficial capital of fake tan, I had yet to experiment with tanning (it was strictly banned in my household). Then, to my delight, in our yearly spring survival kits, Her Campus included L’Oreal Paris Sublime Bronze self-tanning towelettes.
So in what can only be described as a strange hommage to my home state coupled with latent teenage rebellion, I decided to embark on a self-tanning journey with L’Oreal. Here’s how it all went down.
Let’s begin with a couple before photos. I tried my best to document the whole experience, which included the good, the bad, and the orange.
Given my olive complexion, I estimated that three self-tanning sessions over the course of three consecutive days would get the job done. On the first night, as the package instructed, I took a shower and exfoliated my skin to prepare myself. I neglected to moisturize, despite the clear instructions on the package, because I was feeling lazy and thought, “Hey, what’s the worst that could happen?” I deeply regretted this decision the following morning, but we’ll get to that later. First, I’d like to emphasize how easy the application process was. In roughly five minutes, I was able to open up the package and smooth the towelette over my body. I was initially apprehensive about the application process, as I had heard horror stories from friends about how messy self-tanning can be. However, I was pleased to find that the L’Oreal towelettes were essentially mess-free.
At this point, my only complaint was the smell. Again, I heard that self-tanning products had a very distinct scent, but I was not expecting it to be so strong. I would advise anyone considering self-tanning for the first time to make sure you are in a well-ventilated room. After the product dried, I threw on pajamas and proceeded to thoroughly wash my hands as the package instructed. At first glance, I’ll admit I was a little disappointed by the lack of results. It seemed like the wipe had no effect on my skin. Oh, how wrong I was. I woke up the next morning noticeably tanner. I was even able to take a real, “I woke up like this,” selfie, sans makeup or filters.
In some areas, such as my face and arms, I was incredibly satisfied with my “glow up”. Then, I looked at my hands and nearly screamed. Remember when I was too lazy to moisturize? Well, turns out if you don’t moisturize when you use self-tanning towelettes, you will wake up the next morning to discover that the palms of your hands have turned a shade that can only be described as, “Trump orange.”
Another downside was the lingering smell. Maybe it’s because I’m new to self-tanning, but the chemical-like odor was still very noticeable in the morning. Deodorant and perfume easily fixed that problem, though. While getting ready, I realized my makeup routine no longer required bronzer. This was a pleasant change, especially during the winter in New England when my skin is at peak pale.
Throughout the day, a couple friends commented on my slightly darker complexion. Encouraged by the positive reception, I was eager for night two. I also stocked up on hand lotion, as my Trump-orange hands did not fade over the course of the day as I hoped they would.
On night two, I repeated the same routine as the previous night, but made sure to thoroughly moisturize my hands prior to self-tanning. The next morning, I awoke to find myself slightly tanner, and I was even starting to get used to the smell of the wipes.
Despite using moisturizer and thoroughly washing my hands after applying the wipes, my palms seemed to be getting even darker. It looked like I had, “slapped the Cheetos mascot across the face,” according to my boyfriend. As much as I joked about my hands, I definitely felt self-conscious leaving my dorm with them looking like this:
As I do with most problems in life, I turned to the internet in search of advice for what to do with my hands. In my quest for a solution to the Trump hands, I stumbled across a forum about this exact topic. One contributor insisted that washing one’s hands with whitening toothpaste would provide an instant fix. This seemed relatively harmless in comparison to other “solutions” I encountered in my search, and so I decided to give it a try.
Voila! Although I would not normally recommend taking advice from strangers on the Internet, this stranger turned out to be absolutely correct! The toothpaste quickly and painlessly cured my Trump hands. After two days of using self-tanner, I realized that I probably shouldn’t repeat the process again. As much as I love the Jersey Shore, I was not trying to resemble Snooki at the end of this experience. Here’s an “end result” shot of me after two days of using self-tanning wipes:
Would I recommend self-tanning? Sure. Honestly, this was a quick, inexpensive way to get a tan without having to sit under the sun or lock myself in a tanning bed. Would I do this again? Possibly. I found the smell difficult to ignore, even after day two. Also, despite its effectiveness on my Trump hands, I would much rather use my whitening toothpaste for its intended use. However, if you are looking for a cheap, natural-looking glow, then give L’Oreal Sublime Bronze self-tanning towelettes a try for yourself!