Everyone loves the healthy glow of a summer tan but the trade-off for the real thing (hours spent baking in the sun) is the high risk of permanent sun damage and skin cancer. The solution? A fake tan!
Faking it these days involves several methods – bronzer, a gentle “holiday tan” moisturiser, the fake tan lotion, a DIY spray and even a professional spray. In the moments it took to put this story together, five new fake tanning methods have probably hit the market.
Faking a tan not only miraculousy makes you look five kilos lighter, but also gives you a party glow that reminds you of being 21. It’s great for going out and remembering how you used to have fun (or forgetting there are children tucked up at home in bed). The key to getting fake tan right is to choose the method that best suits your skill level. After all, you don’t want to look like one of those newborn babies that needs to sit under the lights at hospital because jaundice came your way.
A professional spray tan can be had for under $50 in most salons around the country, and it is by far the easiest way for a time-poor mother to look glamourously tanned without wasting too much time. Yet if money is tight, the gradual fake tanners are definitely the easiest way to go. These “holiday tanners” are designed for fair-skinned women who want moisturising and fake tan combined in a gentle (but not insignificant) manner.
The holiday tanners require vigilant handwashing and even application to look right. If you’re bold enough to give it a try, apply after a shower doing your best to apply as evenly as possible. Wait at least 24 hours to check the performance of your job to see how good (or bad) your application has been. If you’re glowing like an orange traffic and have streaky patches, then you need a little more practice. Just like fake tanning lotion or sprays, the gentle holiday tanners usually require good skin preparation to get right. As long as your legs and arms are exfoliated and moisturised before the colour goes on, it should result in an even application.
Bronzing powders might be the easiest way to give a natural and fresh flow – choose the right colour (two shades darker than your skin tone is as dark as you can go) adnd steer clear of the glitter unless you want to look like a disco ball. Bronzers can be used on the face, neck and decolletage – and while some are bold enough to use it on their legs – it’s best applied with a large make-up brush from the back of the jaw line and then blended across your cheek, nose and a light dusting on the forehead and then chin.
Whichever method you try, make sure you glow, girl.
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Written by Lilly Potter
A beauty and fashion goddess with the mouth of a sailor, Lilly is our go-to for what’s happening in the world of celebs. With a green tea in hand 90% of the time, she loves photography, surfing and dominating board game nights. It’s a problem.
Favourite Disney film: Beauty & the Beast
I had a professional spray tan once. It was awesome. It seemed a bit weird where they leave you unsprayed, especially under the arms, but it made sense considering. I noticed I got a lot more positive interaction afterwards too. That part was quite strange.