My View on Self-Tanners: The Good, The Bad, and the Bronzy

As Spring and Summer approach, the yearn for sundresses and sexy legs is also on our heels. The fact that I can tend to be deathly pale at the conclusion of Winter sometimes makes me cringe at the thought of my first outing in shorts and flip flops. Because I have fair skin and tend to burn in the sun, the process of building a tan for me is quite long and complex. I wish year after year to just hop outside for a few hours and come back bronzed, yet I am disappointed sunburn after sunburn. I have tried tanning beds and while eventually I can build quite a decent  tan, I find the cost just too much (considering I am living on a college student's budget). Spending nearly $40 or more per month just to achieve a warm glow is a bit absurd in my opinion. So what else is a girl to do but turn to sunless tanning products...

I want to be perfectly clear that I absolutely DESPISE the smell of my skin after using a sunless tanner, not to mention the dreaded orange glow. The reaction of the DHA (Dihydroxyacetone) with skin often produces a very distinct odor that I cannot even begin to describe other than god awful. However, it is impossible to find a sunless tanner that does not produce the smell because DHA is the active ingredient which creates the bronzing effect of the skin. There are so many options on the market and some products do produce less of a smell than others. I have finally found what I believe to be my sunless tanner of choice and below I will list my process of application that results  in as little DHA smell as possible.

First a little about the product. I present to you: Loréal Paris Body Expertise Sublime Bronze Tinted Self-Tanning Lotion (Color: Medium Natural Tan). This is a tinted self-tanning lotion that is gel based (not creamy in texture, more like a super thick serum) that contains Vitamin E to nourish the skin. It does feel quite sticky until it dries completely. It produces an instant shimmered bronze effect on the skin, but it is a time release formula that builds a deeper natural tan over a period of up to four hours. In the past I have not been a fan of self-tanners that are single application; I tend to use gradual tan formulas because I felt they didn't end up as orange on my skin. Loréal's Sublime Bronze though creates a natural brownish tan instead of the orange tint. The product claims to be streak free...note that I say claims.

 Many sunless tanning formulas claim to be streak free which is only as streak free as the application of the product, and in this case I feel that the tinted gel helps you see where you have applied product and where it may be sparse, thus allowing you to blend it perfectly for a streak free finish. I recommend avoiding showering, sweating, swimming, water in general, etc. for at least 8 hours to ensure absorption into the skin.

My process to avoid streaks and smells*: 

First I exfoliate my skin using a sugar scrub on any parts that I will be applying sunless tanner ( I tend only to apply to arms, legs, neck and chest). After showering, I allow my skin to dry completely before I apply the lotion; if the skin is wet, the lotion may not absorb completely resulting in streaks. I like to apply a thick lotion such as a body butter or a shea butter formula to my ankles, knees, elbows, wrists and hands before the self-tanner. This helps the hydrate the skin in these streak prone areas so that it doesn't absorb as much of the sunless tan lotion. To apply the lotion I make sure to wear disposable plastic or laytex gloves; when I don't, no matter how much I scrub my hands, I always have orange palms from the application (also I find this to part of my body to produce the strongest smell and when my hands are near my face I feel like my whole body smells this way, so if you wear gloves I promise you will immediately notice a reduction in the smell no matter what product you use). After my skin is dry I apply my self-tanning lotion  until completely blended. When I finish application to all large areas I remove my gloves and throw them away. Then using a cotton ball, I apply a small amount of lotion to the tops of my hands and blend into my forearm. Try to let your skin dry for at least 10 minutes before putting on your clothes; if you don't have time to wait, blast your body with cold air using a hair dryer to speed up this process. 

*I like to apply self-tanner before I go to bed at night so that when I wake up, I hop in the shower very quickly and using my hands (not a puff, washcloth, or sponge because I don't want to remove the skin I just tanned and remember I showered completely the night before) I wash my body with my favorite shower gel to rid myself of the DHA smell as much as possible. After I get out of the shower I apply a regular scented lotion. If you can manage to follow all of the steps I mentioned above and do this BEFORE bed, you should notice a dramatic reduction in the smell. When I complete the process as described, I notice almost no odor at all and I finally feel that I have a safe and healthy way to jumpstart my summertime glow!!!

**Disclaimer: Products were purchase by me with my own money; I am in no way sponsored or affiliated with Loréal Paris.