FAKE TANNING 101

Hello! So today's post is going to be all about fake tanning. I myself prefer to be tanned, I think my makeup looks better when I do so and I'm just more confident with a golden glow. I do like my fair skin from time to time but for the most part I am a tan loveeeer at heart;).

Shave;
I like to shave my body the day before I apply my tanner, if I'm going to be getting my legs out that is. This is too ensure I have a smooth surface for my tan to cling on too. My tip is to not shave on the day of applying tan or you will end up with that famous 'dotty' look. This is where the tan sinks into the open pores. Shaving the day before makes sure your pores have closed up completely and you're ready to apply the tanner!

Exfoliate;
Oh my f'in god I cant stress enough how important this step is to achieving a non-streak, non-patchy tan. Its so easy but so many just miss it out the routine:(. I proceed with this step the day I'm going to tan, nip into the shower a couple hours before I want to apply the tan & scrub off any existing tan from my last application. Then jump out and rub my skin dry ensuring my skin is as smooth as a baby bottom! Doing this a couple hours before also ensures your pores close up from the heat in the shower so again you're not left with the 'dotty' look. Just go into Boots & grab yourself some £1.99 exfoliating gloves and you're good to go!

Application;

So because I tan so often I'm not one for spending a lot of money on tanning products, but I do like to make sure I'm using a tanner with a green tone in it. The green tone in tanning products are there to counteract the orange outcome so we don't look like oompa loompas, yes we've all had that stage before! So the tan I personally use which is cheap and works the best for me is the St Moriz in 'Dark'. This is the cheap dupe for St Tropez and to be honest its a bloody gooden! I first off apply moisturiser to my elbows, wrists, knuckles and knees to ensure that the tan doesn't go darker in those areas as the skin is drier there. I then do 2 pumps on each part of my body (arms, legs, chest, tummy) applying it in circular motions with a cheap mitt all over my body. My trick is when it comes to my hands and neck, to grab a small make-up buffing brush and blend out the tan on those hard to blend areas, this just helps with you having no patchiness or streaks in the final result! :)

Develop; 
So now its time for the waiting game, on the tanning bottle it suggests to wait around 4-6 hours for the tan to develop to its darkest colour, but I apply mine before I go to bed and wash it off in the morning. This ensures I have a really dark colour so when I do come to wash the Guide colour off in the shower I'm not left with my pale self again.

Wash Off;
This part is so important in making sure that the guide colour is washed off the skin leaving you with a beautiful dark bronzed look. If this step isn't complete, good luck too streaky lines when you get a drink spilt down you halfway through the night haha! If you didn't know, the guide colour is the top layer of the tan that is there to show you the darkest colour your tan could be. It also helps to wash the green tone off the tan off to leave you with a more neutral coloured tan, so you don't look like Shrek;). 

Moisturise;
As we know all of the above process is a ballache to be doing more than once a week, or maybe I'm just lazy, who knows. So the way I keep my tan from cracking on my skin and flaking off is straight and simple, MOISTURISE. Moisturising is so damn important to keeping your tan on for a good 1 week, after that it will be time to scrub off and repeat the above steps. I myself have hereditary Eczema so its important for me to moisturise in particularly, but for anyone out there struggling to keep their tan on, just moisturise day and night and you'll be good to go!

Q & A 

How do I prevent the dotty look when I apply tanner?
Always shave the day before, this process will close up your pores by the time you go to apply the tan, open pores is what gives you the infamous 'dotty look'. Shave 1 day before and Bobs your Uncle.
What tan is good and cheap?
I haven't tested a lot of tans in all honesty but the one I use which is the St Moriz is £4.99 and has worked great for me for years, has a great colour pay off and lasting power.
How do I stop my dry patches from looking so dark?!
Apply vaseline!! Creating that barrier will prevent your tan from developing so much on the drier areas, use a buffing make-up brush to blend into all the hard to blend edges as well.

So there you have it, my step by step guide on Fake Tanning 101, every step is so simple but so effective so I hope this has given you a greater outlook on the golden glow and I hope this advice helped, thanks for reading X