The Tanning Routine

Recently
gradual tanners have been a topic that I’ve been holding quite close to
my heart, unless you’ve been hiding out in an underground bunker for
most of the summer, you’ll know that in the UK it has pretty much not
stopped raining, except for the odd week when mother nature decides
we’ve been good and deserve some vitamin D. This hasn’t exactly left me
with too many opportunities to top up my holiday tan, and being part
Spanish (a glorified statement, I’m less than half and do not speak
fluent Spanish) I’m used to going rather brown in the summer.  This year
there has been 0 chance of this happening naturally, so I’m introducing
you to my new best friends who have been topping up my holiday tan for
me…


Clarins Liquid Bronze Self Tanner
If you want a product
that will tan your face without breaking you out or leaving streaks,
this could be the one for you. I personally cannot get enough of this it
leaves a really lovely glow on your face the morning after I’ve applied
it (I apply it after my moisturiser before I go to sleepies). It’s that
“why does my skin look nicer than usual” kind of glow, and did take me a
couple of uses to put two and two together… Doi. Like I said, I pop
this on after my standard skincare routine, using a cotton pad for an
even appliation, if I want a little extra tan, I pop some on my hand
after using the cotton pad and massage it in. Usage of this product
without a cotton pad has been known to cause streaking – not something
I’ve experienced yet but you do need to be aware of it, if you’re going
cotton pad free!

St. Tropez Gradual Tanner (Medium Dark)
My
favourite of all the freebies I’ve ever received in a magazine, the
July ELLE definitely hit gold with this one. It says gradual tanner on
the bottle, but I really feel that, for me at least, it sits nicely
between a gradual tanner and a fake tan. When using other gradual
tanners, the product has never been as instantly strong or really felt
like it was washing off in the bath. Despite this, the tan does still
remain after some has washed off. Sounds weird, but I actually really
like the fact that it works like this. There’s more instant
gratification than I get with other gradual tanners, it smells amazing
(but you will experience the occasional waft of biscuits the next day – I
quite like it, is that weird?), lasts a while and is build-able. I like
to use this every other day, but sometimes use it just once a week. I
loved the mini product so much I jumped for joy when my work colleague
gave me a second mini version and then could not resist purchasing the
full size when it was on offer for £12(!!!!) in Boots.

 I’m
feeling a slight irony in writing this today, as some parts of the UK
are finally starting to get some serious sun for the weekend, but for
those of you who are still donning your brollies (or are working all
weekend)- this is for you.