Honest Reviews: St. Tropez Self Tanning Mousse
Hi friends! The quarantine must be really getting to me, because a couple weeks ago I bought a bunch of self tanning stuff from the Ulta 21 Days of Beauty Sale. If you haven't shopped this sale before, keep an eye out because they have tons of prestige makeup & skincare brands on sale for 50% off!
I haven't used self tanner since my high school days when I used to use Jergens Natural Glow, and that just never did it for me. I ended up getting #influenced because I follow a lot of other bloggers who were posting their self tanning routines so I thought, why not? Especially when this St. Tropez Classic Self Tanning Mousse went on sale for 50% off, making it only $22.
I spent lots of time researching (aka reading other influencer's blogs) about the best way to self tan without looking orange or streaky - because let's face it, that's the fear when you're using self tanner. I implemented a lot of the tips and tricks that I read, and I was able to come out of this experiment bronzed and streak-free!
The first mistake I realized I was making when I used to self tan was that I never used a mitt, I always just used my hands- which obviously left my palms orange, and that's just not a good look for anyone. So this time, I invested in a mitt! And when I say invested, I mean I spent $5.99 on one at Target.
They're super cheap and reusable if you wash it with warm soap and water after you use it, so I would definitely recommend using one.
Something else I read about was making sure that you really exfoliate your skin before you use your self tanner. It gets off all of the dead skin that you have hanging around on your body (ew) and will help your tan last longer. When you use exfoliator after you've already had your tanner on, it will help your tan fade evenly so you don't get splotches of color all over you. So, I bought this St. Tropez Tan Enhancing Polish, but you could use any exfoliator you have on hand. Use this at least 24 hours before you tan, and try to avoid putting on lotion besides places like your knees, elbows, and heels of your feet.
The next day when I was ready to tan, I applied lotion (again) to my knees, elbows, and the heels of my feet - this was a tip that I read to prevent areas that are usually a little more dry of holding extra color (aka orange knees and elbows). I put one pump of tanner on the mitt, and worked in sections - starting with my knees down, then my knees up, then my elbows down, my elbows up, chest & neck, then stomach area.
Here are a few tips that I've found after tanning a few times:
Start with your legs and work your way up. This way, you won't get any crease marks on your inner elbows if you're moving your arms after you tanned them. (I learned this after the first time I used my tanner - I started on my arms, and then got creases on the inside of my elbows because I was moving too much before they dried. Rookie move!)
Apply the tanner to places like your toes, elbows, knees, and knuckles on your hand with any leftover product you have - do not start at those areas. These places are usually more dry and will hold the color more when you tan.
Make sure you tan in between your fingers (another mistake I initially made!)
Wait until you're dry to the touch to get dressed. This only takes a couple minutes.
I found that my tan looks the best when I tan at night, and then rinse it off in the morning.
Try not to take a super hot shower - that will make your tan fade faster.
Make sure you stay moisturized! That will help with fading and looking splotchy.
Here's a before and after of my legs - I wish I had taken one of my arms too! Next time :)
This self tanner gives a really great, natural looking bronze. In person it looks super natural which I love. Some other brands that I've heard have great self tanning products are Bondi Sands, Loving Tan, and Isle of Paradise. There's no better time than now to try it, because if it doesn't turn out the way you want, no one will be seeing you!
Let me know if you have any questions, or helpful tips I can share with everyone about how you self tan!