Glow for it: The best fake tans for spring
SUNSHINE may not be guaranteed in spring – but you can still look sun-kissed with our beauty editor’s pick of the best fake-tan solutions.
Like it or not, spring is the season for de-layering and exposing your limbs once more, so pre-empt the annual pasty skin dread with a trip to the beauty aisles. This year there’s a new wave of self-tan solutions to make warming up your skin – minus the sunshine – that bit easier.
From tan-inducing make-up to droplets that transform your regular moisturiser, fake tanning just got more intelligent. Who needs a plane ticket to Barbados, anyway?
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Vita Liberata Trystal Minerals (£35; 08445 616161) bridges the gap between tan and cosmetics. This super-fine powder looks like bronzer and acts like bronzer, but has the added bonus of developing a subtle tan that lasts up to five days.
You don’t have to use a separate fake tan for your face and body, but formulations specifically for the face are far more lightweight. St Tropez Self Tan Luxe Dry Oil for the body was a hit last year so the new Self Tan Luxe Facial Oil (£23; 0345 070 8090) should be top of your tan to-do list for spring. Using the pipette, dispense two to three drops into the palms of your hands for the most even distribution and you’ll be rewarded with a healthy glow in four to eight hours. It’s perfect for faking that “I popped to Amalfi for the weekend” look.
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I’m all for multi-taskers and Fake Bake The Face (£22; 0345 609 0055) delivers bronzing and anti-ageing in one, thanks to the Matrixyl-3000 peptides. The lotion may look dark but it’s incredibly sheer and glides on easily (top tip: use the blue glove included to avoid telltale marks on hands). Apply before bedtime and rinse in the morning or, to intensify the glow, add another sheer coat before your make-up.
If you’re venturing out into the spring sunshine, protect your body with SPF daily just as you would your face. Australian import Bondi Sands Everyday Gradual Tanning Milk with SPF 15 (£10.99; 0345 671 0709) is a go-to product for a subtle glow with the bonus of low-level sun protection thanks to its hydrating formula and cocoa butter.
Continuing the bespoke theme, Sunkissed Instant Tanning Gels (£4.99; 0161 767 7878) are skintone sensitive. Available in Cool or Warm shades, the wash-off formula works with your skin’s undertone for a more convincing faux bronze. How to tell if you’re cool or warm? If silver jewellery suits you better, you’re most likely cool-toned, but if you wear more gold go warm.
Skirts are usually off the agenda for last-minute nights out, but not once you’ve discovered Rimmel’s new Sun Shimmer Self Tan Mousse (£7.99; 0345 070 8090). The velvety, lightweight mousse dries in two minutes and takes one hour to develop into a matt, golden tan that lasts up to seven days. Now that’s what I call speedy bronzing.
Bespoke tanning is big news and Clarins Radiance-Plus Golden Glow Booster (£26; 0800 036 3558) is a game changer. Just add four to six drops to your regular body moisturiser, be that cream, gel or serum, for your own made-to-measure tan. Experiment to find your magic number. Four generous drops was all I needed to achieve a perfect glow and two drops to maintain the colour. It’s genius.
The Sunkissed lighter shade is ideal for spring while you can up the ante with the darker Bronze when summer arrives.Primer for self tans? They do exist. Tan supremo James Read’s new Tan Perfecting Enzyme Peel Mask (£15; 0845 862 1531) is ideal to prep your skin for colour or break down an existing layer if you’re at that awkward “between tans” stage. Leave on for 10-20 minutes once a week or more frequently if you’re a habitual tanner.
