I am not, in all honesty, mad about fake tanning. Because while I enjoy - no love - being beautifully bronzed as much as the next person, I find the process with its associated exfoliating, shaving, meticulous application, smells and tiresome mess off-putting.
In winter I forgo the business altogether. I am fair and fine with it, especially when snuggled in jeans and winter wool. But as the weather warms each year my urge for glowing skin returns.
And so, over the years, I’ve stayed committed - through much mess, frustration and more than a few questionable outcomes - to finding the best of the best glow-givers that can be tolerated, even enjoyed by…particularly people like me.
Fuss free, as easy as they come to use and delivering the most seamless results I won’t be without this tanning team:
Fake tans for the face…
The instant: ByTerry Tea-To Tan Face & Body Travel Size, (£22, cultbeauty.co.uk)
Makeup formulator extraordinaire Terry de Gunzberg designed Touche Eclat for YSL beauty before founding her own brand celebrating fresh, natural faces and skin-friendly formulas. This bronzing spritz is my go-to for last minute panics and delivers an instant, transfer-proof and beautifully subtle tint without the use of tanning actives - which means…no smell!
The gradual: Sisley The Self Tanning Hydrating Facial skincare, (£120, sisley.co.uk)
I appreciate that this is frighteningly expensive, but Sisley’s skincare is best-in-class when it comes to delivering first-rate formulas and visible results. No exception to the rule, this buildable, seamless gradual bronzer is packed with antioxidants and skin-quenching actives so that skin is left not just bronzed, but perfectly soft, plumped and supple too.
The classic: Isle of Paradise Drops Light, (£13.10, amazon.co.uk)
This totally brilliant tanner comes in three tones to best match your skin and is designed to be mixed with your daily moisturiser or serum, making it thrillingly easy to use, even under makeup. With Vitamin C it also works to brighten and even the complexion.
Fake tans for the body...
The instant: Vita Liberata Body Blur, (£30, vitaliberata.com)
Like an Instagram filter for your limbs, this clever formula leaves skin looking not just bronzed but more smooth and even too (bye-bye bruises). A firm favorite with beauty editors and makeup artists, it comes in five shades and is best applied with a tanning mitt. Before diving in, be warned that a little goes a long way!
The gradual: Tan Luxe The Gradual Illuminating Tanning Lotion (£25, cultbeauty.co.uk)
This gradual tan is The One. A clever oil-cream hybrid, it smooths and conditions skin and develops in only an hour so you can apply it after work and still shower before bed if you wish!
The classic: Jimmy Coco Tinted Tan Soufflé Face & Body, (£29, jimmycoco.co.uk)
A friend put me onto this brilliant mousse infused with Hyaluronic Acid, and I haven’t looked back. It’s the most foolproof tan I’ve used - so reliable, it even came through when I had to apply it in the dark. (Don’t ask.) With a scent that’s genuinely inoffensive, it delivers a beautifully subtle, natural-looking bronze. I stick to the light shade, and when I want a deeper result, I simply apply it two nights in a row - a method I find far more reliable and relaxing than jumping to a darker tint.
