I’ve always been well known for my extremely pale skin. It’s safe to say that the one time I disastrously used gradual tinted moisturiser on my legs in middle school still haunts me, having forced me to wear full-length joggers in the midst of summer.
Remember that scene in Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging when Robbie takes the mick out of Georgia’s wotsit legs? That was me aged 12, and I’m still not over it.
Instead I opted to embrace my paleness - veins and all. And when people say: “Ooh Beff, are you okay? You look a bit unwell,” I’ve simply shrugged it off because fake tanning was firstly, not a commitment I was willing to take on, and secondly, I wasn’t very good at it either.
But there’s a new beauty buzzword going viral on TikTok, and as a sucker for a trend, I was desperate to give it a go.
Tantouring. It’s exactly what it sounds like - a sort of semi-permanent way of contouring your face using fake tan.
There are more than one million views for the hashtag #tantouring on the video sharing app, with user @Iamonaugust sharing a tutorial which reached 410k views.
It was definitely an intriguing trend, and if it meant I could save five minutes on my makeup routine, then I was going to give it a go.
I used the Amanda Harrington Jet Set Duo in Natural Honey, mostly because it was the only facial tanning product in the house, after receiving it in the Latest In Beauty box I bought a few weeks ago.
The tan retails at £30, but I bought the ‘what’s hot in 2022’ box for £38, saving myself £225 of the total value of the contents.
First I put on the protective tanning glove to avoid staining my hands, and followed the instructions on the back of the box.
It said: “Lightly spray illuminating face mist onto your kabuki brush. Dab excess onto the glove and buff and blend the colour in circular motions across the face, around the jaw, down the neck and across the décolletage.”
The mist is super light and didn’t seem to go all over the cream carpet either, which was a bonus. There was very little excess to dab away, meaning little waste, and the kabuki brush was nice and dense, perfect for blending.
I tentatively applied the tan to my cheekbones, blending it into my hairline, around the ears and onto my forehead.
The tan blends really well and seems to be quite buildable to achieve a subtle glow, or a more glam contoured look.
I was apprehensive at first, but the tantouring technique really seemed to work, offering a fresh ‘just back off holiday’ sunkissed glow in an instant.
My skin looked healthier and the product had given me subtly bronzed skin in such a way that defined my features and enhanced my bone structure as I’d usually do with makeup.
What I think is great about this is that you could really go for no-makeup and still feel confident and put together. I think it looks natural, without the need for tonnes of bronzer - and a little really does go a long way with this viral technique.
