Self Tanners - Finding the Best Self Tanner

I absolutely love summer, because I love the warm sun and the way my skin tans in the summer weather. But what about the rest of the year? What do you do when you want your skin to have the sun-kissed glow but it is the middle of the winter? Well, enter sunless tanners. Sunless tanners, also called bronzers, give your skin a tanned glow without the trouble of having to lay in the sun for hours. Many people use these sunless tanners to get a "sun tan" look before a special occasion or because looking tan means looking healthy. I love looking tan year round, so these products are really relevant to me.

TOP FIVE REASONS PEOPLE USE SELF TANNERS

You can get a sunless tan even if you can't get a real tan.

Self tanners don't need your melanocytes to be in working order. Dihydroxyacetone [DHA], the active ingredient in sunless tanners, saturates the dead skin cells in the outermost layer of skin, where it turns the protein in the dead cells brown.

Sunless tans are completely safe.

Back in the 1970s, the FDA added DHA to its list of safe cosmetic ingredients, and there it remains.

Sunless tans are temporary.

After five to seven days, your sunless tan will be completely gone, although a few small remnants could cling as long as two weeks. A sunless tan is not a long term commitment!

Sunless tans take less time than a real tan; you can have a tan tomorrow.

You don't have to start "working on your tan" months in advance. A sunless tan can be a spontaneous decision.

Sunless tanners don't require you to lay out in the sun for hours and risk skin cancer.

With self tanners, you can have the best of both worlds - a golden brown hue, and no skin damage.

FINDING THE BEST SELF TANNER - IT'S AN INDIVIDUAL CHOICE

Start by answering these key questions:

What kind of skin tone do you have?

Many self tanners come in certain shades that will only look good on certain people with the right skin tone. You need to keep in mind how light or dark your skin is to pick out the right color. Light skin users should start off with a lotion or moisturizer for a slow, subtle glow with SPF. Dark tones seem to fair better with spray tans.

How tan do you want to look?

Some self tanners will give you an overall dark tan in just one coat, so you need to know how subtle or how dramatic you want your tan to be. Some tanners have just a subtle glow and in order to go darker you need to apply multiple coats.

How long you want the tan to last?

Some people opt for a sunless tanner to look good for a special occasion such as a wedding or their first day at the beach in a bikini after a cold winter. Others are looking for a sun tan to hold onto year round. Sunless tanners can make you look healthier and younger with their soft glow, but some sunless tanners will only keep their great color for a few days, others for a few weeks.

What kind of application do you like best?

Sunless tanners come in different forms so you need to consider which form will be the easiest for you to apply. Many creams and lotions can leave streaks or your hands colored if you don't apply them correctly. There are also spray tanners which can cut down the time it takes to apply, but can be very messy.

How quickly do you need the tan?

If you need a quick tan, spray on tans are your best option. Consumer Reports states that spray tans work in a few hours, and most will last somewhat longer than the creams, but you need a partner to help with application and the process could be messy and require too many steps.

How much do you want to spend?

Keep in mind your price range. How much is that sun kissed glow worth to you? There are self tanners in a variety of price ranges, and keep in mind that higher price does not always mean higher quality.

Best overall self tanners - all skin types

• ConsumerSearch assessed self tanners in general-for all skin types. For creams, they selected Clarins and for sprays, they picked Neutrogena as go-to brands.

Best self tanners - light skin

• I recommend Bain de Soleil. It is inexpensive, effective, easy to apply, and has a great color. This tanning cream is difficult to find in stores but keep looking because it is an excellent product for both men and women with it's neutral suntan lotion scent. It also has sunscreen so it is great for light skin. Avon also comes highly recommended and is a great choice if you want a subtle, natural glow.
• Lancôme's self-tanner is a liquid that claims to create a tan rapidly, streaklessly, starting in under an hour--without sun exposure. It contains 100% Botanically Pure Vitamin E, delivered by patented Nanocapsule technology, that defends against environmental causes of premature skin aging, a gentle hydroxy acid produces an even, ultra-natural color result. This is a top pick among women but, like all spray tans, it is challenging to apply.

Best self tanner - medium skin

• Women with medium skin tones generally favor cream applications and recommend Bain de Soleil, which has a vanishing tint to let you know where the cream has been applied. It is reported to be virtually streak free.
  
• If you specifically like sprays reviewers suggest Neutrogena. Users say it imparts a natural color but is colorless itself, so it won't stain surrounding areas. It takes about five minutes to dry. Spray-on formulas make it a bit easier to apply product to hard-to-reach spots like your back.

Best sunless tanner - dark skin

• The overall recommendation for the dark skin tones is trying Neutrogena. This gives an all over even tan for even the darkest skin tones.
• If you are on a budget try Bain de Soleil, Dark or Banana Boat. If you want to smell especially good, try Savage Bronze - a chocolate scented sunless tanning mousse that is an overwhelming favorite with sunless.com visitors.

Exfoliation.The first step is directly prior to applying the self tanner is a good exfoliation. This way, your skin is clean and ready to be the perfect adherence surface for a long lasting, natural looking sunless tan.

Apply everywhere. One of the most common mistakes with applying self tanner is that people do not remember to apply them everywhere. I mean, the not so obvious areas like behind your ears, the back of your neck, your hands (the tops of them) and so on and so forth. When you see someone with white areas like this, it looks "fake".

Strip down. The less clothing you have on after you apply the self tanner to your body, the better able the DHA is to work on giving you the self tan, as it is activated by oxygen, and will work better if it has more open air during the chemical activation phase. I don't generally recommend reapplying a second coat in the same day, I would usually do it the next day, since this produces more natural looking results, and lessens the chance of "yellowness" or an uneven color.

Apply a barrier (such as petroleum jelly) to nails, elbows, and knees, which can get darker than other areas. Consider using gloves, since tanners can stain palms even if you wash soon.

If you choose a spray tan, be certain to use proper ventilation, protect bathroom surfaces, and wear old clothes.

I hope these reviews help guide you toward the right self tanners for you. Keep in mind there are self tanners for every budget and skin type, so no matter who you are, you can get a great glowing tan anytime of year.

SOURCES

Viewpoints, Sunless.com, ConsumerSearch, Total Beauty, IVillage, Epinions and CosmeticsGalore.com