In just over a week time, the official UK summer time begins, and with the summer time upon us, out comes the paddling pools, the BBQ's and as much of our bodies as we can to get a beautiful golden tan! However, we live in England, and we all know what the typical UK weather is like - it's rubbish, it's absolutely rubbish! Even if we're blessed with a little bit of a sun, you'll be sure we're more than likely not to see more than a week of it at a time! One day it could be the hottest day of the year to date, and the next day you're waking up to the glorious rain!
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So what do we do? Well a lot of us adults Brits now know a beautiful summer is something of the past, Spud loves listening to my childhood stories of how summer meant sun, and winter meant snow - something he's not really experienced like many other children his age and younger! So in true Brit style, we light up the barbies no matter the weather, we invite the family round, and we still wear our flip flops - well a little bit of rain never hurt anybody did it? We also fake tan - yes both sexes, males or females - we do it, and us Brits love it!
Infact, I've just researched how many men fake tan, and I'm not at all shocked to discover there was a 40% rise of men buying fake tan in just one year - research thanks to the Daily Mail Fail. A lot of people believe that The Only Way Is Essex (a reality TV show based in Essex) was a big reason to why more people started fake tanning, but I can safely say it's always been huge - it's just more people notice it now! Whilst the Essex TOWIE stars most probably did help boost sales a little, did you know that Liverpool was announced the fake tan capital of the UK? Well now you do!
Anyway, before I start drooling over some of those Towie hunks, here are my five top tips to help you achieve a beautiful tan at home!
1: Do Your Research On The Brands!
I don't mean go all FBI and start stalking the lady with an amazing tan that you seen on your daily commute to find out where she shops! I mean do your research on the brands around, paying a few quid for a bottle of fake tan isn't going to do you perfect justice - trust me I've tried a LOT of them, and if I do blow my own trumpet, I always have a lovely tan - all year round! If you want my personal opinion, I'd recommend St Tropez - I recommend it to everyone - as you can see from the screenshot below when a friend on Facebook asked a fake tan question a few days ago!
2: Know The Tan You Want!
Do you want a long term tan, something that you can keep on top of? Or do you want a temporary 24/48 hour tan? Buying the first bottle of fake tan you come across just isn't going to cut it, you need to know what type of tan you desire, because if you thought choosing a dessert at a dessert parlour was hard, wait until you come across the many ranges of self tanning products! I personally use a gradual tanner that I buy from Ellisons, as I personally love the all year round look!
3. Buy The Important Accessories!
If you think you can just go and buy a bottle of fake tan and apply it to your skin for a beautiful golden look - think again! The DIY tan isn't hard, but it does require more than a bottle of fake tan to do the job! You're going to need a towel that you can use just for your fake tanning moments, you're going to need some fake tan mitts to apply the tan, and you're going to need an exfoliating sponge and a decent exfoliating scrub! If you miss the crucial steps, your tan may not be as flawless as you imagined - I've got to say I do love my tan, poor Gareth looks like a ghost next to me!
4. Prepare your skin.
Before you even think about putting any tanning lotion onto your skin, you're going to need to do a patch test 24/48 hours earlier, as well as getting your skin ready for a beautiful new colour! Doing a patch test isn't just crucial in case you're allergic to the lotion, but what if it's a shade too light, or a few shades too dark? Once you've passed the patch test, and you're happy with the colour, you'll need to exfoliate your skin to remove and dead skin cells, after showering and drying yourself, you'll need to make sure you're fully dry, apply a moisturising pre-tan cream, and then you're ready to go.
5. The Aftercare.
I always get asked if I'm worried about my fake tan streaking down my face/legs/arm etc if it rains, my answer is always NO! If you look after your tan if you're wanting a gradual and long lasting solution, you'll not need to worry because a decent brand wouldn't just rub off with the slightest bit of rain! Follow the aftercare advice from the brand you're using, and if it doesn't give you aftercare advice, consider switching the brand you're using!
Until next time,
Jada x
