Garnier Ambre Solaire Natural Bronzer

After I tried the Garnier Body Summer lotion, I guessed that this one might be good too, and quicker. I don’t really have the patience to apply a gradual self-tanner until it reaches a nice dark color, at least a noticeable one. By summer I want a tan, more than a “glow”, as people call it, so I bought this one, for something like 10€, I’m not sure.

It is a face and body lotion, and has a nice smell, kind of like the gradual tanner from Garnier. It’s a sweet smell, but not so overpowering, and covers up the smell of DHA (the self-tanning agent). On the bottle you can read that this product will give you a nice, natural looking tan, and that it has a guide color to help you see where you’ve applied. Well, when I read that I didn’t knew how was I suppose to feel, because a guide color maybe welcome sometimes, but I wasn’t expecting it form that product. But turns out that the so claimed guide color, was a slight shade of orange/brownish, very pale that you couldn’t even see on your skin. Guide color can sometimes ruin your clothes, but be very useful, to avoid the streak look, but in this case, I don’t even know why they even bring up that subject.

So I apply the lotion at night, because I don’t like the smell of this lotions, and I hope to wake up a shade darker, and I did. The color is very natural, kind of a brown, but with a warm hue, If you push it, you can get a bit orange, but nothing very serious, only after 3 or 4 coats. I don’t usually go beyond the second coat in 4 or 5 days, so it turns out nice.

As it is a lotion, it leaves your skin very moisturized and soft, and helping your tan, to last for like 5 days. On your face is also very good, not causing pimples and developing a nice color too. On this body part, though, the tan lasts less time, because I exfoliate quite often, and the face creams with chemical peeling agents also shortens your face tan, so I apply the Garnier Natural Bronzer, to my face at day time, mixed with my daily moisturizer and apply it.

Overall is a good product for men, because it will give you a natural color, and leaves your skin very smooth. As for the body hair part, I don’t find no problem at all, you just need to spread it well with your finger, and don’t forget to exfoliate those areas, because they can build up after some applications.

Garnier BodySummer Lotion

Although the summer has already arrived, and you can tan your skin more easily and naturally, it is always possible to achieve a darker tan helping to enhance the one you got on the beach. For those, like me, who have a lighter skin tone, a help achieving a healthier skin tone, is always welcome.

A few years ago I found this gradual self-tanning lotion that turned out to be my second experience with self-tanners (the first was with Nivea for Men Summer Look), and therefore my lotion of choice for this purpose. Like many products from Garnier, this is of excellent quality and is inexpensive, costing about 4 €.

Starting with the package, it has a color that at first may scare you because it has an orange hue, which goes against the prejudice that exists about the self-tanning, that turns the skin orange. As for the smell, the packaging states that the aroma is a light apricot scent, which there's nothing soft about it, being quite overpowering. The smell is a bit sweet, which does not necessarily mean that it is bad, just not suitable to apply by day time and leave the house, because turns out to be a little strong. Furthermore, there goes the usual smell of DHA, which together with the sweet smell of the lotion, leaves a scent of cookies, that turns out not to be totally disgusting, because you will get used to it, but for those who know the smell, can detect miles away we are using self-tanner.

As for color, it is a gradual self-tanning, so the color takes a few days to be able to see. For me, the version that I used was the dark skin tones, and it takes about three days to get some shade, which is visible after one week, but not very dramatic. Only a winter glow, to remove the gray tone of the skin. If you do not exfoliate your skin and keep applying it, the tone starts getting more yellowish, and I only recommend to apply until it reaches a certain shade of tan. Less is more, and in this case, a light color, turns out to be natural and warms the skin tone.

The lotion is rich in vitamin E, and with no doubt leaves the skin very soft and is a great addition to the product. For men with body hair, this lotion is quickly absorbed, and you need only to wait for a few minutes (4 or 5 min) for the lotion to dry, and does not accumulate in the hair, avoiding the stains. However, I noticed that the hair may darken slightly after repeated uses, because, as the skin peels, the hair will remain for a little more time.

Personally I apply at night, waking up each day with a slightly more tanned look, and removing the smell of self-tanner in the shower. It is undoubtedly a great solution for the winter, but for summer months it gets boring, because the results are not as dramatic as you wish, and I end up not having the patience to wait for the results. Finally, it is necessary to warn all that is necessary all the usual care that you have with self-tanners, although some of them, with less concerning.

Fake Tan for Men

The summer is coming and the white ghost skin hopefully starts to fade away. But although it’s important to catch a little sun, for a little bit, because it helps the production of vitamin D, the consequences of baking in the sun for a long time, are massive.

I’m not going to talk you about the risks of sun bathing, because we all know it by now. It’s such a talked about topic, and with a major importance that must not be forgotten. So an alternative to have a healthy looking skin during summer time, and all year around, it’s the Self Tanner. It’s not something to be afraid of, as some people may still be a little bit skeptical to the use of these formulations, but a long way has come since the very orange streaky look. I was one of those people who definitely were safe about this subject, so I started with a gradual tanning lotion. Actually, that’s an advance about the tanning industry, there’s out there a product suitable for everyone!

So, having a very pale skin, that most people do make sure to remember me quite often, I started trying to “fix” it, first by stop wearing sunscreen (big mistake) to get a subtle tan, and then applying a gradual tanner. Only latter I started using actual tanners.

In my point of view there’s nothing wrong with guys wearing fake tan, as I don’t even think it’s considered make-up (which I don’t think it’s wrong either). You just have to be careful, so it doesn’t go uneven or streaky. To avoid that, you have to follow a few steps.

Before Tan:

• Before you start your tanning session, you have to prepare your skin to receive the product.
• Shave and wax 24h before, or as a men, try to shave a little bit earlier, like, in the morning and then apply the product at night before bed.
• The day before, or in the morning, prepare your skin by exfoliating in the shower, with a scrub that doesn’t leave an oily film. Personally I use L’Oreal Paris Exfotonic, which contains AHA that makes a chemical peel too.
• If you scrub a day before, apply a moisturizer on the areas you intend to tan, so you have even hydrated skin.
• Don’t forget to exfoliate your face as well, and by shaving you are exfoliating your neck and part of your face too.
• This exfoliation and shaving, will remove dead skin cells that would come off and give you an uneven and dirty look. As the tanning agent will color the top skin cells that peel very quickly (aprox. 7 days), it’s important to remove most of them before the tanning session so the remaining top cells that actually get colored last as long as possible.
• Right before applying the fake tan, put some moisturizer on the dry areas of your body. Your wrists and hands, elbows, knees, ankles and feet. Don’t forget to moisturizer the skin around your nails, so it won’t turn orange (Major mistake by me!)

During Tan:

• If you are using a spray formula put a towel on the floor, because it can get very messy. If you have the chance, do it in the shower base or in the tub, so you can wash it easily.
• Don’t forget to use a mitt if you have one, or use latex or vinyl gloves to prevent the famous orange hands. If you are using a gradual tanner you can skip this step if you want.
• Start to apply the product on your legs and feet. This step is first because than you don’t have to bend yourself and risk ruining the tan of the upper body.
• Apply only on the top of your feet and be careful with your ankles so it doesn’t build up any product.
• Then apply on your chest, tummy, shoulders, neck and the sides. If you have body hair, there’s no problem at all. If you are wearing gloves, pass your finger through it and try to spread the product as well as possible. When using a spray, I do think it’s a good idea to spread it with your hands on those areas.
• Then apply to your arms and your face. When putting on your face, do it from the center of your forehead and spreading out, without building it up on the hair line. Do the same on your cheeks, nose and chin.
• At last, take off your gloves and rub in some product on the back of your hands. If you use powdery gloves, pass them through water and then apply the fake tan.
• Don’t forget to wash your hands very well if you are not wearing gloves or any protection, with a lot of soap.
• Then wait the product to dry and you’re ready to go. I do think it’s better to do all of this at night before bed, and then wake up with a nice color on, rather than walk around with the always existent fake tan smell (yes…no matter how covered it is, it’s always there).

Before Tan:

• Use loose clothes and avoid sweating activities for 3 hours, as it can wash off the self tanner and leave a streaky look.
• Use a moisturizer the day after to maintain your skin smooth and moisturized. Your tan will last longer and stay better looking if you do so. Try to avoid oily lotions (with Paraffinum) and peeling agents, as Lactic acid or Glycolic acid. They will shorten your tan’s life.
• Make sure you exfoliate 2-3 times per week, so your tan will fade evenly. You can do it with the scrub, or if you use a loofah that will do the job. You only have to use de scrub if you want a more effective strategy to peel of any patches or an uneven tan.
• If you shave daily, you can use a gradual tan do apply to the area to even out the tone. Or try to mix the fake tanner with some lotion that will do the same.
• The color of your face and hands will come off first, than the rest of your body, so you might try the same strategy, of applying the gradual self tanner every two days, or whatever suit you.

A lot of celebrities use self tanner, and to list some of them, we have Hilary Duff, Miss Cheryl Cole, Olly Murs and Joe McElderry.

Cheryl Cole is known for using Rodial Brazilian Tan and Fake Bake

Hilary Duff uses Fake Bake to give her a nice color for events.

Olly Murs and Joe McElderry, both contestants on the UK X Factor, used the Vita Liberata fake tan on the show. I don't know if they still use the same brand, but they do present themselves with a nice looking tan.
Try out some fake tan and have fun!