My tricks to get a natural looking fake tan

I feel like it’s been very serious on the blog recently, so today I wanted to talk about something light hearted – fake tan! You might be thinking, ‘Hannah fake tan is not related to fitness! What are you on about?!’ but have you ever seen a bodybuilding competition? Touché!

Fake tanning isn’t for everyone I know. My bed sheets are permanently orange and there are brown lots of innocent splodges on my towels. I love the pale and interesting look on other people, it’s just not for me. I absolutely love having a tan because it boosts my confidence and makes me feel like a new woman. However, I hate the idea of using sunbeds so I always opt for a bottle to get my glow.

I swear by St Moriz, it’s cheap and it does the job better than any of the other ones I’ve tried. St Tropez is amazing, but it’s just too pricey for me. I find the St Moriz lotion easier to work with, but the mousse still gives good results. (Ps I haven’t been paid to write this, I just love the product!) There are a few rules to get your tan to look nice and last longer. In the past I haven’t done the prep and I’ve ended up with a patchy tan that looks like tiger bread and only lasts a couple of days. Since following the steps I will tell you about below I have managed to get a really natural looking tan that hasn’t gone patchy at all.

Exfoliation: The first step is exfoliation. It’s pretty obvious, but you need to have a smooth canvas to get a rich colour. I recommend using an exfoliating dry body brush before you jump in the shower or body scrub while you’re in the shower to remove dead skin. Make sure you do this for at least a week before you want to apply your tan to get the best results. Then gently exfoliate a couple of days after your tan is on and continue to do so to keep it from going patchy.

Time: I generally apply my tan at night time, before I go to bed. In theory, the longer you leave it to develop the deeper the colour will be but sometimes I just don’t have time to do it. If you can leave it on for a full evening and sleep on it then by all means do. There is also an express version that develops in a couple of hours. To help it dry quicker I always use a hair dryer to go over it and make sure it’s all sunk in before I get into bed.

Moisturise: This is probably the most important prep tip. I don’t know why it makes such a difference but if your skin is moisturised properly your tan will apply more easily, stay on for longer and look 100% better. Like the exfoliation, I suggest moistening the area you want to tan every day for at least a week. Follow this by moisturising the area the day after you put your tan on and do this every time you have a shower to lock the moisture in.

Shaving, tight clothes and sweating: Sounds like weird tips right? Wrong! All these things will rub your tan off so its important to bear them in mind. Shaving your legs will take most of the tan off, but shaving before you tan isn’t great either because the tan will go into the follicles and you’ll look dotty. Personally, I just apply more layers of tan on my legs but even that doesn’t help it stay on completely. Wearing tight jeans all day will also take off your tan, even if it’s developed and washed off so opt for loose fitting clothing or tights as it isn’t as tight around your legs. Finally, sweat makes St Moriz tan rub off. The most annoying thing is if you go to the gym and it rubs off around your sports bra so you get weird outlines that won’t go away no matter how much you exfoliate.

Wash your mit: If you don’t wear a mit, then go and get one! It saves your hands from going orange and streaky. You can use gloves but I find these to give a streaky look. Anyway, the mit absorbs quite a lot of product when applying and usually I would just leave it and let it dry but I’ve started washing the mit in lukewarm water straight after applying. This helps the mit to stay in good condition which will help you achieve a smoother fake tan on next application.

Oh wow, I have genuinely written 800 words about fake tan….I will stop now, but if you have any tips you’d like to share with me that I’ve missed then feel free to leave them in the comments or give me a shout on twitter.

Oh and if you haven’t already, please vote for me as Fitness Blogger of the Year in the Blogosphere awards! x