A Foolproof Guide to Self-Tan for Brides

22 hours ago 11

Laura Bermingham

Knowing how to self-tan comes in very handy when you're a bride with a busy social calendar and little time for appointments. Understandably, many brides prefer to leave tanning to the professionals, but lots of you have asked us how to do it yourselves, either for the big day itself or for fringe wedding events like the hen night, the rehearsal dinner or the honeymoon. And, of course, we had to come up with the goods! So, without further ado, here is our fool-proof step-by-step guide on how to self-tan at home.

Step by Step How To Self-Tan Guide

Step 1: Plan your Self-Tan or Self-Tanning Trial

With any kind of beauty prep for a big event, organisation is key!

We recommend doing at least one self-tanning trial run before your wedding or chosen event, or a couple of trial runs with multiple self-tanners if required. This should help you figure out which formula you find easiest to use, and compare the results.
If applied properly and far enough in advance, self-tan shouldn't stain your wedding dress or cause you any hassle on the big day. We recommend applying your self-tan in the morning, on the day before the wedding/your big event, but you could apply it two days before if you are happy with the results from your trial.
The best time to tan is in the morning to keep your sheets white and your skin bronzed and gorgeous. Self-tan is best left on the skin to develop for four to six, even eight hours. Apply at 10 am and it's ready to be rinsed around teatime (with warm water, rather than hot!), then you can go to bed clean and bronzed! Another benefit to tanning in the morning is that, if you want a deeper tan, you can repeat the application method the next day, and the tan will be twice as bronzed.

Step 2: Choose a Self-Tanner

Next, you'll need to gather your products. When choosing a self-tanner, there are a few things to consider, aside from shade. You want a product that's easy to apply, and it should also have serious staying power. It's also worth thinking about the finish you want, whether you prefer a subtle, radiant, or darker bronzed look. For all of the above, you need to consider the formula of the self-tan. The most common formulas are liquid, mousse, or lotion.

Liquid self-tans will dry the fastest and are great for the summer months, but they can streak a little more than the others, particularly if you aren't used to the formula.
Mousse self-tans are great because they dry fast, but they offer very little hydration, so are best avoided by dry skin types.
Lotion self-tans tend to have the most hydration, and, if you moisturise daily, they will fade away evenly.

We recommend trying out a few products to see which works best for you, so check out our post on our favourite self-tan products here!

Step 3: Exfoliate (24 Hours Before Tanning!)

Exfoliating is crucial for getting that flawless, bronzed finish. Prepping properly reduces streaks, avoids clogged pores, and there's also less chance of the tan looking concentrated on elbows, knees, and ankles.

24 hours before you plan to tan, wax or shave where desired.
Use either a loofah, body brush, or scrub to remove old tan and dead skin cells.
Your skin is now ready for a layer of hydrating body lotion or body butter (not body oil, which can 'break up' the tan on the skin). Apply all over and your skin is prepped for a self-tan!

Step 4: Apply Your Tan

We all have our own techniques for applying self-tan (some start at the ankles, others with the arms) but whatever your chosen method, we highly recommend following our top tips:

Use a tanning mitt for even application, and to avoid staining your fingers and palms.
To avoid unnecessary pitfalls, leave the feet, hands, and face until the very last, and tan the limbs and torso with an application for each.
With the body complete, there should be enough tan remaining on the mitt to sweep over the feet, hands, and face to finish the tanning without any streaks.
Lightly rinse the palms (or use a baby or makeup wipe), in case of staining from the glove.

Step 5: Maintain Your Tan

If you've followed our steps so far, your tan should fade very evenly. Fancy getting more than a few days from your tan? You can do this by using a gradual tanning product from the same brand (mixing and matching doesn't always work well, using products from the same product line is usually your best bet). Every day or every other day after your initial application of the self-tanner, moisturise with a gradual self-tanner to boost hydration and help keep the tan looking glowing and bronzed.

Step 6: Start Over

If you want to start over, but patchy tan is hanging around, use a tan remover, loofah, or if you are really stuck, body oil to help shift it. Tan remover or scrub is easiest, many of them contain glycolic acid to lift away the older tan, but even those with just salt or sugar as exfoliants will get the skin clear and primed for a new layer of self-tan.

One Final Self-Tanning Tip...

If you're testing out a few self-tanners for the big day, take photographs of each one once applied, to compare the finish and glow - there will be quite a few photographs taken around your wedding and on the big day itself, so it's good to see how it looks in natural and artificial light.

Looking for more wedding beauty tips? We've got you covered!