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I found a foolproof way to cheat a holiday tan
At last – a tanning product that delivers a natural looking sun-kissed glow (with no streaking)
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The mere mention of fake tan is enough to strike fear in anyone. For me, it instantly conjures up the visual of streaky, tangerine-tinged skin that looks about as natural as a face full of filler.
But there is another way. I have found the most foolproof, undetectable method to cheat a holiday tan – no sunburnt skin required. The Golden Glow Gradual Tan by quiet-luxury brand Gatineau is one of those products that has left me genuinely shocked by how well it performs (from £20, gatineau.com).
Rather than a fake tan disguised as a body cream, which is what a lot of ‘gradual’ tanners are nowadays, this really is a lightly moisturising body lotion that you apply as you would a normal cream, no special mitts or tools needed. (Although I’d still advise waiting 10 minutes or so before you get dressed, just to make sure the product is fully absorbed, and rinsing your hands after applying it.) After three or four hours, you’ll look down at your legs or arms and notice just a hint of extremely natural-looking colour on the skin.
Of course, you could leave it there, and the tan will last a day or two. But I think the real magic happens on day two, after applying a second helping. Smooth it on in the morning and by that evening you will have a very convincing holiday tan. You can most certainly go at it again for a third day, but I would stop after that, let the tan fade naturally after a few days and then repeat.
Although it’s not marketed as a face product, there’s no reason why you couldn’t mix a blob of it in with your day cream for a very gentle glow on the face.
There’s no streaking, either – hurrah. I’ve been using this product for a couple of months already (I’m on my second bottle) and haven’t had any tell-tale tan marks at all. It has quickly become the brand’s bestseller, and I can see why. There are more than 1,000 five-star reviews on the website.
The Golden Glow Gradual Tan, £20, Gatineau; Heliocare 3600 Body Glow Sunscreen SPF50, £28.95, Heliocare
I’m not the most obvious candidate for fake tan. I am of Indian heritage and already have a medium, olive-y complexion, but my legs are as pale as milk bottles so I often use fake tan to match up the colour of my legs to my arms and face.
As for real tanning, you can forget about it: I shun the sun on holidays and seek the shade, because the resultant pigmentation from sun damage simply isn’t worth it. (Spoken like a true beauty editor.)
For holidays, however, there is another genius product I would like to suggest: the Heliocare 3600 Body Glow Sunscreen SPF50 (£28.95, beautybay.com). Gone are the days of thick, greasy sun creams that stick to your kaftan on the beach. As well as providing a very reliable broad-spectrum sun protection, this has a soft bronze tint that adds a little colour to the skin. I’m a great fan of Heliocare’s sunscreen in general, and this is the brand’s first (and successful) foray into tinted bodycare.
What you want to ensure when using fake tan, gradual or not, is a really good body scrub before your first application. This, as make-up artists would say, ‘preps the canvas’ and gives you the best chance of even, natural-looking colour. The Violet Haze Polishing Body Scrub by Joonbyrd – a range developed by the dermatologist Dr Alexis Granite – is an absolute joy to use, but is a pricey investment at £56 a tub (spacenk.com). Used sparingly, it smoothes your limbs beautifully.
Otherwise try the Brilliantly Bright Body Polish Scrub by Isle of Paradise (£18, lookfantastic.com). Jules Von Hep, the founder of this colourful brand, was fake-tanner to the stars before launching this product, so I trust he knows a thing or two about getting the skin in tip-top condition before attempting a faux holiday glow.
Brilliantly Bright Body Polish Scrub, £18, Isle of Paradise; The Violet Haze Polishing Body Scrub, £56, Space NK