Fake bake
How to fake it without looking like you’ve been tango’d
FAKE tanning is a great way to give the face a natural, healthy glow and the body a sexy, healthy look. Even on our sunny island there is quite a demand for professional salon-applied tans and many of the well known brands claim that sales of fake tan in Cyprus are quite high.
So how does one fake it without looking like they’ve been tango’d? Products have now reached such a quality that you are unlikely to end up streaky or orange. If you scrub the body thoroughly, especially the tops of feet and toes, knees, hands and elbows and then apply generous amounts of body lotion all over, you are less likely to get patchy results. Ideally you should do this three or four times over the same number of days and then apply your fake tan. If you do get a dark orangey patch it is not the product that’s to blame but improper application.
In the name of research and with some volunteers we tried out a range of the brands available in Cyprus. In the interests of fairness, I applied them all as not everyone knows how to apply a fake tan properly and might blame the product for bad results.
The results? Most brands give a good, believable colour while the same brand can look different on different types of skins. The face tanning creams of most commercially-available brands give a soft natural glow rather than a shocking effect so consumers can gradually build the colour with applications every, or every other, day until they’ve achieved the desired effect. If you are concerned about too strong an effect for your first time you can always mix a 50-50 dilution with a mild moisturiser in your palms before applying to face and neck.
How to apply it
For full body and face tan: scrub the entire body thoroughly using a scrub or loofah. Concentrate on the knees, elbows, tops of hands, tops of feet and toes. This is a very important step. Dry off then apply bland body lotion (Nivea or Guinot are good) to hands, elbows, kneecap area and especially all over feet and toes, without missing top of foot where it meets the ankle.
Wearing tight fitting latex gloves at this point is a good idea.
Apply tan to thighs and buttocks rubbing in well so as not to miss a spot. ‘Stroke’ product over extended (not bent) knee, then carry on down lower leg, rubbing in evenly. Stop before you get to the top of your ankle. For the tops and sides of feet use a 50-50 dilution of moisturiser and tan being careful not to go right down to where the feet touch the floor as that part never naturally goes brown. Blend tops of toes well making sure you have as little product on your hands (gloves!) as possible.
Next do tummy, chest and arms being careful at the elbows, not to rub-in too much.
Ask someone to apply tan to your back.
Remove gloves and wash hands being careful to avoid splashing the body as it might affect the tan. Apply tan to your face and neck carefully avoiding the hairline if you have blond or bleached hair. Wash hands with soap and water. Get a flannel wet, squeeze out excess water, fold and place on table. Dry hands and apply moisturiser all over them. Mix 30 per cent body lotion to 70 per cent tan (or thereabouts) as this prevents darker patches on knuckles or fingers. Apply this to backs of hands and tops of fingers blending the edges well. The trick is to have very little product on your hands so as to avoid build-up. Immediately after, wipe palms and underside of fingers on the folded, damp flannel moving them back and forth over it.
Allow product to dry and then wear loose clothes and dark underwear while your tan is developing. Some products have a temporary, cosmetic tint or glow in them so you might start looking rather tanned almost immediately. Do not be fooled into thinking the tan has developed already and getting careless by rubbing or splashing you skin as this will affect the result. Avoid perspiring and do not shower for at least 8-10 hours. Once it has developed you can bathe and then the tan won’t rub off but will fade naturally over 4-6 days. Apply body lotion daily to maintain a smooth and even tan.
How they fared
Tester: ELENI (Medium olive skin)
Face & neck: Estée Lauder Go Bronze Plus
Eleni liked the result. It was a soft, natural and believable colour. She didn’t like the temporary shimmer and peach tint it contained while it developed, but Estée Lauder have other products without the temporary tint if you prefer.
Legs: Estée Lauder Go Bronze for Legs
We both liked this one very much. The result was good on her light olive skin. It has a bronze gel consistency so her legs looked gorgeous straight away.
Also Lancome Flash Bronze Gel for the Face
We tried face products on the body to prove that you can if you want to. The result on Eleni was good. Tip: because it is a water-based gel you must moisturize feet and knees first
Tester: KATHERINE (Very fair skin)
Face & neck: Guinot Self Tan for Face & Body
Katherine liked this one. She commented that the final result was more natural than she expected, although while it was developing the temporary tint that it contains became quite dark (this is the case with many facial fake tanners).
Legs: Estée Lauder, Christian Dior, Thalgo and Guinot Face & Body
We used all four on her legs. She was happy with them all and they all looked almost the same colour on her. She commented that her favourite was the Estée Lauder.
Tester: GABY (Medium to fair colouring)
Face, neck & chest: Guinot Self Tan for Face
This gave Gaby a lovely golden colour. She was very happy with it.
Clinique Fair
We used this 6 weeks ago and diluted it 50 per cent with moisturiser and the result was a very natural glow, which she liked.
Legs & tummy: Thalgo Sublime Self Tan Spray
Good result. Gave her an obvious tan but not too strong, which she was happy with but commented that her preference was the Clinique Deep.
Tester: ALICE (Medium colouring with white-ish skin)
Face, neck, chest & arms: Dior Shimmering Glow and Clinique Deep
Very good result. It looked natural but just strong enough to look like she’d been on holiday! The Dior had a lovely subtle gold shimmer in it.
Legs: Guinot Face & Body
Also looked very nice on her. She was very happy with her tan but commented that she still preferred the St.Tropez tan that she had had in the past.
Tester: MARIA (Mediterranean colouring)
Legs: Neutrogena
Maria applied this tan herself. The result was quite good, but more natural than she expected. This product did not have any temporary tint to it.
Tester: GEORGIA (Medium Mediterranean colouring)
Legs: Coppertone Self Tan
She commented that it didn’t streak but seemed a little orangey.
Tester: ILIA (Dark Mediterranean colouring)
Face: Estée Lauder Go Bronze for Face
I don’t like fake tanning my face but I wanted to try this. I was surprised at how subtle and healthy looking the result was on me. I didn’t like the temporary peach tint and shimmer in it, mainly because I am dark and it didn’t suit me.
Legs: St.Tropez
Love it! Most authentic looking colour on the market (St.Tropez has deservedly earned cult status worldwide)
Estée Lauder Go Bronze for Legs
Very happy with this. Great colour!
Thalgo Sublime Self Tan Spray
A little too natural for my skin tone
Lancome
A bit too terracotta for my taste.
Guinot
I’m always quite happy with this on my legs.
l For salons offering Thalgo call the Papaellinas Organisation at 22 863100. For stockists of Guinot call Pomico ltd at 22 879006. For St.Tropez salon treatments, (Pafos) call Karen at 99 926680 (Nicosia) call Ilia at 99 548338
