Everyone who knows me well would agree that I love sunny, hot weather. The hotter, the better! However, when the sun is out, you will find me lurking in the shadows, carefully applying sunscreen all over my face and body. I have fair skin, which means I get burnt super fast, and it’s not fun, believe me. But I don’t mind having a nice tan either, and after reading a lot of mixed reviews about self-tanners, even the natural ones, I decided to try it out myself. Lavera Natural Self Tan Lotion is my first self-tanner, and I don’t have anything to compare it with, but here are some thoughts about it.
The Self Tanning Lotion is a white, thick cream with a strong, sweet scent, which lingers a while after application. The main ingredient that “stains” your skin is dihydroxyacetone (DHA). Now, despite its scary looking name, DHA is one of the safest ingredients for self-tanning. DHA is created from sugar beets or sugar cane and the glycerin fermentation process (you can read more about it here). The darker color occurs only in the outer layer of the skin, making the tan stay only temporarily. Also, keep in mind that self-tanners do not contain SPF (unless it’s stated so) and therefore do not protect the skin from the harmful impacts of the sun.
The application is simple, but some preparation is needed before applying a self-tanner. It’s strongly recommended to use a body scrub to avoid unevenness and flaking. I use my Argandia Body Scrub for that. It took about 2 hours for the tan to show after application, and I was very pleased with the result. It gave me a very natural, neutral brown tone without making my skin look orange or any other unwanted shade. You can intensify the tan by using the self-tanner more frequently (like twice a week). I’m, unfortunately, too lazy for that.
My bare arm prior self-tanning is on the right (yep, that blue-ish white) and the left one is after applying the self-tan lotion just once.
This Self Tanning Lotion is available at Naturisimo for $22/£13.50.
Have you tried this? What other natural self-tan lotions would you recommend?
I’m Inga, the creator of this online place called Organic Beauty Blogger. Since 2013, I’ve been on a mission to redefine beauty by sharing my insights into the world of green beauty.
Uu looks nice! 🙂 I’ve also never tried a self tanning product 🙂 xx
If you’ll ever decide to try, I suggest you start with this lotion 🙂 x
you can certainly tell you have a glow in the first picture, I’m obsessed with the chocolate sun tanner, smells amazing x
Does it smell like chocolate? Maybe I should try it one after I finish up Lavera!
I have this one & love it! I’ve also tried one from Naked which is an English brand that gives a slightly darker colour 🙂
Nice! How often do you apply a self tanner?