Last updated on May 14th, 2022 at 10:50 pm

It’s that time of year again….the emergence of the white, winter skin. If you live in Michigan like we do, then your skin is really that pasty white. Since warm sunny days can pop up at any moment, it’s time to get skin prepared. One of the best ways to do that is with a sunless tanner and we’ve got some great tips and tricks for you.

This is one area where we are different. Jen has practiced the art of applying the sunless tanner for some time, while Dianne? Not so much. So here’s what we decided to do. Jen has written her how-to and Dianne used her instructions to see how it works. Along the way, we made some edits to make sure the instructions were easy to understand, not just for Dianne, but for you too. Here’s how it all worked out!

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Jen’s Flawless Sunless Tanner “How-To”

From left to right: Dry Brush, Tanning Spray, Kabuki Brush and Application Mitt

Step-By-Step:

• Exfoliate!
  • I’ll dry brush before getting in the shower (it’s great for lymphatic drainage too)
  • In the shower, I’ll use an exfoliating glove to get all the dead skin off my body
    
    
• Shave anything you need to! 
  • Shaving will reduce the life of your tan, so make sure you do it beforehand 
    
    
• After getting out of the shower, put some lightweight lotion on some of your driest areas – your ankles, knees, elbows – so these areas don’t turn orange 
  
  
• Don’t put on lotion anywhere else, and don’t put on deodorant
  
  
• Use a tanning glove to apply your self tanner
  
  
• Get a self tanner with a bronzer so you can see where you’re putting the product
  
  
• Instead of using this self tanner on my face, I use gradual tanning drops mixed with my nighttime moisturizer
  • I use a lot of exfoliating products on my face, so I prefer this method to gradually keep my face tan
    
    
• I don’t have a preferred method for what order I go in, but part of it depends on when my husband is available to do my back! Ha! 
  
  
• When you get to your hands, use a brush (a kabuki or synthetic fiber makeup brush works well!) to spread the product on the backs of your hands, fingers and the underside of your wrists
  • Make your hand into a claw shape when putting on tanner
    
    
• Use moisturizer again for gradual color on your wrists, ankles, knees and elbows
   
  
• Wait at least 10 minutes (or the recommendation on your tanner) before putting on your clothes
  • Wear clothes you don’t care if you get some color on
    
    
• Keep the tanner on for at least 6-8 hours
  • I usually put on tanner at night, go to bed, and wash it off the in the morning 
  • The Loving Tan kind I got is a 2-hour express, but you can still wear it overnight
    
    
• Pat areas like your elbow creases, back of your knees and armpits with baby powder to prevent creasing 
  
  
• Put down an old sheet (or something similar) on your side of the bed just in case the color transfers
  
  
• In the morning, you’re going to look in the mirror and think “what have I done?” 

I will admit, I was a little out of practice when it came to self-tanning, Even though I know all of the things above. 

The last time I think I got a faux-tan was when I was pregnant and got a spray tan before doing maternity pictures. 

I know I’m streaky, but that’s mostly on my back and it’s not like anyone is going to see it for a while (this is Michigan, it could snow tomorrow for all we know). But at least I have a little time to brush up on my skills before it truly is summer weather. 

There’s just something about having a tan that gives you a little extra boost of self confidence. I love how the tanning drops even out my skin tone on my face, and a tan on my body makes me feel a little skinner (even though I know I’m not). 

Needless to say, having a fake tan is way, way, way better for you than baking outside in the sun. Trust me, I love sitting in the sun at the lake, but I always make sure to slather myself in sunscreen, a separate sunscreen for my face, and a hat. 

I don’t have this specific hat, but the one I have is very similar, and boy do I love it. I can keep my hair out of my face and off my back/shoulders while wearing it. Normal hats, yea, you want to wear your hair down. But not when you’re sitting outside in the hot sun! 

Don’t forget to put some sunscreen on the part in your hair too, that’s always a sneaky spot that ends up getting burned easily. Turns out, there’s special hair and scalp sunscreen! Definitely adding this to my list for the summer!

Dianne: What Happened When I Followed Jen’s How-To? 

As I admitted up-front, I haven’t really used a sunless tanner. I’ve used things like Jergen’s Natural Glow Wet Skin Moisturizer and Sally Hansen Air Brush legs in a pinch, but I’ve never taken the time to really apply a full body sunless tanner.

The main reason is because I’ve procrastinated using it. I wasn’t really sure how to do it and it seemed I wanted to use it right before a big event. As a result, I would “chicken-out” because I am afraid that if I do it wrong, streaky legs will look worse than white ones.

But the time is now to give it a try and be able to perfect the process before summer arrives. So, I walked through Jen’s how-to and, overall, I think I did pretty good! I used a different sunless tanner than Jen did. I used St. Tropez x Luxe Cream Mousse (the previous Ashley Graham version – this link is the latest mousse.) It does have a bronzer so I could see where I was applying it.

I didn’t have a couple of the items that Jen suggested and I recommend picking them up for your sunless tanner routine. Since I didn’t have a dry brush, I used Tree Hut Sugar Body Scrub in the shower, which is something I already use. It is a pure sugar scrub, meaning that it doesn’t have any moisturizers in it, which is what you want. You will only want to moisturize the specific dry spots that Jen mentions above. It is important that you use some type of exfoliating product before applying the sunless tanner.

The rest of the process went smoothly and I even got my husband to help with my back! The second item I didn’t have was a kabuki brush and I did feel that put me at a disadvantage when doing my hands and fingers. I used my sunless tanner mitt to do them, but I found that I used the tanner a little sparingly to be safe, so I will invest in a kabuki brush next time. I found this e.l.f. one on amazon.com. that I’ve already added to cart, along with Jen’s recommended dry brush.

The results? I’d give myself a “B+”, which I am happy with for a first time. The reason it’s not a “A”, is not because of the instructions, it’s because my application. Overall, it looks pretty good, but there are spots on my legs that are a little streaky. Not bad enough that I can’t wear shorts, but I think I can and will do better over time. It really is something that just takes some time to get it right. And now that I’ve tried it with pretty good results, I am excited about getting the process perfected just in time for summer! I highly recommend following Jen’s process!

Want some nice pedicured toes to go with your beautifully bronzed legs? Then check out our post on DIY Pedicures!

Have you used sunless tanners? What has been your experience? Please let us know in the comments below.