My Favourite Gradual Tanners

As we approach the Summer months and the sun comes out, I always face a dilemma. My super pale skin!

My mum is very much into taking care of your skin and preventing sun damage, so from a young age I was always plastered in the highest SPF sun cream on holiday, however much I protested!

But as much as I dream about having gorgeous olive skin, it's never going to happen for me, or naturally anyway. I burn and turn a lovely shade of pink which is nowhere near as sexy.

So for me fake tan is the answer, or even better and easier to use, a gradual tanner.

I have tried a fair few in my time but my current favourites are the Palmer's Cocoa Butter Natural Bronze Lotion and Sienna X Gradual Glowing Self Tan. Both of which I have found to be great for us pale skin girls, I have often struggled with formulations being the wrong tone and too dark.

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Natural Bronze Body Lotion   £5.35

As you can imagine this is very moisturising, but doesn't take too long to dry which is a big bonus. I find the smell to be a little like cookies. However it does wear off though, once its completely soaked in, and isn't unpleasant. I wake up with a lovely, soft natural glow to my skin after applying this. Nothing too orange, which looks very fake to me, but a golden hue which takes the edge off my usually white skin. It can also be built up over a few applications for a deeper colour. I have done this for nights out when I'm wearing a dress with no tights.

The last thing that I love is the container and pump. There's nothing worse than with creamy, slippery hands having to squeeze the lotion out without dropping it....messy business! So the pump works really well for me.

Sienna X Gradual Glowing Self Tan    £15.95

The Sienna X gradual tan was quite a new purchase of mine. Last year I had a Sienna X spray tan and was really impressed with the result. It certainly suited me much more and seemed a lot more natural than the San Tropez that I had tried previously. So, when I spotted this bottle I had to try it.

Just like my previous experience I have been very happy to wear this. It is marketed as the best smelling fake tan, and even though it isn't scent free, it definitely does not have the typical biscuit smell that we usually associate with tanning.

Again, it is an easy to use pump bottle which I prefer and sinks into the skin pretty quickly. It also has cocoa butter as an ingredient along with aloe vera and almond oil. The cream is white so there is no guide colour to help when applying it, but I have always been streak-free once it has developed. It leaves me with a lovely golden tone to my skin, which I think looks very natural and I could see some colour appearing after just 2-3 hours.

These will both be coming in handy as we approach the warmer weather...the less like a milk bottle I look the better! :)