Having tanned, glowy skin has been extremely popularized ever since the early 2000s and the trend doesn’t seem to go anywhere any time soon!
Before, it would take you hours of lying on the beach or going to tanning beds over and over again to achieve the perfect level of bronzed skin.
Apart from taking forever, both options prove to be very bad for your skin, the latter one also equally bad for your pocket. That is until self-tanners took over.
A self-tanner is a cosmetic product made to help with darkening the skin in a safer and faster way.
Dihydroxyacetone (DHA) is a chemical that is one of the main ingredients of self-tanners.
When reacting with the amino acids in the surface layer of your skin, it results in a temporary darker tan that lasts up to a week.
They come in different forms, including creams, lotions, mousses, and others.
You can put them all over your body and face to get an evenly-distributed tan everywhere and they are perfectly safe for you.
This means you don’t have to expose yourself to dangerous UV rays anymore to get a nice, glowing tan, as now you have a much more practical and healthier alternative.
Just apply some self-tanner and you’re fresh and good to go in a matter of minutes.
However, it must be noted that self-tanners usually either do not provide you with protection against the sun or they contain low SPF.
That’s why it’s important to use them in combination with sunscreen to protect your skin from sunburn and damage.
Do self-tanners cover stretch marks?
The answer is yes – to a certain degree! Just like other skin imperfections, applying a self-tanner can definitely help cover your stubborn stretch marks minimizing their appearance and giving your skin an evened-out and radiant look.
With that being said, it is important to say that a self-tanner colors the top layer of your skin only, so it can’t always help with textured, deep stretch marks.
In other words, while it does make stretch marks much less visible, it doesn’t magically make them completely disappear visually.
If you’d like to remove stretch marks as they affect your self-confidence, you might want to see a dermatologist for possible treatment.
Nevertheless, if you decide to opt for a self-tanner to help you cover up your stretch marks as much as possible, these are some of the most useful tips to follow:
Choosing the right shade: It’s very important to know how to pick the right shade of your self-tanner, as you don’t want to look dirty or orange.
Try to find the shade that matches your skin tone exactly, or go for the one that’s one shade darker than yours. This is easily achievable these days, as lots of brands provide you with a wide range of shades.
Avoid going too dark, as this can make your stretch marks look even more prominent instead of concealing them.
Strategic application: The best way of applying a self-tanner to cover your stretch marks is to use thin layers. This is a good strategy, as you can easily build up layers of fake tan until you’re satisfied with the final result.
Focus on the area where your stretch marks are the most visible and apply the self-tanning product carefully, using a tanning glove to prevent your hands from staining.
When spreading the product, make sure to distribute the fake tan evenly, especially on the edges of the stretch marks, so that they are seamlessly blended with the rest of the skin.
Combining self-tanner and bronzer: One of the best and fastest ways to cover up your stretch marks is to use your fake tan product combined with a bronzer.
It instantly camouflages stretch marks and gives you the glowy, tanned effect immediately.
Building up a fake tan gradually: A lot of brands that create self-tanning products advise their consumers to gradually build up the color over a few days.
This is done to help prevent a sudden change in skin tone. If you apply multiple layers at once, this can prove to be counterproductive and, consequently, draw extra (unwanted) attention to the areas of your body most affected by stretch marks.
Using body makeup: If using a self-tanner to cover your stretch marks doesn’t prove to be enough, try using body makeup.
This is usually specifically designed to cover more prominent skin imperfections such as stretch marks.
Use a big kabuki brush to apply body makeup, or even a sponge, as this will help you to evenly distribute the product throughout the problematic area.
Best fake tan for stretch marks
Okay. You’ve finally decided you want to use fake tan to try to cover up your stretch marks the best that you can.
Now, here comes the tricky part – choosing the right self-tanning product for you.
There are numerous cosmetic brands worldwide that have incorporated self-tanners into their wide range of beauty products.
The majority of these do the job they’re supposed to do: conceal stretch marks while also giving you a bronzed, tanned, beachy kind of look.
However, not all of them are of great quality, so you might want to do your research before buying and applying one to your skin.
It is always a good idea to check out what’s on the ingredient list of self-tanning products. You should try to find products that are rich in ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, vitamin E, and aloe vera.
These ingredients are exactly what nourishes and hydrates the skin, letting it absorb the product completely, making your stretch marks hardly visible all while leaving you with a fresh tan.
Here are a few self-tanners that may be particularly effective for covering stretch marks:
Tropez Self Tan Purity Bronzing Water Gel: This self-tanning product comes in a gel texture, which is known to be more lightweight on the skin.
Being infused with aloe vera and hyaluronic acid, it’s the perfect option for anyone who likes their skin to be left smooth and moisturized, without feeling sticky, as it absorbs pretty quickly. It has a natural tanning agent that will leave you with a long-lasting bronzed tan, without leaving streaks and patches.
Bondi Sands Aero Aerated Self Tanning Foam: Bondi Sands is a beauty brand that produces self-tanners known all over the world. This Aussie brand came out with this foam-textured self-tanner that has vitamin E as one of its top ingredients.
Vitamin E is known to be a great source of antioxidants, which help moisturize the skin while providing you with a natural-looking tan. It has a formula that is quick-drying, so you can get your fresh, beachy tan in a few minutes.
Tan-Luxe Super Glow Body Hyaluronic Self-Tan Serum: Tan-Luxe is a brand that is known for good quality self-tanners, and their Super Glow Body Hyaluronic Self-Tan Serum is one of their best products for getting a long-lasting tan.
This serum is lightweight and hydrating, containing hyaluronic acid, which plumps and moisturizes the skin, giving you a streak-free glowy-looking tan. It is infused with vitamin E as well as raspberry seed oil, which are known to be powerful antioxidants that help protect the human skin from different environmental stressors.
Vita Liberata Body Blur Instant HD Skin Finish: While talking about some of the best fake tan products to cover your stretch marks, we can’t forget this amazing tinted body lotion.
It is filled with natural and nourishing ingredients including vitamin E, organic aloe vera, and shea butter, all of which contribute to giving your skin a hydrating, nourished, and smooth sensation.
This self-tanner can be used as a primer before makeup, or on its own. It will give you a natural-looking glowy tan that will skyrocket your confidence level!
Other ways to cover stretch marks
Stretch marks can be a real annoyance sometimes and can even lead to lowering your self-confidence.
Although they are a perfectly natural thing, being more normalized in today’s inclusive beauty standards, some people still have issues with their stretch marks being too visible.
If you aren’t into using self-tanners, either because you don’t think they will cover your stretch marks completely or you don’t want to end up with streaks and an uneven tone, you can still opt for other ways of covering them:
Body makeup: Unlike regular self-tanners, whose main function is to provide a bronze beachy tan, body makeup is specially designed to cover skin imperfections such as stretch marks.
All you have to do is carefully choose a product that closely matches your skin tone and apply it to the skin using a sponge or a brush. Because of its more potent ingredients and texture, it is supposed to help cover those annoying stretch marks almost completely!
Clothing that covers the affected areas: If you don’t think you’re skilled enough to perfectly apply a self-tanner or body makeup, clothes might be another good way of covering stretch marks.
Wearing clothes that cover the area affected most by stretch marks can help to conceal them completely. Long-sleeved tees and pants are good options for this.
If you live in an area where the temperature is high, opt for something more breathable, such as a long dress with, loose pants, and flowy long-sleeved blouses.
Body shapers: These have proven to be very famous in the last few years, especially with women.
Body shapers including camisoles as well as compression shorts can be additional help for smoothing out your skin, all while making the appearance of stretch marks as minimized as possible.
Laser treatment: If the other suggestions don’t work for you, and you’re not afraid of spending a bit more, getting laser treatments can be the best option for minimizing the visibility of your stretch marks – if not completely removing them.
These treatments help stimulate collagen production in your skin, which then helps the skin regenerate and reduce the appearance of skin imperfections. Consult a dermatologist and see if this might be the right choice for you.
Advantages of self-tanners
Nowadays, with the fast-paced lifestyle everyone is a part of, going to the beach and sunbathing for hours on end doesn’t seem like a practical idea anymore.
Besides, people like using self-tanning products for a wide variety of reasons. Here are the most common ones:
Achieving a nice tan without sun exposure: One of the best ways of getting glowy bronzed skin without having to expose your skin to dangerous UV rays is by using self-tanning products.
Apart from being able to get an instant, natural-looking tan, you are reducing the risk of skin damage, premature aging, and potentially getting skin cancer, which can all be results of sun-tanning and using tanning beds.
Boosting your self-confidence: Even though pale, porcelain-looking skin is finally getting some recognition in recent years, for most people, looking tanned gives them a much-needed boost of self-confidence.
Tan skin is connected with good production of melanin, which is a clear sign of looking healthy. Not to mention, having a tan makes your body look more toned and fit, which is what a lot of people strive for.
With self-tanners, it’s just a matter of minutes until you achieve the tanned, glowy look that will provide you with the confidence level you need.
No tan lines: The biggest concern for people who sunbathe on a beach or beside a pool (apart from being exposed to UV rays) is being left with tan lines.
This is a major annoyance for girls who like to wear sleeveless tops, and open-back dresses in summer.
With using self-tanners, you can easily avoid having tan lines, as you’re doing the application on your whole body in the comfort of your home.
Evened-out skin tone: If you are one of those people who struggle with skin imperfections such as blemishes, acne scars, and an uneven skin tone, self-tanners are the perfect choice to help with that.
Using these kinds of products can help even out your skin tone, providing a nice tan while giving your skin a more radiant glow and consistent color.
Quick and convenient: Getting a tan used to take hours lying on the beach or going to tanning salons to use tanning beds numerous times before achieving the perfect skin tone.
Nowadays, you can get your bronze skin and a glowing tan, as well as cover your skin imperfections much easier and quicker by using a self-tanner.
Using a mitten, or a glove, you can apply a self-tanning lotion, mousse, or serum in about 30 minutes or so.
The process is practical and fast, and you can build up as many layers as you want until you reach the wanted tone.
Enhances muscle definition: If you’ve ever seen a bodybuilding competition, you must have noticed how bronzed they all are.
This is because a bronzed skin tone enhances muscle definition and makes your body look fitter and more toned.
This is easily achieved by using self-tanning products. A lot of fitness enthusiasts use it as well, to show off their hard work at the gym.
It is temporary: Sure, a natural tan that you get from sunbathing on the beach lasts for much longer, even for weeks or months.
While this is probably the thing most people want, it’s still not good for the skin, due to the harmful UV rays your skin is exposed to during your tanning sessions.
Self-tanning products provide you with a tan that lasts for a week or so, which can be short-lived, but also good for all those who don’t like having a tan for too long or want it just for a special occasion.
Different kinds of self-tanners
Self-tanning products have loaded the beauty industry in recent decades, as the bronzed look has been popular for quite a while.
There are several types of self-tanners available on the market, differing in formulation, application methods, as well as the duration of the tan.
Some of the most common types of self-tanners include:
Lotion self-tanners: The most common and popular type, applied by hand or using a tanning mitt. These normally take a few hours to develop and last for a couple of days.
Spray tan: Great for those who don’t want to bother applying the self-tanner on their own.
It is applied by using an aerosol can or spray bottle, and it’s usually done by professionals in beauty parlors. It dries quickly, leaving you with a tan that lasts for up to a week.
Mousse self-tanners: Lightweight and easily applied, this kind of fake tan dries quickly, normally without leaving streaks or patches.
Tanning wipes: These aren’t as efficient as the other kinds of self-tanners, but they are more convenient if you want to quickly touch up on your tan while traveling or if you’re on a busy schedule.
Prepare your skin for self-tanners
To achieve an even and long-lasting tan by using a self-tanner, you must do proper skin preparation prior to applying the product. You can do so by following these easy steps:
- Exfoliate
- Remove body hair
- Moisturize the skin
- Avoid body lotions and perfumes
- Wear loose clothes
To sum up, applying a self-tanning product can prove to be an effective and quick way of achieving the perfect beach tan, covering skin imperfections such as stretch marks, and boosting your self-confidence.
Just remember to store your self-tanner properly, prepare your skin before applying it, and make sure to always use sunscreen to protect your skin at all times.
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