Review of Tanning Products: Maximize Your Sun Kissed Look

Tanning…ohh the controversy! Whether you are a fake baker, a spray tanner, a self tanner, or a beach bum let this article guide you to the best tanning products to maximize your tan without over spending.

So the best way to get your base tan for summer going is it to hit your local tanning salon, I know they are awful for you, but hey if your gonna tan you might as well go for it right? If you’re a tanning novice a base tan can be achieved in about 3 sessions it gives you a little color but more importantly it makes you much less likely to burn on your first beach weekend.

I am a Hollywood Tans advocate, I know that smaller salons may offer slightly lower prices, but Hollywood not only has more convenient locations than any other chain, and they also offer some of the best deals. There are three different types of booth ranging from $7.50-20.00 a session. Words of caution resist the urge to go with the cheap booth because it has more of the harmful UV rays! Not to worry though Hollywood Tans always has a staff of friendly tanning experts to guide you through these crucial decision …and when they try to sell you the lotion invest in it because it will give you 60% greater result than tanning without it.

Almost every tanning salon offers a spray tan- usually about 25 dollars and usually not worth it. You can get a much more convincing and cost effective look from the beauty isle at your grocery store by using a self tanner. Before you apply any self tanner exfoliate your skin, try using a St.Ives Apricot Scrub on your whole body it will do the trick.

The first pick is Banana Boat Self Tanner “Summer Color Sunless” – yes, the same people who make the oil and the sun block make a foam self tanner. It produces the most natural results and you can customize your shade because they make 4 different formulas. Its easy to use and apply foam pump makes it impossible to miss a spot and you can even use this product on your face with out fear of a break out. Total cost for a bottle of sunless color is about $6, not a bad deal at all.

Next is Neutrogena, just like Banana Boat they offer several different shades in both a spray and foam. Neutrogena has a quick dry formula that is great for those of us in a hurry. It will dry in less than five minutes so you don’t need to worry about staining your cloths. Neutrogena also makes a special version for sensitive skin and faces-these are less abrasive than the other version, you can even pick up Neutrogena bronzer makeup to give you some extra glow. The best part of the Neutrogena line is that it lasts the longest of most self tanners usually 3-4 days depending on how many times you shower. Neutrogena product will run between $7.99 and $9.99.

So for those of us who prefer the sun over the bottle, there are plenty of products that will keep your skin moisturized while helping to get you that golden brown tan. If you are not going to stick to the tride and true choice of baby oil but still want an oil based product go for Panama Jack-it’s not as thick as the Hawaiian Tropic lines and is a better quality than the banana boat oils although those are less expensive. A bottle of Panama Jack Medallion Tanning oil is just under ten dollars but is enriched with plenty of moisturizers that will keep your skin from drying out post tanning.

If you are not into the oil but still want a product to help your tan along go for Hawaiian Tropics Dark Tanning Lotions Line. The Line includes lotions with some sun protection and other with accelerators; they even have a version enriched with carrot. They all have the classic coconut scent and are enriched with Vitamins A, C, and E a bottle of Hawaiian Tropic costs about $7 and can be found in your drug or grocery store!

So now that you’ve spent the day lounging at the beach and catching up on __(fill in the blank)__ its time to think about your after sun product. Well you really do not need to go crazy on any of the specialized products for after sun because they aren’t much different than what you probably already have. Use baby oil or your usual body moisturizer, if your feeling like a change try Johnson and Johnson’s new soothing naturals’ line epically if you have more sensitive skin. If you happened to of gotten a sun burn nothing beats Ocean Potion, it’s an aloe gel that you can keep in the fridge. It provides quick relief and gets rid of the red almost instantly!

These products are great when it comes to getting the perfect tan, but don’t go overboard rember to take care of your skin all year round and use some sort of spf to protect your skin from prolonged sun exposure.