Being all bundled up in winter is no excuse to leave your glow in summer. Winter bronzing is just as legit as self-tanning in the warmer seasons – but not everyone can do a beautiful job at it. Longer nights and freezing temperatures affect your skin in an entirely different way, so your usual way of self-tanning just won’t cut it.
Warm weather leaves the skin dehydrated but guess what – so does cold weather. Additional TLC and the proper tanning know-how are just as needed.
Here are our quick tips to getting a beautiful glow in the dead of winter.
Say bye bye to your dead winter skin
The cold makes us go after anything warm to use on our skin – that includes hot showers, low humidity, and heating. Because of this, our skin gets flaky and dry during winter. If you’ve been reading up on our past blogs, you would know by now that self-tanners absolutely love clinging to dry skin – and that’s why exfoliating is key.
Take your favorite exfoliating mitt and gently slough off dead skin, starting from your feet and working your way upwards. Don’t forget to pay special attention to areas that are usually dry in and out of season such as knees and elbows. If you want to go the extra mile, grab your favorite body scrub to revitalise and nourish your skin as you go.
Take your self-tanner shade down a notch or two
Unless you live in the tropics, sporting a deep tan in the dead of winter looks a bit unnatural. To get a glow that looks more natural, we advise choosing a hue lighter than your usual (that is, if you usually sport deeper hues).
If you have pale skin, we recommend starting out with the Bondi Bodz gradual tanners or going for the Bronze Bliss Medium Tanning Lotion.
Let your skin swim in moisturiser
Since winter skin tends to be drier than any other time in the year, it is absolutely crucial for you to moisturise, moisturise, and moisturise. Keeping the skin supple ensures that your glow will develop evenly, and won’t leave patches and streaks as it fades.
It’s no rocket science, really: take your favourite body cream or lotion and slather on your skin after every shower. Choose moisturisers with high quality ingredients that are packed with antioxidants and all that good stuff. The higher the SPF, the better too.
Use tanning drops for your face
We love using beauty oils in winter because they are extra hydrating than thinner moisturisers. In the same way, we love using tanning drops for our face to up our moisture game while getting a winter glow. Just mix into or layer with your favourite face moisturiser and you’re all set to go.
Best part? You can totally customize the glow you want to achieve.
We recommend: Afterglow Tanning Drops
Pay extra attention to your hands
Your hands tend to dry out in winter so make sure they don’t absorb too much self-tanner by using a proper tanning mitt when doing a glow up session. We advise keeping a hand cream in your bag and other places you spend most time in (ie bathroom, desk, etc). This will also prevent turning your hands into a weird orange color.
If you made a mistake, just refer to our guide on removing your tan to go back to square one.