Are you the type who always decides you need a self-tanning session shortly before needing to leave the house? Perhaps you’ve already exfoliated, showered, and done everything you can to lay the foundations for the best fake tan, but remembered you had one last nemesis: drying time. You defeatedly put your bottle of tanning lotion down and head out the door with a sigh.
Fret not. Standing in the middle of your bathroom like a scarecrow while waiting for your not-so-instant instant tan to dry is now a thing of the past. We will share our tips to make your tanner — gradual tan or not — dry faster so you can get your cute self out the door quickly.
But first, let’s talk self-tanner types.
Lotions
Lotions are the general favorite when it comes to body skincare because of their consistency, absorbency, coverage, and ease of use. This is fine for moisturisers but not so much when you are avoiding staining your clothes and seats.
If you are a self-tanning rookie and usually not in a hurry, self-tanning lotions and even tanning moisturisers are great choices. But they do tend to take longer to dry so this probably isn’t the best option for the girl or guy on the go.
Mousses
Call us biased but when it comes to quick-drying tanning solutions, mousses are on top of our list. Firstly, mousses apply very easily with their foam consistency which makes it almost feel like you are rubbing little cloud fluffs on your body. The product almost feels like air—except your self-tanner is already working its magic on your skin though you can’t feel it.
The best part? You guessed it. Mousses dry the quickest.
A bit of a drawback is that if we’re not paying attention, we can lose track of which parts are already covered. If you happen to reapply on the same spot twice, make sure you are using a great tanning mitt to evenly spread the product to prevent uneven colouring.
Our recommendation: Bondi Bodz Tanning Mousses
Gels
For people with normal to moderately oily skin, gels are a great option. Gel consistency spreads easily and covers all areas of your skin well, but just like lotions, they may not be the best option in terms of drying time.
If you browse the self-tanner aisle in your beauty store, you will notice that there aren’t a lot of options for gel self-tanners. You might want to seek them out online first and check for in-store availability.
Now let’s get to the tips.
Now that we have outlined the different self-tanner types and determined which one is best for quick drying, here are other drying tips to get your day going faster.
Blow dry on cool setting.
Forget standing in the middle of your bathroom while waiting for your tanner to dry; grab your blow dryer and start blasting those body parts. Blow drying your self-tanner not only allows you to move on with your day quicker, but it also aids your tan to speed up the tanning process by a bit.
Before you blast away, make sure that your blow dryer is on cool setting. Using warm air may cause you to sweat, spread out the tanner, and leave you with blotches and streaks.
Plus, you don’t want to be subjecting your skin to all that heat. Trust us.
Set your blow dryer on cool and choose the lowest fan setting. Hold the dryer at least a foot away and gently allow it to dry your skin.
Use a fan.
This is pretty much the same as blow drying, except we have to caution you about using a fan in a humid room. Make sure that the temperature in the room won’t get you sweating so your tanner dries nicely without creating any splotches and streaks.
Grab your setting powder.
Setting powders are great for fast drying because they absorb excess moisture really well. This will prevent the product from rubbing off on your clothes by locking the color in place, which means you can get dressed and go about your day quickly.
If you live in a naturally humid environment, this is a great option not just for drying fast but for making sure your self-tan comes out even.
To apply, grab a fluffy brush just like you would set your face, pick up a bit of powder with it, tap of the excess, and lightly sweep over your skin. This should seal your tanner in.
If you don’t have setting powder, baby powder should also work.