Tanning has always been an awkward conversation for me. Black girls thought I was crazy for wanting a tan (that was “so white” of me). White girls didn’t think it was possible for me to get any more color. And there was always that one older lady who thought I was just a really tan white girl…
I, personally, had my own debate: Would I need to explain why I was getting a tan? Is it “okay” to want to rock darker skin? Am I being crazy for doubting this?? All questions that ran through my head but I’ll tell ya this. No matter where I land in my own personal debate the facts never change. Come winter and ya girl is pasty.
I can’t change my melanin but I can embrace my skin (as light or as dark as it gets) and if I want to be more bronze in the winter, then who cares. SO, I set off on a mission to find a good self-tanner that I could apply at home (tanning beds are out obviously and I don’t want to dish a ton of money getting someone to spray me down every month) so I took a few different self-tanner products for a test drive.
I gotta say – there were some winners and there were some real losers (my hands are STILL orange from one of them). I finally found one that I actually love. No streaks. No orange. A tone that pairs well with my olive skin without being overpowering. And did I mention it smells amazing and people keep asking me what my perfume is – yeah this one is good.
Ladies, meet Bondi Sands.
When it came to finding the perfect self-tanner, there were a few things I was looking for:
- NO orange-ness. I have a more olive undertone so I wanted something that would complement that.
- Sweatproof. I work out 5-6 days a week and am definitely a sweat-er. I needed a product that wouldn’t run down my leggings on leg day.
- A good smell. From my experience, most tanning products have a “smell”. I wanted something that didn’t necessarily smell like a tanning bed or too chemically.
So excited I found Bondi Sands Tanning Foam in Ultra Dark because it literally meets every single qualification and more. I love that one coat gives a subtle bronze and then you can apply an additional coat if you want to go super rich. Either way, both options are very natural looking and I love that.
A few tips to get the most out of your glow…
- Use a tanning mit to apply your tanning foam to your body.
- Do one limb at a time!
- Use a kabuki or small blush brush to apply to your face, hands, ankles and feet. For Bondi Sands, I dab the leftovers from my mit rather than using a fresh “pump”.
