Trying to find the darkest self tan [Archive] - MoneySavingExpert.com Forums

Gunna

13-04-2009, 11:55 AM

Go on ebay and purchase a airbrush solution, the person i get mine form does a whopping 16% dha solution and i tell you it is mega dark on lol one coat is enough to look like you been in the med for 2 weeks.
You can buy 125ml for about £7.00 including postage and that lasts a good few body tans.
Pop it in a spray bottle if you want a spray but i reccomened the carpad method. You buy one of those spongey round carpads thats covered in microfibre, all you do is spray it on and wipe in circular motions over your body this is the best way for streak free application, and the application is thin enough to dry pratically instantly.
A brand i reccomened is React tanning solution the 12% i love this brand it makes me dark brown and dries instantly, never streaks and smells gorgeous.Here is a link to the website.

http://www.celebritysecrets.co.uk/SunlessTanningSolutions-4

Another tan you can try that everyone is raving about is Xen-tan it apparently is dark and great but it is expensive for what you get and is certianly not as dark as an airbrush spray will get you.

I know a few othe makes that make you dark but again i think they are a bit pricey for what you get.

I am going to purchase a 500ml of 12% React for about £25 that is more than enough to last me all summer if i tan a few times a week full body....to me that is good value as the average airbrush solution lasts 7-10 days and fades better than a lot of tans.

I hope i have helped you lol.

I always like a deep dark tan that does it in one coat, i have St Tropez mousses as a top up on in between days as it dries so quick but it is such a pale colour on its own you need about 6 coats for a med look lol.

I adore tanning and talking bout it lol :) Hence the blabbering on and on........

glowgirl

13-04-2009, 5:06 PM

Thank you both for the replies, Gunna your info was excellent, could I be cheeky and ask who you buy from on Ebay? I will check out your link later tonight when I have more time, the product you described sounds exactly like what I'm looking for :T

Gunna

13-04-2009, 5:42 PM

glowgirl

13-04-2009, 6:29 PM

Thank you Gunna, thats great and I agree with everything you said about the so called dark tans some dont work at all on me, hence my question on here, I shall have some fun looking around from your links and report back.

glowgirl

13-04-2009, 7:11 PM

Just to update that I ordered free samples from Siennasol, the 16% one (it makes me nervous) and decided to go with the recommendation from Gunna for the 12% one from Celebritysecrets, I am going to try the small bottle first, great price and an interesting site, I cant wait to try both of these products, I have a couple of the mitts also recommended and a back applicator so I'm good to go as soon as it arrives - thanks again Gunna - cant wait - woo hoo super sun tan here I come..............

Gunna

13-04-2009, 9:01 PM

Hiya

Oooh you gotta let me know how you get on lol, the 16% does sound dark i tried it when it was only 15% but it was a really nice colour, i went to visit relatives and they thought i had been abroad :) they couldn't believe it was fake hehe. I didn't find that the Siennasol make made you smell too bad either just a bit biscuity but then i am yet to find a tan that doesn't smell at all but gives excellent colour !!

I am sure you will love the 12% as i tend to like that strength as you can always layer if you want more, i agree with you on price i think it's excellent value for money. I once had a litre of React 10% it did me 2 years before it went off only cost me £20 on ebay i couldn't believe it.....anyway have fun tanning, i am the same with new products i get excited as i just want to try them lol :)

Happy Tanning !!!!!

x__Indigo_x

18-04-2009, 1:19 PM

after readoing this thread i too have ordered a sample of the 16% [ eeek!] and the small bottle from react. im relying on you Gunna :P

Gunna

18-04-2009, 2:33 PM

Haha oooh err i might leave the country then :) nah i am sure you will find it good, it is what made me turn away from "normal brand" tanners ok i still have St Tropez as i said for using in between to quickly darken myself but only because the mousse dries so quickly and is good value for money from ebay and gives a nice glow lol.
I prefer airbrush sprays as they are formulated to be long lasting and an excellent tan that fades a lot better and more evenly than other normal tanners out there.

I have found the siennasol 15%(when they did that one) stood up to a good few hot showers before the fade started, i was actually amazed as after 1 shower St Tropez goes patchy and you have to sort it out, but this withstood 2 hot showers then i went away for 5 days and even when i came back the tan was still as dark!!!! So i would say i got a good 7 days out of it before it needed exfoliating and sorting out, which is the longest a self tan has stayed on my skin.
I love React as i find it smells gorgeous and just gives a browner glow than the others(well on me it did anyway) it just looks a bit more natural......

Glowgirl......any news yet have your tanners arrived and have you braved trying the 16% ??? :)

glowgirl

18-04-2009, 3:28 PM

Hi Gunna, how strange I was just comming on to update and you had bumped my post, great minds think alike;), the samples for the 16% havn't arrived yet, the 12% took 2 days to come, me being me I had to try it straight away and slapped it on over my fading patchy orangy tan, within minutes I looked fabulous, the colour guide is nice and dark and the product easy to apply if you take your time, more on this in a sec, I got dressed after about 10 minutes and my god, there was no fake tan on my clothes, no sticky feeling and no dodgy smell - just brilliant:T. The next day I had a shower, the colour guide washed away and I was left with a mediumish nice non orange glow/tan, I have pink toned skin and this worked well with my colouring, however my personal taste is for a darker colour, I might have tanorexia! so next time I order I'm going straight in for the 16%, btw I used the 12% on my face as well and this looked good, although I'm not usually a fan of fake tan on the face this worked really well. Anyway, after my shower I decided to put on another layer, getting a bit cocky I thought I would do a deeper layer and put more on the application mit, big mistake, dropped the bottle all over the floor and OH's jacket:eek: thankfully we have laminate so disaster was avoided as long as it comes out in the wash which I think it will, its only fake tan after all. The good news is it wasnt actually that much that I dropped, it looked worse then it was and I did put more on and now have the super suntan that I was after, thanks to gunna:j, its easy to do your back with one of those long back aplicators with the sticky spongy thing on the end, I have a St Tropez one but they sell them in Boots etc. Without a doubt this is the best tan I have used (I have used all different ones both expensive and cheap) and definitely a great price, oh yeah it dosnt come off on bedcovers either! Anymore self tan stories or reviews would be great, we can all glow together:T

Gunna

18-04-2009, 3:58 PM

AAaahhh Glowgirl :j was worrying that you had a self tan disaster lol but it sounds great(lol apart from the accident) sounds like you have a really nice tan and yes it sound slike you like it very dark hehe, but did you know on ebay you can but pure DHA drops to add to your self tan to make it deeper to your desired colour:D I was going to get some ages ago but thought nah 15 % is strong enough lol.
I always tend to fins with airbrush solutions that when you put on the second coat it looks fantastic and just seems to make your skin glow,then i like to add gold shimmery stuff when i go out and then i look glowy and sparkly lol.

Had to laugh at your accident but don't worry i am the same i get all excited and end up spilling stuff, i should re-name myself clumsy ,i recommened you go to boots or superdrug and buy and empty spray bottle and fill that and spray it on your mitt then if you drop it you won't waste(i would have been thinking sod the floor...my precious tan is spilled:eek:).

I am surprised the 16% hasn't come yet but then he might be slower as it is a sample.

How do you find the smell as? Do you like a packet of digestives(weirdly i actually like the smell reminds me i am tanned hehe).

Perhaps next time it would be better for you to go straight for the strong stuff lol unless you are brave enough to add the drops and make it as dark as your heart desires......i remember reading about a girl that made her 15% solution into 20% i just thought wow DARK lol but the more DHA a tan has in it apparently the stonger the smell.....i don't think that can be correct as soem of the Loreal and Nivea crappy tanners are only about 3-6% DHA and they stink to high heaven, i think it all depends on your skin a bit like how the same perfume smells different on everyone i think the same goes for tan, as with me i think it gives a stronger biscuit smell but bearable and after the initial shower it is minimal lol.....oooh there i go again on and on.

Self tan disaster stories would be good i always love to hear that other people have had the same problems as me.....at the minute i hate doing my armpits as you always end up with a white area oh and the inside of your elbows where the tan can rub off:rotfl:.
I remember putting an avon body lotion on waiting 10 mins(on a damp cold freezing winter night)then applying a nivea spray tan(about 10 years ago now lol) i waited for 4 hours freezing whilst it took its time to dry, i was like a zombie walking about all sticky and horrible:p:p next morning bits of me where white,bits were orange and most of me was streaky and horrible, i smelt like a mouldy biscuit as well yuk was the worst tanner i have used........anyone else(make me feel a bit better that i am not the only one:o).

glowgirl

18-04-2009, 4:50 PM

What a great post, I have had many many tanning disasters over the years, I have been using self tan before it was even popular, the first one was called Sudantan from Boots probably about 20 years ago, you had to dig on the bottom of a dusty shelf with all the tanning protection to find it, this was more of a foundation/self tan and it stunk and streaked and went orange - great stuff, then I went on to sunbeds:eek: I actually used to sleep on one for an hour after work every day, go home, get changed and go out for the night, I used sunbeds on and off up until about 8 years ago and now only ever use self tan, I dont even sit out in the real sun, mainly because I get so bored.

I dont seem to have any smell at all from the 12%, my daughter actually really likes the smell of self tan because it reminds her of me! Gone are the days when mums smelt of baking and apple pies:T I have only recently worked out that moisturisers with oils in them ruin your colour, I can be a bit slow sometimes :D, so would welcome any suggestions for a water based body moisturiser, they have one on celebrity secrets, but I dont think its water based as it has rosehip oil in it, anyway I dont really like the smell of rose. I dont think I would bother with DHA drops I think 16% will be way dark enough, especially if I layer. Just to kill any credibility I might of had, the product I spilt on my bedroom floor was mainly moped up with my tanning mit and put on my legs, I apologise to all you clean freaks out there but I hate waste and my floor was clean - honest:p

Gunna

18-04-2009, 6:50 PM

It certainly is addictive this self tanning lark lol i have spent loads on it and i keep spending loads just to try new product incase they are better:o Seems i am always on the lookout for the "perfect" product and that doesn't really exist as we are all different and it is all down to technique when applying self tan.
I have learned loads form forums(not that there is that many) or just reading in to tanning.
I went through a stage of using sunbeds myself, i got sick of applying tan and as everyone i knew was hopping on a bed i thought i would give it a go:rolleyes: i even bought my own canopy and then spent loads on different lotions that promised a deep dark luxurious tan , that never happened i don't get mega dark on the sunbeds now i do in the sun i tan nice and easily but like you say it is lying there i get so bored myself i need to do something lol.
I sold my sunbed then contemplated getting another this time i wanted a stand up sun shower type bed that takes 6 mins a time as with my canopy you were an hour or 80 mins tanning on both sides now that really bored me lol:rotfl:.
OH seen me on ebay looking at stand up beds and said no way we ain't got the room which fair enough we haven't but i never learn i spend loads on tanner that i never use it is like an addiction lol oh an shimmers to enhance my tan(still trying to find the right one and i think finally i have just got to try it lol), i end up not usuing half my tanners and giving them away on freecycle or trying to sell on ebay lol even though i have airbrush solution in, although i won't buy brands such as Loreal,Nivea,Johnsons,Boots etc as i just don't think they are good enough for the price. I did cintemplate xen tan and fake bake extreme but i think i would use them once then leave em lol, i have tanning periods where maybe 2-3 months i will go tan mad then i stop for like 8 months as i can'tbe bothered especially at winter:T:T

Anyway with regards to body lotion i actually learned about oil based ones myself not long ago being bad for your tan, the same is with soaps dove is one of the worst:eek: i went on a forum that has a list of safe products to use but it is american and a lot of the products are american. I was going to invest in a tan enhancer or extender as these are supposed to be safe for the tan but then again i have used St Tropez moisturiser without any problems.
I never usually moisturise apart form the odd bit of aloe vera in summer or shimmer lotion lol but will have a look about and see what good ones for a tan are out there:Ahas to be some someone can recommened.

Get my thinking cap on lol

glowgirl

18-04-2009, 7:17 PM

Thanks gunna, I will hunt about too, I use an oil free facial moisturiser from Boots which is super cheap (under £2) I could slap that on if I feel I need to also your post reminded me I used to use Aloe Vera years ago it was a pure gel, again no oil, from Holland and Barratt, I wonder if they still do it and if that would be any good, I am having a great beauty day today, coloured my hair this morning, did my nails and I am having a good make up day:D I swear my tan has got darker through the day and is looking really really nice, I think the thing I am most impressed with is even the colour guide dosnt come off on clothes, that really is a first for me btw the self tan came out of my OHs jacket no problem, he dosnt even know about it:rotfl:

FelinePrincess

21-04-2009, 2:54 PM

What a great thread!

I have been using xen tan dark lotion for past 8 months or so and getting good results (after about 3 layers! It's certainly not 'dark' after 1 layer!). The only things I don't like about it is the sticky feelings for a couple of hours after applying and the cost, even though I always buy several bottles at a time on ebay it still costs me a fortune.

Anyway I requested a sample of Siennasol Extreme a few months ago after seeing a post on the freebies board but I have always been a bit scared of using it, the label made it look a bit cheap and dodgy! But, after reading this thread I thought I'd give it a try and I applied it a couple of hours ago. I'm impressed by the nice natural looking color and how quickly it dried, also I can't smell it at all. I only put a thin layer on so I think I'll slap a bit more on later! So far so good, only problem was I got a bit carried away pouring it on to my mitt and ended up spilling some on bed, will definitely be investing in a spray bottle to spray on to mitt in future!

Just about to order a some more from ebay! Thanks GlowGirl and Gunna for all the great info!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

21-04-2009, 5:12 PM

Just thought I would give a quick update, still using the 12% from Celebrity secrets, I have 3 layers on, having bought myself a spray bottle its now much safer:D and quicker to apply. Next time I will definatley be going for either 14% or 16%, but I love the non greasiness and ease of application with this product and would certainly recommend to others, having read through the site again I see that they do do specialist moisturisers for prolonging your colour, without oils in them as I originally thought, when I reorder again I will probably give the one without any dha in it a go, I will of course report back. I have to say as much as I love a body moisturiser this product dosnt seem to dry the skin and my daughter commented that my skin felt soft even with no other product on then the self tan. Still no samples from Siennasol:rolleyes:.

BelindaBear

21-04-2009, 6:59 PM

Do you need to have an airbrush system to apply deep coloured tans or can you just rub it in with a mit or sponge?

:confused:

glowgirl

21-04-2009, 7:42 PM

I have a mit from Boots, its a really good idea to buy a small plastic spray bottle, this will help avoid accidents and give you more control, you can spray the product straight on to your skin or on to the mit and apply, using the spray bottle seems to be especially effective if you are using a back applicator, the long one with the sticky removable sponge at the top, spray directly on to the sponge and away you go, I am sure most tanning salons will say the product works best with an airbrush machine, but dont be fooled, the mit works brilliantly and will save you a fortune, I wouldnt use another type of self tan now - hth - good luck with your tanning:)

Gunna

21-04-2009, 8:02 PM

You can use a mitt or sponge or carpad or even just hands of gloves....just because they say airbrush it is basically a better quality solution than that you can buy in the shops.

Just a quick reply i will a bit more later :)

FelinePrincess

22-04-2009, 1:28 PM

Still no samples from Siennasol:rolleyes:.

When I ordered my sample it didn't turn up for a week or 2, I remember being surprised when it arrived as I'd given up hope on then sending it, hope they are a bit quicker with my order!

Feline Princess

Gunna

22-04-2009, 3:43 PM

Hiya All

Glowgirl sounds like you had a good beauty day on sunday, i like when i have days like that makes you feel good about yourself lol. I put on a layer of StTropez on sat night just to make sure it was still ok to use as i have had it a year now and the top had some green foam in it(began to worry it was bin time for it). But it was ok apart from stinking and looking like i was covered in mud it washed of nicely the next day but left my face really dark so had to hot wash a layer of it off, has now faded after 2 hot baths and a shower to nothing lol, but at least i know it is still fine to use(might pop it in fridge to extend it's life a bit longer lol:o).

I just finished scrubbing the heck out of my legs last night to prepare them for a tanning today as i feel the top half of my body isn't too bad but my legs are pinky white and need something doing if i am to brave a skirt in this gorgeous spell of weather we are having.I absoloutly hate doing my legs they are so difficult to get just right and then even when you do get them looking nice if you wear trainers and socks of knee high boots you end up with white feet where the tan has rubbed or sweated off, it really annoys me so i tend to leave a whole body tan till right in summer when it is nice and warm and you can wear sandals of flip flops most days and spare your feet.:T
Likewise if i am going away and i know i will be in the sea or swimming a lot i try to think if it is worth while tanning as it rubs of with the sea a lot and goes blotchy and i don't want to spend time re-appling till i get a nice tan:rotfl: but then i like being brown oh :confused:

With regards to moisturisers i think if celebritiy secrets of any tanning makes is selling an extender or moisturiser for their tan then it must be ok or else you can complain that you bought "their" tanner and "their" recommended moisturiser and it rubbed off or made it fade quicker.

I am still noseying about for a good moisturiser for a tan , i was looking at sunbed moisturiser as they are excellent but then they probablly aren't suitable.I was looking at using whipped shea butter which i am going to make some fresh and try for a week and see what it does to the tan.

Remember and let us know when your Siennasol samples come can't wait to find out what they are like lol :beer: :A

joanneinwonderland

22-04-2009, 8:32 PM

FelinePrincess

22-04-2009, 9:16 PM

Hi

I'm quite a new tanner and still not getting it quite right. I am wondering what beginner products you guys used to start with? don't understand the percentages but thinking they're pretty dark?

I just use tanning wipes and garnier spray at the moment but they're not really idea. Interesting to real about the oil based stuff. I take my eye make up off with oily remover and thought the other day my tan had really disappeared around my eyes.

Love this thread!! Can you put up some links to mitts etc as I don't even know where to start looking for that in Boots?

Thanks girls hopefully I'll be a golden goddess this summer!!

xx

Here is a link to the boots tanning mitt http://www.boots.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10052&catalogId=11051&productId=39627 and here is a link to a velvotan one which can usually be found in superdrug and tescos http://www.amazon.co.uk/Velvotan-Self-Tan-Mitt-1/dp/B001EJOF16 . I use both and there isn't really a difference between the 2. They can usually be found amongst all the fake tans. I think boots have 1 third off their at the moment. I strongly reccomend getting a mit as they make applying fake tan so much easier and quicker. I even used them on holiday for sun tan lotion!

As for fake tan I think it's a case if trying a few to see which works for you. I have always preferred lotions as I find them easiest to apply and I strongly recomend getting a tinted one so you can see where it goes on.

I have just converted to siennasol but right up until this week I was using xen-tan which is good but gets expensive if you wear as much as I do! I would personally never bother with any light or gradual fake tans (like johnsons holiday skin ect) as even dark tans always seem light and need a few layers so anything lighter seems like too much hard work!

Hope this helps!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

23-04-2009, 9:12 AM

mikeassured

23-04-2009, 4:31 PM

Hi glowgirl,

I ordered the celebrity secrets 12% last weekend, but still havent received it. Did it come by normal royal mail or was it signed for??

Thanks

Sue

Idiophreak

23-04-2009, 4:37 PM

Could always ask these guys what they use:

http://ruasdeoutono.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/oompa-loompa-costumes-01a.jpg

Gunna

23-04-2009, 4:59 PM

Hi all, I agree with everything FelinePrincess said for starting off with fake tan, you might as well start with the professional stuff and not waste time and money, my 12% for Celebritysecrets seems to be never ending, so is a really good place to start, they have weaker concentrations if you are feeling nervous. Gunna, my clever fake tan advisor, do you mean your going to make your own moisturiser? Please let us know if thats what your doing and how to do it, I'm really looking forward to finding out if it affects your colour:)

Hiya Glowgirl and everyone else:rotfl: or should i say tan addicts:T

With regards to joanneinwonderland i have to agree with Felineprincess and Glowgirl, start with something good quality as you know you won't(hopefully) get the streaks as they have been made to be streak free and do what they offer(meaning i haven't been streaky with them).:o
Siennasol which i recommend along with React and Celebrity secrets are airbrush solutions as already mentioned and work perfectly with the mitt plus if you get one with a bronzer or colour guide it is pratically foolproof application on saying that though be aware to try and keep you application as even as possible as even a small area that is thicker applied will show up darker and can look blotchy or like it is streaky, so nice light swirly application to rub it in.....and yes when i use airbrush solutions i rub them right in to my skin so it is as dry as possible to the touch(i just think it dries quicker lol);). For your face perhaps mix with a little moisturiser for a lighter application just so it is not as strong on there.Oh don't rub into elbows or dreaded knees just lightly graze over the top or better still moisturise them about 30 mins before applying.:D

If you would like a foolproof tan that is very light but gentle and moisturises the skin then go for this stuff:

http://www.famousdave.co.uk/pages/shop.htm

I have three half bottles lying about lol:rolleyes: it is great stuff smells a bit nutty with the seasame oil in it but it glides on and feels lovely on the skin it never streaks and develops into a very pale gold tan(is only about 3-4% DHA i was told). There is no need to moisturise before applying as it has caring oils in it so it is great, i find the tan is not too long lasting about 2-3 days, it has no colour guide in it but when you rub it in(best with bare hands:eek:) it goes a creamy white as the oils rub into your skin so you can see where it is applied.It dries instantly and you can dress within a minute and the smell as i said is a bit nutty it is quite nice, my skin is always soft as silk when i apply this stuff but to get a deep colour i would need about 10 coats(Glowgirl can't imagine what you would need lol).
I am going to pop a coat of this on my face as i feel it is light enough in summer to just enhance my colour as at the minute even StTropez mousse as i said earlier is making me far too dark lol(never thought i would say that haha). I must be paler at the mo than i thought.
Itis anice product but in my opinion it needs to have a little more DHA in it to add more depth to the colour and i don't think it has Erythrulose in it which is the little miracle which makes tan last longer and fade better.:rotfl::cool:

I hope that info helps you on your tanning quest:D

Glowgirl yep i am going to attempt to make my own whipped shea body cream, as a lot of tan moisturisers have shea and aloe and jojoba or oils like that in them so i am thinking make my own organic, then i know what is going in and what it does. Am still looking at oils to put in it to benefit either my tan or skin and trying to find the best way to whip the shea so it doesnt crystalise but i will let you know when i eventually recieve my shea from the ebay seller i purchased my stuff from:o:pand get round to making it up.
Did you know as well you can but loose powdered mica to put in your own body lotions to make them sparkly or shimmery:D:D so i am going to have a nosey about and try to make it shimmery with a goldy/peachy mica to enhance the tan am still trying to find the mica lol:rotfl: i will get there though hehe.

Keep us all updated on how your tans are going and if you ever recieve the siennasol samples:beer:
Phew me fingers are limp now lol

Gunna

23-04-2009, 5:00 PM

Could always ask these guys what they use:

http://ruasdeoutono.files.wordpress.com/2009/03/oompa-loompa-costumes-01a.jpg

Lmao they prob use Avon or Nivea thats the colour i went when i used it yuk:rotfl::rotfl:

glowgirl

23-04-2009, 5:23 PM

Another great post from Gunna, I've never heard of anyone making their own moisturiser, what a fab idea, I guess then you could make your own self tan? maybe with the dha drops you mentioned before, imagine that your own bespoke product, that could even be a business idea if you were that way inclined although I'm sure with health and safety what it is it wouldnt be that simple:rolleyes: just thought I would add as well to anyone trying out different products or just starting out that tan remover wipes are very handy to have around at first, just in case, they sell them in superdrug or baby wipes, the original ones, are very good if you spot a mistake soon after application - I am looking a bit patchy today, had skinny jeans on and they were so tight I have a white seem running down each leg where they've rubbed the colour:rotfl:I actually look really funny but its nothing a good exfoliate and another layer wont fix;)

joanneinwonderland

23-04-2009, 8:21 PM

Thanks think I'll defo buy a mitt this weekend and perhaps try a lotion instead of the spray stuff although I must say my boyfriend does an excellent job of spraying me haha poor guy he puts up with a lot!! Did it last night and quite pleased with it today. Thinking I might put on a bit more though....oh dear see what you've started?!

With the celeb secrets then do you just put it on with the mitt and not bother with a spray thing or are you saying before that you just buy a wee spray thing and use that then rub it in? feel so much better with some colour!!

xx

glowgirl

23-04-2009, 8:51 PM

Hi mikeassured, it took 3 days to come by normal Royal Mail post, it didnt have to be signed for but was too big to fit through my letterbox so postie had to ring the bell:)

glowgirl

23-04-2009, 8:59 PM

Gunna

23-04-2009, 9:00 PM

Haha we should start a tan addicts club :)

We all qualify lol i personally love talking about it and learning about it more than applying it strange really lol.
I did actually think of making my own Bespoke tan solution but i think it would be cheaper to buy ready made as they can probably get the ingredients a heck of a lot cheaper. There is someone on ebay that has made their own tanning lotion it does sound nice, cooling aloe base, luxurious oils to moisturise and protect skin oooh and it sounds expensive but it's not too bad.

It is easy enough to whip something nice and natural and luxurious up just need to source the ingredients form ebay or the likes, i am going to splurge out and get pure rose oil and pure jasmine oil to make my body moisturiser really luxurious and sweet smelling.
Some people are charging up to £20 for whipped shea moisturisers so it is a popular product, i just hate the way that "known" brands say it contains skin loving ingredients such as aloe,shea,cocoa butter but when you look at the ingredients they are at the bottom and in minute amounts :( but i am a female and all those shiny adverts seduce me into trying most products lol but am learning now that i can probably make them myself and a heck of a lot cheaper with more of the ingredients in it and organic too!!

Gunna

23-04-2009, 9:05 PM

Hi Joanneinwonderland, the product comes in a straightforward plastic bottle, I was less than careful and spilt it everywhere so I transfered it to a cheap small plastic spray bottle, although I did this to avoid any more accidents I have found that spraying directly onto the skin or on to the applicator gives more control and a better finish. You dont need to buy an airbrush machine or anything more than a mit and back applicator (if you need one), just for everyones info I have done 6 full body applications so far and would guess I have about 3 left form the small size bottle.

WOW Glowgirls thats a good amount of apps was it the 125 ml bottle you got again?? If so that is really good as usually they say you are "supposed" to get 2-3 full bod applications, i find with mitt or sponge application you can apply a thinner coat that does the same job and as you said the spraying give better control i also found this with mine, i sprayed on my skin and sponged in or rubbed with gloves.:T:T

glowgirl

23-04-2009, 9:48 PM

Its the 125 ml bottle, it does sound a lot dosn't it? but it is right, it seems on me a little goes a long way, I'm certainly not being sparing with it and I have a great colour, of course I'm not complaining:D

devotee

23-04-2009, 10:14 PM

Rodial Brazilian dark is the darkest tan that I know of and it does not go orange, not cheap though!

glowgirl

24-04-2009, 9:14 AM

Thank you, I have tried Rodial Brazilian before and whilst it was dark and actually a really nice product to use I found the cost prohibitive, Lancaster was another fav of mine, not as expensive as Rodial probably on a par with Clarins (another decent product) but for the depth of colour I like it was far to expensive long term, I also found that all the above products had that weird fake tan smell (which can be strangly addictive) but I have no problems with the cost or smell or effectivness of the Celebrity Secrets product I have been recommnded to use. Still waiting for the Siennasol samples, postie hasnt been yet so fingers crossed for today:)

Gunna

24-04-2009, 9:17 AM

Yeh i heard Rodial was a good product but one person claimed she spent £60 a month on it!!!!! Bit pricey for my money saving pocket lol

devotee

24-04-2009, 12:03 PM

Yeh i heard Rodial was a good product but one person claimed she spent £60 a month on it!!!!! Bit pricey for my money saving pocket lol
How much was she using??? Lol.
Ebay sometimes have good deals, I'll be definitely having a look there once I do my cosmetics clearout.

glowgirl

26-04-2009, 12:15 PM

Just thought I would update, I have been very slack with my tan the past couple of days but still have a really nice colour, although the product (celebritysecrets 12%) does leave your skin soft I think I am need of extra moisturising as I am now starting to get the dreaded 'lizard' skin on my shins, just in case anyone is not familier with this 'technical' term, its when your skin goes a bit dry and the tan goes in small patches hence the term lizard. So tonight it will be a good exfoliate and reapply, as much as I love my self tan, you do have to be dedicated if you want it to look good;), still no Siennasol samples so if it dosnt turn up by tuesday I shall order the 16% from Celebritysecrets and of course I will update:)

kim_35

30-04-2009, 10:48 PM

I think this post is fab!!

I hardly use fake tan, but am sick of looking fair and pale! i have had the odd fake bake in the salon and disasterous times with johnsons/dove cream!!

I dont want anything too dark, just to look nice and golden and maybe been away for a week in the sun!

What % would you recommend? 12% maybe? And I am really scared of putting on my face and hands!! How can I do this without looking silly?

Keep up the post its brill!!

Oh and I have that exact mitt from boots, been sitting in my wardrobe for 6 months and not been used!! When can i get one for doing my back? Think my boyf will get fed up of me asking him to do it all the time lol!xxx:j

glowgirl

01-05-2009, 12:55 PM

Hi kim_35, Have a look around the celebritysecrets site it has lots of good info, if you want a light colour maybe go for an 8 or 10%, I have learnt that most shop bought tans have roughly 6%, the 12 is quite dark (although not quite dark enough for me and my tanorexia) I would think the 8 or 10 would probably be good on your face too, you could try mixing a little self tan with your usual moisturiser to start off with and experiment a bit if you are nervous then invest in a pack of tan remover wipes and keep them handy, you can get these from boots etc, the St tropez tan remover is excellent, as well as the back applicator, I have the St Tropez one which I bought for under a fiver in boots, its a long black plastic thing with a spongy bit on the end that you can buy pads for seperatly when it needs changing, I spray the product onto the spongy bit, turn my back to the mirror and sponge on the product as if you were using a loofah as the product has a colour guide you can easily see where you are going, dont worry if it looks a bit patchy at first just make sure the whole of your back is covered when you wash the colour guide off you will be left with a non streaky lovely brown colour, no boyfriend required:D. As Gunna and others have said it really is all in the application and the mit and back applicator do work well, whilst your out shopping I would stongly suggest you buy a small plastic empty spray bottle to put your product in, this has made a huge difference to me, see my other posts in this thread for a full explanation;). Whilst on the subject of facial self tanning, I am not a fan of self tan on my face as I have large pores and an uneven skin tone so it only really looks good for the first day:sad: However I have recently found a budget (unusual for me) product that works superbly, its a bronzer from Rimmel called Duo Bronzing Powder in the lightest colour 001 Blonde, its matte with two colours and I put a couple of layers on over foundation and I match my tanned body really well and it lasts all day, even on my oily/combo skin, because its light in colour its easy to build up, my daughter also used it this morning, she likes to be pale, she just used a little as blusher and it looked gorgeous - hth, lets us know how you get on.

I have ordered the 16% from Celebritysecrets and am waiting for delivery, I have a lovely colour from the 12% and am really happy to have been recommended to this product, the weather where I live is hot and sunny and I look like I have been sunbathing for weeks, for the first time ever I have been asked if I have been away as I have such a nice colour by three different people:T when I explain its out of a bottle they cant get the details quick enough - will update on the 16% as soon I have tried it:)

glowgirl

01-05-2009, 1:04 PM

Sorry forgot to say, just wipe the mit over your hands when you have finished doing your body, keeping fingers together while you wipe stops any build up in between fingers, dont be too nervous, after all it is only fake tan and the colour guide in this product and the thinness (no stickyness) makes it really easy to use, if when you are applying you feel its a bit patchy/streaky looking pat the area rather than stroke it on and it will blend in more, do this with the mit on of course, as long as you have no white patchs when you wash the colour guide off you will have a perfect tan- happy tanning:)

glowgirl

03-05-2009, 12:24 PM

Thought I would update on the 16% I ordered from Celebritysecrets, it arrived yesterday and as always I was too impatient to wait so slapped it on over my 12% tan that was looking good anyway, the smell is slightly diffrent to the 12%, not bad just different but this goes away very quickly after drying, the colour guide is exactly the same but when it starts to develop, well the difference is astonishing:D I can honestly say that I have never used a self tan that has gone this dark, it looks easily as good as a real tan, not a streak or a patch just a glowing, dark (but not stupidly dark) colour that is even and just utterly gorgeous, I am overjoyed to say the least, it hasnt come off on clothes or sheets, I can honestly say I have nothing negative to say about this product and would happily recommed this to anyone as Gunna did to me:T. I have to admit I havent had a shower yet so still have the colour guide on but will update again soon.

glowgirl

05-05-2009, 10:33 AM

I now have 2 layers of 16% on and I am a super glowy glowgirl:jI have to say its not for the fainthearted and even though I have years of experience applying self tan I have managed to !!!! up my hands but do I care? not a bit:D I tried a bit on my face last night, I wont be doing that again, thankfully the tan remover worked at least to calm down the colour, I would recommend this strength if you want to look ultra tanned, even I wouldnt go any darker and thats saying something but it is not orange in any way and I love it:T

Ksa.

11-05-2009, 1:20 PM

Hello, after reading this I have decided not to order another bottle of xen tan (which gets soooo expensive) and have ordered 125ml of celebrity secrets 16% a spray bottle and a san tropez applicator mitt....phew I hope it works...any news? Is the sienna sol extreme better than the celebrity secrets...how long does the 125ml bottle last...is it really dark like how I want (I think on par with glow girl)....???

glowgirl

11-05-2009, 5:07 PM

Hi Ksa, My Sienna Sol samples never arrived so cant comment on that, my 16% from celebrity secrets is going really well and is astonishingly dark, I have never used a self tan with such a colour. I have noticed that I am itching a little bit on my legs as I have no rash I think that this is because my skin is quite dry, I am still searching for an oil free body lotion with a nice smell but in the meantime am using a basic non oil facial moisturiser from boots, it seems to of done the trick. I will say the 16% can fade a bit patchy, nothing that puts me off but I can see a difference with the higher DHA, I would certainly never go back to any other type of tan, the 125 bottle I had of 12% seemed to last longer than the 16% is, I got about 9 (maybe more) full bodies from the 12%, this is apparently quite unusual and good going, I am half way through the 16% bottle and have done 4 or 5 bodies and I don't skimp either:D I know I've said this already but please don't try the 16% on your face, its not a pretty sight:eek: Best of luck with your tanning, let us know how you get on:)

Ksa.

13-05-2009, 2:38 PM

Hello, thanks for the reply....well have just received 16% from celeb secrets and it seems to be going well, ive put a nice thick layer on...my husband said I look like a manicen (the plastic models in a shop...I cant spell!!) but I suppose they look smooth so ill see....I dont know how long to leave it on for:rolleyes:...perhaps a few hours I will update but thanks for the post it is excellent...:j Ive been spending way too much money on xen tan. The celeb secrets smells nice I must confess...Ill post as soon as I have my finished result! Take care..

Ksa.

13-05-2009, 2:47 PM

Oh also...I didnt know oil was bad for the tan???? why is that?...I always use olive oil to moisturise, its good and makes the tan look lovely...you can buy pure shea butter on ebay...its like a block of light coloured wax but its good...is that good for a tan.....hmmmmm shea butter is 9.99 a kilo which is good...

glowgirl

13-05-2009, 4:52 PM

Its not so much that oils are bad for your tan they seem to make it last less some creams (Palmer's Cocoa butter in my case, which is my fav) seem to lift it off, obviously this is not the technical term, I have no idea why this would be as I haven't really researched it yet, I don't know much about body moisturisers, I'm sure someone will be along to give you better advise on the Shea butter, after reading your post I might give the olive oil a try, maybe being natural it might not have that effect on my colour, I shall be really pleased if thats the case, I used olive oil all through my pregnancy and didn't have a stretch mark so I know its good stuff but I had forgotten about it. Regarding how long to leave your product on for I usually put it on before bed and have a shower in the morning, I believe it should be left untouched for 8 hours also two coats is very dark (woohoo) but with a certain extra depth to it, like Gunna previously said, let us know how you got on and I will update on the olive oil:)

Ksa.

13-05-2009, 6:08 PM

Hello there!
Well...palmers cocoa butter is also my favourite but it does lift of the tan...technical word 'lifting offage' haha!...anyway, ive had it on (the 16%) for about 5 hours and already v tanned. I may do one more coat ill see how it goes. I actually put it on my face against the advice on the post but it looks ok, just blends in with the rest of the colour on the body really, good smell, no streaks so far...so I will keep all informed:eek: Olive oil is good, I buy Ellada 1 litre which is a fiver in asda...also if you add a few drops of your fave essential oil you wont have that stink!..will post again on my new skin colour!

Ksa.

13-05-2009, 6:10 PM

Will be buying a bigger one next time...but does anyone know if the siennasol extreme is better???

glowgirl

13-05-2009, 7:14 PM

Hi Ksa., I'm sooooo jealous your face came out well :rotfl::T

Jammygal

13-05-2009, 9:17 PM

Hi everyone .....tell me how quick are celeb secrets on delivery.......
I need that 12% asap ;)

glowgirl

14-05-2009, 6:24 AM

Hi Jammygal, about 3 working days from ordering - hth

Ksa.

14-05-2009, 9:48 AM

:rotfl:Hello all...well I left it on overnight and after bathing this morning, giving the kids their brekkie etc...I have now reviewed the finished product!...It comes out so dark...I fuffed up my hands a wee bit but nevermind...on one application it is soooo good, id need about 3 layers of xen tan to achieve this!, but is thare a hint of orange????....hmmmm im not sure, maybe on the guide colour but I cant really notice anything yet, it looks like ive been on my hols!:rotfl:
Im well impressed especially with the price..thanks to all for the excellent advice Im so pleased!!!:j

Ksa.

14-05-2009, 12:22 PM

Today my siennasol extreme sample came in the post...I asked for it over a month ago and it never came so I emailed tham again saying ive been waiting fo aaaaaages and lo! here it is...as I only applied the celeb secrets yday, i will have to wait!...but my hands are a bit orange and im sad!:eek:.....

FelinePrincess

14-05-2009, 3:07 PM

Am I the only who will happily apply several layers of 16% on top of each other?! This is my fake tan routine: I apply 1 layer wed, 1 or 2 layers thurs, and 1 layer on fri and 1 on sat. I start carefully scrubbing it off on mon/tues and scrub it all off wed ready to start again! I sound hideous when you read this but I am totally white (never see the sun and when I do it ignores me!) and the color looks nice and natural, people think I'm naturally brown!

Does anyone else like to apply this much?

Ksa, do you not use a mit to apply your tan? It saves the orange hands problem! Have you tried scrubbing them with a scrubbing brush and soap? It usually takes away a bit of the glow. I have also heard that lemon juice is good for toning down fake tan but not tried it myself.

Feline Princess

glowgirl

14-05-2009, 5:38 PM

Hi all, lemon juice does work so do baby wipes if you catch it early enough, I made a mess of my hands at first as well ksa I think I might need a new mit as it seems to seep through, I have the usual ones from boots, does any know of a better one? In the meantime its surgical gloves and a mit:rotfl:I too am a serial layerer of 16%, it doesn't seem to look too dark just deeper - I love it:jI emailed siennasol last night and said my samples didn't turn up so hopefully they will soon, if anyone has used it could they report back, especially if you can compare to Celebrity secrets:)

Saint_Chris

14-05-2009, 9:25 PM

i ordered my free 16% free sample via e-mail over 3 weeks ago and still not received it.

FelinePrincess

15-05-2009, 11:29 AM

Glad to know I'm not the only one to layer on the 16%! I have been using siennasol and I find it very good, I find doesn't smell at all, which I didn't actually think possible! I haven't used celebrity secrets so can't comment on which is better but I'd be very interested if someone else has!

Feline Princess

Ksa.

16-05-2009, 11:31 AM

Hi there, as I said I got the sienna sol...as the tan has started to fade on my face I just put a bit on last night and I am bronzed this morning...it seems the same as celeb secrets to me but without the smell....I was reading something which said...if you have no tan at all on and you put 16% on pastey skin..it will turn slightly orange but if you build gradually (like glowgirl did, she put the 16% on top of the 12% there will be no orange...its a science!)....anyway...ive had my celeb secrets on for about 4 days, i exfoliated and moisturised with olive oil this morning and it still looks great!! iM LOVING IT...i WANT TO LAYER BUT AM A BIT SCARED i MIGHT LOOK UNNATURAL...BUT FELINE PRINCESS AND GLOWGIRL SEEM TO SAY THE COLOUR DEEPENS?...IS THAT RIGHT GALS??...DEEPENS TO WHAT COLOUR, CAN YOU GIVE ME ANY EXAMPLES, IM SCARED!!!. oK Just realised I was typing in capitals so oops...I use a mitt, I ordered it from john and ginger.com...its a san tropez black one and cost 3.00...it seems good, not a streak, it was the top of my hands that I tangoed orange!!...So feline princess you put how many layers of siennasol on?? does it ever go orange or patchy??...what amount do you buy?...wow..ive noticed celeb secrets do not offer a larger amount of 16% only the 125ml...so I may have to convert...and you too glowgirl?!...
Anyaway, ive heard liquid sun by vani t is a good spray but their highest is 12.5% not for the hardcore aplliers like us!!

glowgirl

16-05-2009, 12:34 PM

Hi all, glad to hear the tanning is going well , Ksa. I don't think I could ever go back to less than 16% now, I read on a tanning forum for professionals that they have never had anyone ask for more than a 12%, this seemed to be quite the norm-ha- lightweights:D I don't see any orange at all on me but you are quite right that I did layer, I even checked with my brutally honest OH and daughter about the orange and nothing:T when you layer the 16% because of the colour guide it will look much darker at first but when you wash off the colour guide it will leave a slightly darker but much richer colour, I think you'll like it, go on be brave, you know you want to:rotfl:I am going to try the olive oil out tonight, I'm going to put a few drops of lavender oil with it as suggested by Ksa., I'll let you know how it goes:)

FelinePrincess

16-05-2009, 2:12 PM

Hi Ksa, I currently have 3 layers, will put another one on later. I usually put on 4-5 layers over 4 days. I don't think it looks orange and everyone says it looks natural, no orange comments like I used to get when I used to wear number 7 fake tan! It doesn't really go patchy either as I begin to scrub it off after 5 days and then on 7th day I scrub it all off and start again. I have tried making it last longer by putting it on for a few more days and leaving it for longer but it ends up going scaly after about 5-6 days so not really worth it. I brought the 500ml bottle, I might buy the 1000ml next time but it doesn't really work out much cheaper. Isn't it amazing how it doesn't smell? I will try and post a couple of pics later so you can see how it looks.

Hi Glowgirl, would you post the link to the professional tanning forum? I'd love to have a nosey and see if I can learn anything!

How does everyone put the olive oil on? Do you use your hands or a mit? Does it smell at all? Most of the time I'm too lazy to moisturise but I'm trying to do it more often!

Feline Princess

Ksa.

16-05-2009, 4:30 PM

Hello girls!!...
Ive seen that forum they say that they would be astonished if anyone asked for more than 12%...ha ha...we laugh in the face of danger!:mad:
Well I put olive oil (with lavender too- but only 2 -3 drops) and put it on with my hands, it soaks in lovely and your tan is extra nice...it doesnt smell, the essential oil cancels out the olive oil smell which is good and at least its 100% natural....I need some advice, I re did my face last night and its a bit patchy...it seems to have stuck on my pores which I usually cant see and now they are tiny brown spots>...how do I fix this??....I am going to be brave and put another layer on tonight, so I wil update in the morning post wash off!~:p
So how do I fix my face and whats the best way to tan the face??...oh by the way feline princess...celebrity secrets smells sooooo nice and I think it has the same ingredients as siennssol...have a go!
:rotfl:

Ksa.

16-05-2009, 4:37 PM

I read that a tanning salon in usa offer 18% dha spray woah!!....we could always buy the booster drops!! haha

miss_nadine_x

16-05-2009, 7:14 PM

hey all just wanted to say been reading this over a few days and im soo gonna try it after my cosmetic clearout! iv been for about 30 mins over 8 weeks but iv not got a good colour from it at all. £80 wasted lol. Just wearing a coat just now of a copy st tropez mouse. I would love it somene could post pics to see results

Ksa.

17-05-2009, 10:41 AM

Hi all,
i exfoliated and put another layer of 16% on last night...it looks even better faboulous!!...Miss nadine what did you waste 80 on???...oh dear...order the celebrity secrets or siennasol! Good luck and let us know!....:j

glowgirl

17-05-2009, 11:56 AM

Hey everyone, Ksa, exfoliate as much as you can, it will fade in about 24 hours, when I had exactly the same disaster I had to go out and the thing that mainly helped was putting on a pale foundation, this got me through the day without too much trauma but I would never go for 16% again on my face - I hope this works out for you just keep in mind its only temporary:) I'll try to find that board again, its just something I came across while wondering around, it was a bit of a lame forum tbh but I'm still trying to teach myself so I'll read most things on self tanning - am I sad:confused:I am going to order another bottle of 16% this week, my daughter is interested in trying some but not the 16% I thought she might be good with the 8%, shes a young teenager and into the pale look but wants to take the edge off that stark whiteness what does anyone else think of a suitable strength?

The olive oil was great so far, it just smelt of lavender and left no oily residue and yes my tan did look great, can you use this everyday without getting spots or those funny little bumps from congestion, if this goes well I might try the Oil Cleansing Method for my face that has been recommend to me on this board before but I bottled it, hopefully I'll be braver now:T

skintbuthappy81

17-05-2009, 8:27 PM

How do you tan your hands?? stupid question I know but I have been self tannng for years (mainly st tropez, but will be looking in to the 1 recommended by Gunna) and always struggle with my hands!!

glowgirl

17-05-2009, 8:35 PM

Hi, skintbuthappy81, just lightly run the mit over the back of your hands when finished doing everywhere else, keep fingers closed to avoid build up - hth.

FelinePrincess - heres the link http://www.tantalk.com/sunless/2364203-sunless-does-anyone-use-dha-drops.html.

skintbuthappy81

17-05-2009, 9:01 PM

Thanks for the prompt response Glowgirl. I am in a bit of a dilemma, I was thinking about getting the 10% solution (I am naturally very pale, but due to constantly wearing St Tropez have a slight tan, people think this is my natural colour so shhhhhhhh :rolleyes:) I do want to go darker, but naturally darker, will 10% be enough or shall I go for 12%?

Ksa.

17-05-2009, 9:48 PM

Hi all,
glowgirl your daughter should use 6% they have it on celeb secrets...oh and olive oil can be used all the time!!:j

FelinePrincess

17-05-2009, 11:29 PM

Hi all,

I tried taking some pics of my tan with my webcam but they didn't really show the colour right, came up really pale. Will try and borrow a proper camera to take some pictures.

Thanks for posting the link glowgirl, I am amazed at how everyone seems to be using no more then 12% - I think I would leave very dissapointed if I was given 12%!

Has anyone tried booster drops? Was thinking about giving them a try!

I'd like to try and make my tan last longer before I have to scrub it off and start again, anyone have any tips on preventing scalyness?

Feline Princess

glowgirl

18-05-2009, 6:59 AM

Morning all, dog got me up far too early so here I am at the crack of dawn talking about fake tan:rotfl:FelinePrincess - I have thought about the drops, as brought up by Gunna previously, I like the 16% and wouldn't want any darker but was wondering if you can add the drops to your normal moisturiser, this would appeal to me if we still had hardly any smell, I haven't researched it enough to know much about it yet, I would LOVE to see some pics, I'm not brave enough but would love to compare. skintbuthappy81 (what a great name) go for the 12%, on me it was like a much improved St Tropez, if you like your colour on the dark side I think this is a good place to start, its not overpowering but better than the rest I feel. ksa - I'll stick with oil, I really like it :Tand so far no damage to my colour, I agree with the 6% for my daughter, I don't wont to scare her:eek: lol

Lizard skin is in evidence this morning, yuck, like FelinePrincess said we would welcome any tips on this:)

miss_nadine_x

18-05-2009, 9:01 AM

Sorry I missed part of my post out lol! it was £80 on sunbeds I wasted. I am doing a complete cosmetic clearout before I buy anymore tanning products. I currently have 1/2 st tropez, 2/3 fake bake extreme, 1/2 xen tan dark, 2 x copy st tropez mouses, 2 x avon airbrush glow spray, 2 x hawianan (sp) tropics fake tan as well as several dove/avon etc tanning moisturisers! I challenge anyone to beat that! I am currently wearing a coat of copy st tropez mouse (as per last post) and a couple of coats of avon glow spray. I am whacking on my current products to use them up so I can justify buying celeb tan. How long would you say the 16% smalllest bottle would last, Id probs use it about 4 x per week would I have a good colour ? I seen a small spray bottle is superdrup for 99p and a mitt type thingy in a pound shop so il pick one up x

Ksa.

18-05-2009, 11:40 AM

Booster drops can be added to you moisturiser...also i want to test them!!...erm if you oil morning and night scaliness should not appear...always exfoliate gently 3 days after you have applied tan and moisturise 1-2 times each day ....hope that helps!!:confused:

FelinePrincess

18-05-2009, 2:35 PM

Hi all!

In the interests of research I have just ordered a bottle of booster drops and a bottle of the celeb secrets 16%. There was no price on the website for the booster drops so had to phone up to order, booster drops were £15.32. It turns out they also do a 1L bottle of 16% which costs about £49 (can't remember exactly) which might be useful for us tan addicts! I have just ordered the 120ml size to try first though.

Going to try using olive oil later, how long does it take to dry? Don't want my clothes getting all greasy!

Miss Nadine, you have loads of fake tan! You could try ebaying the full bottles? After reading this thread I couldn't wait to get started on siennasol so I have a full bottle of xen tan which I will never use so I'm going to put it on ebay. I have been pouring my sienna sol into a 100ml superdrug spray bottle, which lasts for about 6 tans I think, so I expect you would probably get about 7 from the 120ml bottle.

Feline Princess

Ksa.

18-05-2009, 3:30 PM

Hi!!
Feline Princess!! wow wow a 1L bottle of 16% so I will rimg up and order myself it smells delicious!!....are you going to put the drops in the tan ????...i will buy them too...olive oil soaks in instantly, if your skin isnt too dry itll soak in in about 2 mins!. Let us know how it goes..:j
I so want to know what happens with the drops!

FelinePrincess

18-05-2009, 4:03 PM

Hi Ksa, yes going to add the drops to the 16% and also going to try with moisturiser aswell! They should be here tomorrow or wed at latest, so should be able to update on them soon!

Feline Princess

Saint_Chris

18-05-2009, 4:13 PM

can olive oil be used as a moisturiser for your face.

iv'e done the ocd and love it

Ksa.

18-05-2009, 4:51 PM

Hi olive oil is the best for your face...use about 2-3 times a day...wow I cant wait to be updated on the dha drops..what moisturiser will you add it to feline princess?:j

glowgirl

18-05-2009, 4:56 PM

Wow, good luck FelinePrincess, please report back:T

Saint_Chris

18-05-2009, 5:12 PM

me again sorry

do u put the olive oil in your palms then rub in your face, with fingertips, or is there a different way

also

i've been reading that when you use a body moisturiser it shouldn't have mineral oil in

has anyone any good ideas which is the best body moisturiser to use

thanks again

Ksa.

18-05-2009, 6:15 PM

hi, saint chris just pour it in your hands and whack it on....all over!....hope you like it, add a few drops of your fave essential oil....i know moisturisers shouldnt have oils but otherwise you just dry out!...hows the tanning going glowgirl? Im going to re do myself tonight..getting a wee bit patchy!
Good luck all and keep posted!:beer:

Saint_Chris

18-05-2009, 6:52 PM

so i can't just use olive oil

else i will dry out, what oils do you mean to add
sorry to sound so thick

FelinePrincess

18-05-2009, 7:37 PM

Hi all,

Not sure which moisturiser to mix the booster drops with, I don't moisturise very often :eek: so not my area of expertise. I have used that new vaseline cocoa butter one recently which seems quite nice, except it feels sticky for quite a while after you out it on. Can anyone reccomend any good body moisturisers?

Saint Chris, Ksa is reffering to the esscential oils which you can find in little bottles in boots and health shops, have a look here for an example http://www.boots.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10052&productId=10721

Slightly off topic but lavender oil is an excellent repelant for midges (sp?), so we may find we benefit in more ways then one by mixing it with olive oil!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

18-05-2009, 7:42 PM

Hi Ksa. Tanning is good, I had a good scrub this morning and reapplied so have a medium colour (for me anyway;)) that looks good, might do another layer tomorrow depending on how busy I am, I am going to reorder tomorrow as well:T My daughter is ecstatic that I am allowing her to use some 'proper' self tan, I shall of course report back.

Saint_Chris - don't be silly you don't sound thick, we are all here to learn and help each other:T I poured not a lot of olive oil into a small bowl put in quite a few drops of essential oil and slapped it on all over, not my face (yet) just my body, Ksa. is right it only takes a couple of mins to sink in and then you can go about your business, I made too much so just left in the bowl on the side in the kitchen, warned everyone not to touch, and used it as a hand moistuiser throughout the day - hth - good luck:)

Saint_Chris

18-05-2009, 10:10 PM

thanks girls, for answering my questions especially as it is your tanning thread.

just a quick one again, i've just put plain old olive oil on, as i've no essential oil yet, seemed a bit greasy on my face and it stayed like that for ages,

should i wait till i get the essential oil before i use it again

and should it be olive oil, or extra virgin olive oil

thanks

glowgirl

19-05-2009, 10:51 AM

Hi everyone, I don't think the essential oil makes a difference to the effectiveness of the olive oil, just makes it smell better, Ksa. can you confirm? I used extra virgin from Morrisons (cause its on offer;)) and loved it, I haven't yet tried oil on my face but will be soon, somewhere on here is a really good thread telling you all about the Oil Cleansing Method (OCM) but I cant find it right now should be worth a search though, I know lots of people swear by it.

FelinePrincess, this is my question with the drops as well, how do you know how many drops to mix with the moisturizer to get the strength you want? Also is any moisturizer going to work because of the oils in it, would it be a stable mixture, I notice the celebrity secrets one is dha and water and other, presumably preservatives, chemical sounding ingredients, if you could make the drops work in any moisturizer surly this would be a winner all round and a great business idea:T I really must try to get my mind off making money:rotfl:My all time fav body moisturizer is good old Palmers Coco butter, my daughter is a fan of Aqueous cream as she has a touch of eczema especially in the summer and this really helps, actually this might be a good idea as you can buy a 500ml tub in boots for £3.99 and then you could experiment to your hearts content without much cost, Aqueous cream is unscented though so not sure if the dha would overpower it, do the drops smell? Ahhh so many questions...............

If Gunna is still around will you let us know how your homemade moisturizer is going? I would love to know:)

FelinePrincess

19-05-2009, 1:14 PM

Hi Glowgirl,

The more I think about it I think you would have to add quite alot of drops to moisturiser to get a decent strength. For example the drops are 34% dha so if you mixed it 50/50 you would get 17%, 25/75 you would get 8.5% percent ect. The bottle is 1.5 fl oz which I think (not certain) is about 48ml so even if it is mixed with 3 parts moisturiser to make a 8.5% solution (no where near strong enough in my opinion!) it wont go very far. So I'm thinking I'll probably just use this on my face as it's not really going to be very cost effective to use as an all over body moisturiser.

No idea how it will react to different moisturisers, unless anyone can give us any advice I suppose I'll just make a little bit at a time and use trial and error.

Booster drops haven't been delivered yet but still hoping they will come today! I'm hoping they wont smell but will report as soon as I know for certain!

Feline Princess

Ksa.

19-05-2009, 7:07 PM

Hi,
just to confirm that the essential oil makes no difference to the olive oil just the fragrance.....ive noticed that applying the celeb secrets on the face is never even...does anyone have any tips or other products for the face but with the same darkness????.
Hope all tanning is going well!:j
Ps use Aveeno cream for ezcema its much better! You can get it on perscription!

Ksa.

20-05-2009, 12:44 PM

Hello,
I have found a good moisturiser listed! As Gunna suggested it is pure shea butter containing DHA....here is the link http://www.handmadenaturals.co.uk/shop/shop.php?action=full&id=21
Please if anyone knows a chemical paraben free (like celeb secrets) but for the face!
Bye!
Also fake bake do an oil free body moisturiser check johnandginger.com or feelunique.com

FelinePrincess

20-05-2009, 1:10 PM

Hi all,

Well, I'm still waiting for my order from celebrity secrets. They said it would be here yesterday or today at latest so hoping it will be here this afternoon!

Ksa, I usually apply siennasol to my face. I just use whats left on the mit after doing my chest to rub on my neck then on my face. I just gently wipe the mit over my face. I am very careful applying it to the area above my top lip and usually do there last and make sure there is hardly any solution on the mit when I do, or sometimes I just give it a miss. I have always found fake tan seems to develop darker above my top lip and can result in a moustache effect if your not careful! My face usually comes out even, and if not I find a good wipe with a facial wipe sorts out any patched.

I have found in the past that any patches of dry skin on the face will develop much darker and therefore it's always best to sort out any dry skin before applying if you suffer from this.

That moisturiser you have found looks really nice, although I suspect the tan probably isn't very dark. Are you going to try it?

Feline Princess

Ksa.

20-05-2009, 1:20 PM

Probably wont try the moisturiser....I want to get a natural moisturiser and add the drops myself! Yes the moustache effect happens to me all the time....is it ok to moisturise before you tan??? which moisturiser should we use because ive noticed if I dont my skin is really dry!
:confused:

FelinePrincess

20-05-2009, 2:16 PM

I never moisturise before applying fake tan as I have the idea that the tan wont take as well if you do, I think I got this idea from people saying you should apply moisturiser to elbows and knees before tanning to stop them going dark. So I suppose if you applied a little bit of moisturiser above your tap lip before you applied fake tan it should minimise the moustache problem.

As for which moisturiser to use I couldn't really advise as I'm not a regular moisturiser but glowgirl did make some suggestions in post 92.

Have you ordered booster drops yet? I am getting impatient waiting for mine to come! Does anyone know who celeb secrets use to deliver their orders?

Feline Princess

FelinePrincess

20-05-2009, 2:29 PM

Just thought, if it is patches of dry skin on your face you are suffering from, I have found a good way to improve/get rid is to exfoliate ( use this exfoliating cloth from bodyshop http://www.amazon.com/Body-Shop-Exfoliating-Skin-Towel/dp/B000HGLN5S for both face and body as I don't find normal exfoliaters vigourus enough!) and then apply vaseline to the area. This is best done before bed as you can add a nice thick layer and it wont bother you then in the morning skin is usually back to (or almost) normal.

I have only done this with very small patches of dry flaky skin, I doubt if it would be a good idea to do your whole face.

Feline Princess

Feline Princess

Ksa.

20-05-2009, 4:27 PM

Thanks for the links and advice feline princess!!...I actually use exfoliating gloves as I find actual exfoliators a bit rubbish!...celeb secrets use the royal mail to deliver, your things will be with you tmrw probably...im going to give booster drops a go i reckon but ill let you go first hehe......!

FelinePrincess

20-05-2009, 5:29 PM

My booster drops are here, yay! I need to have a bit of a scrub at my existing tan to tidy it up before I use them, but out of curiosity I decided to try a small patch of just booster drops to see how dark it came out! I have put it on the arch of my foot as it wont be visible and there is no fake tan there at the moment! I applied it 2 hours ago and I'm disapointed to say it hasn't changed colour yet!

I'm going to add 11 booster drops to 30ml of celeb secrets 16% later which is supposed to make a 17% solution, will report back on this tomorrow!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

20-05-2009, 6:14 PM

FelinePrincess - I cant wait to hear :T

Thank you Ksa. for the moisturiser ideas, I don't fancy a cream with DHA in it so I am definitely going to give the Fake Bake stuff a go, I wonder if you could add the drops to it successfully if theres no oil in it?

Also thanks for the tip about the Avene creme:T

Come on FelinePrincess slap on that 17% and get back on here and tell us:rotfl:

I ordered the 6% for my daughter and another 16% for me today so they should be here in a few days, I'll let you know how different the two are.

Seeming as we all share our tanning secrets I thought I would share my good day with you all, what goes around comes around after all, I received a phone call this morning to say my new car would be ready for collection next week:jthen my daughters termly report arrived in the post and it was absolutely excellent:jand then this afternoon I received a phone call to say that I had won a crab apple tree sapling and Robinson's drink from the comps board on here:jthis is my first win in about 5 weeks so hopefully its the start to a run of luck - just spreading the good karma:)

Ksa.

20-05-2009, 7:59 PM

Good to hear all the good news:j Feline princess I eagerly wait to hear your results!!!

FelinePrincess

21-05-2009, 12:27 AM

Hi all,

Good to hear you had a good day glowgirl, what new car are you getting?

Thought I would update on my 17%! Had to do a bit of guess work mixing it as I don't have a jug that shows 30ml, but I think I got it close enough. No drastic change so far but I have not long applied it, hopefully I will wake up tomorrow a nice dark brown colour!

Will report back tomorrow once I've seen the results!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

21-05-2009, 5:58 AM

Wake up FelinePrincess, we need to know:rotfl:I got an astonishingly good deal on a new Fiat Bravo, its quite a change for me, I usually prefer bigger cars but fancied something smaller and a bit sportier for a change, I get bored very easily;) put on a layer of 16% last night and am a gorgeous colour this morning:T

FelinePrincess

21-05-2009, 11:01 AM

Morning!

Your up early (or late!) Glowgirl! Car sounds nice, it's so exciting getting a new car! I drive a clio and I fancy a change this year - eg something a little bit bigger (like an Audi A3!) but I do alot of driving and I can't justify spending even more on petrol for the sake of having a bigger car!

Anyway, I'm sorry to report that my tan isn't really any darker then normal, maybe a little bit but not very much. I think I will be adding more booster drops tonight!

Does everyone keep their tan on continuously or do you scrub it off and start again from scratch?

Feline Princess

glowgirl

21-05-2009, 12:57 PM

Hi FelinePrincess, I would do the same and add more drops maybe go for the equivalent of a 20%, I hate to look pale at any time, I have that pinkish blue colouring so I actually look ill:confused:I reapply all over about every 2 or 3 days although I do gently exfoliate, and I mean gently, inbetween I never totally get rid of the colour and start again, I couldn't cope with the paleness it actually makes me fell really down, sad but true,I also shower on a low as temperature as possible and pat dry not rub, I try to moisturise as much as I can - hth:)

3onitsway

21-05-2009, 2:17 PM

Hiya

I am glad you found it informative, i was sick to death of buying "dark" tans that you had to apply about 5 coats for a decent colour lol or the "latest" easy streak free tan that does streak and looks orange lol.

I read on forums and on yahoo answers about how good airbrush solutions were for home use and decided to try them hence i never looked back :)

Anyway the guy i buy my solution from on ebay is:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/125mlSiennasol-Extreme-Dark-Spray-Tan-for-Dancers_W0QQitemZ370146543745QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK _Ladies_Dancewear_LE?hash=item370146543745&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1683|66%3A2|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A13 18 (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/125mlSiennasol-Extreme-Dark-Spray-Tan-for-Dancers_W0QQitemZ370146543745QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK _Ladies_Dancewear_LE?hash=item370146543745&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1683%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C 240%3A1318)

Well that is a link to an auction for the stuff i used before(it is very dark), at the minute i am using his normal bronze solution it is 10% but i found it was nice and dark for me.

He does have a website which is :

www.siennasol.co.uk (http://www.siennasol.co.uk)
but his prices on there are usually dearer than his ebay auctions.

I would just suggest you try different sprays and application techniques till you find whats right for you......as i have said using some sort of sponge or carpad does give a really good application by far the best i have found.

Oh and last bit of advice if you go for a airbrush solution either store it somewhere dark or best place in the fridge as they have no nasty chemicals in to preserve them so have a shelf life of about 12 months if stored well.

Best of luck with your tanning :)

THANK YOU GUNNA!! :D

I followed your link to ebay, and purchased! I also got a tanning mit, and a cheap spray bottle from other ebay sellers. All arrived this morning - and now i'm lovely and tanned - not streaked and not smelly. :T Also, I was a bit scared of using it as i'm naturally deathly pale - but its not as dark as i'd feared.

I've probably used every fake tan out there, in my quest for the perfect tan and had some smelly, orange, streaky disasters! This is a lovely colour, and combined with the mit and spray bottle, easy to apply.

It reminds me of some sort of fake tan my mum used in the 70's! Can't remember what it was called, but it was in a glass bottle, bought from a department store, and very expensive (I found out when she shrieked at me when i'd been practising with it - aged about 7!). :rotfl:

FelinePrincess

22-05-2009, 1:51 PM

Good to hear another success story 3onitsway, it's great isn't it?!!

Hi Glowgirl, I have the same bluish skin tone and I totally understand how you feel. I feel so self concious without fake tan and if have no fake tan or very little on then I make sure I'm covered up with long sleeves, high necklines. I want to have a continous tan so I will follow your tips and hopefully I'll look ok!

I put a layer of 20% last nice and I am much browner today - will probably put another layer on later aswell! The 20% is definetly darker but I don't think it would be darker enough with just one layer - I have a layer of 16, 17 and 20% and it's almost brown enough!!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

22-05-2009, 8:09 PM

Hi FelinePrincess I bet you look gorgeous;)especially as the sun is out:jso glad its been a success, would you buy the drops again or just layer up the 16%?

skintbuthappy81

23-05-2009, 5:33 PM

...and to think I was getting nervous about putting my 12% on!! :undecided ( I recieved it this morn) :D

skintbuthappy81

24-05-2009, 7:29 AM

Ok I know it's sunday and I know it's early, but I'm working today. So before I dash I want to see if any of you can help me (sure you can!) I put on my 12% last night but legs only as a trial because like I said I'm workin today and couldn't afford any mishaps. I did prep myself before hand by exfoliating and this morning it has clogged on my ankles and knees... I did use this 'sparingly' on these parts, any tips on how to avoid this? Thanks in advance!! :beer: oh and btw I LOVE the colour!

Saint_Chris

24-05-2009, 3:56 PM

can anyone provide the link for the free sample, i e-mailed them, but i've yet to receive mine

thanks

glowgirl

25-05-2009, 10:28 AM

Hi Saint_Chris try this http://www.siennasol.co.uk/ its at the top of the page, mine haven't turned up either despite 2 requests:rolleyes:

Hi skintbuthappy81, it really is trial and error as this product is quite different from the creams etc most people use, maybe the mitt needs a bit of getting used to, also once you wash off the colour guide mishaps are a lot less obvious, maybe a light exfoliate will help or if its that bad try lemon juice (this does work but don't expect miracles) or I have heard leaving whitening toothpaste (?) on for a while helps, not sure about this one, I've never tried it. I would also suggest extra moisturiser a least half an hour before you do it again in those areas.

I have had a busy weekend seeing lots of people I haven't seen for ages and generally, ahem, socialising;) however, everyone and I mean everyone has commented on my colour (I have roughly 2/3 coats of 16% on) its been a huge hit even with my die hard sun worshiping friends, when I tell them where I got it and how much it cost they are shocked. Celebritysecrets best stock up, they are in for a deluge of orders:rotfl:

FelinePrincess

25-05-2009, 7:15 PM

Hi all,

Hope everyone has had a good bank holiday weekend!

Glowgirl, yes I will definitely buy the booster drops again. As I'm so pale and I like to be very brown it means I go can go dark without having to apply so many layers! Are you going to try them?

Feline Princess

glowgirl

25-05-2009, 8:28 PM

Hey FelinePrincess, I hope you don't mind but I'm waiting for your opinion, and anyone else's, before I buy them:) especially as you said you have similar colouring to me, I am really happy with my 16% its just sometimes I get fed up with the whole fake tanning thing, a product that meant I would have to do less layers would be great so if the drops work like that, then yes I would definitely buy them, thinking about it can they really last longer when your skins looses the top layer anyway? yes moisturising helps but I'm fed up with that too:confused:I think I must be having a lazy day today;)

FelinePrincess

25-05-2009, 10:34 PM

Hi Glowgirl, of course I don't mind! I know how you feel about getting fed up of applying fake tan - it is hassle having to apply it all the time - I wish they would invent a miracle cure for safe, permanent sun free tanning for all skin types!

I don't think any fake tan can last longer no matter how dark it is because like you say the top layer of skin comes after after a certain amount of time.

I think the benefit for me with using the booster drops is I would probably want about 5 layers of 16% (I think I might have a problem!) to get the darkness I want where as with my 20% mix I think about 3 layers does the job. So this way I save time applying it and I can reach my desired colour quicker. I also found that while I have been using this over the past few days I haven't gone as scaly as usual, I don't know if the booster drops have had anything to do with it. Hth!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

26-05-2009, 9:11 AM

FelinePrincess, you crack me up, tanorexia is our condition I believe, we could start tanorexia anonymous :rotfl:I bet we'd be inundated, I am very impressed with less lizard skin:T

mrs baggins

30-05-2009, 1:34 PM

after reading this thread i decided to get some from celebrity secrets. I ordered 10% as I am very fair and want to do it before i go away next week but wanted some info first.

For the last week or so i have been using gradual tan stuff and most of my body is now not pure white. before applying this i tend to exfoliate then moisturise all over then apply about 10 minutes after. Do i do the same with the celebrity secrets? I want to do my legs first just to see i am doing it ok. How long is it likely to last on hol when i am in/out of water, having more showers and applying sun cream etc?

soz for all the questions. I cant wait to try it and have bought a mitt thing but want to do it s best as i can!!

update!!!! I just couldnt wait so have applied it on my legs. not sure about how much to use though. I used a squirty bottle from boots and used 2 sqiurts per leg. was this enough? thanks

onewingedangel

30-05-2009, 10:49 PM

Found this on the freebies board http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=923507
and thought u guys might be interested.
enjoy!
x

glowgirl

31-05-2009, 3:50 PM

Hi mrs baggins, I would use a bit more than that, make sure you don't see any white bits when you have applied, its ok to see the odd streak or patch of dark as this will come off when you rinse away the colour guide, white patches are lack of product and not good however if you do do this do the area again and the colour guide will help make mistakes less obvious, I hope you love this product as much as I do:D

I find the 16% or indeed the 12% I had at first doesn't come off when shaving legs etc like most do, it stands up to showers etc but just exfoliate gently, I spent yesterday on the beach and covered in factor 30 and my colour is exceptional, I actually have several of my friends and their daughters coming to me over the next week to try out the product:rotfl:my daughter finally got round to trying out the 6% this morning, she has rather a patchy colourat the moment because she works in an equestrian center and has t shirt marks, she was not happy but once I put on the 6% for her it blended beautifully and she loves it:) I think she will need another layer later just to give it that certain glow but she is really happy as theres no orange or stickiness, the colour guide would appear to be lighter on the 6% as well, this should be interesting as she has very light olive skin, totally different in colour and texture to mine so a great comparison.

How is everyone else getting on? Does anyone else use a high factor sun screen and fake tan, it sounds a bit odd to say the least but I cant be bothered to sit in the sun and don't want streaks from straps etc and of course theres the health factor also I have developed a very strange habit of speaking to strangers in Boots etc who are looking at the fake tan section, I cant help preaching to them! Gunna you have a lot to answer for;)

FelinePrincess

01-06-2009, 12:24 PM

Hi!

I'm still getting on well with my 20%! It's so nice to be really brown and feel confidant enough to put skirts on in this nice weather - last year I felt too pale to wear skirts and little tops alot of the time! I must admit I haven't been putting any sun tan lotion on - I hate the stickyness and for some reason despite my very fair skin I don't seem to catch the sun (apart from on my nose, so I have been applying factor 15 to it). Does anyone else find this? I did wonder if it had anything to do with the fake tan, I know it doesn't contain any spf but I wondered if being brown stops you catching the sun as much? When I went on holiday in jan it was 30 degrees and there was lots of people with sunburn about but I didn't even go a little bit pink despite only wearing factor 4!

Glowgirl you make me laugh preaching to people in boots! Do you tell them about celebrity secrets? I'm sure you are going to be single handedley (sp?!) responsible for drastically increased sales in celeb secrets!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

01-06-2009, 2:46 PM

Hi FelinePrincess, I feel like I'm stalking you from my other how fake are you thread:rotfl:did you notice I'm easily the most fake:rotfl:just on my way to pick up my daughter but just thought I'd say I don't seem to tan much naturally now either although I do wear protection even without it nothing much happens, I think this is great:Tcos it puts me in control, I think based on your experiences I will order drops next time, my daughters tan is to die for 2 layers of 6% and she is easily as dark as me, I have a feeling tanorexia is hereditary, must go:D

FelinePrincess

01-06-2009, 6:39 PM

Hi Glowgirl! I did notice how glam you sound, I bet you look gorgeous with your tan, fake eyelashes and hair extensions! I definitely need to give them individual lashes a try!

It's funny, I always used to wish that I could get a nice natural tan but now that I have accepted fake tanning as part of my routine and being able to get a perfect tan using siennasol/celeb secrets I'm not interested in getting a natural tan anymore and when the sun is out I'm more worried about damaging my skin then getting a tan.

Feline Princess

mrs baggins

01-06-2009, 8:03 PM

dont mean to butt in- hey but I shall! have been following this thread with great interest so much so that I ordered some 10% solution which i applied once at the weekend. Everyone at work today remarked on how nice and tanned i look.

I know for a fact that being fair skinned I have to use factor 30 or so. I could honestly say that even if I lay in the sun naked with properly applied sun lotion and turned over every few minutes that come the evening my skin would be all red in places and not red at all in others!for some reason I just dont tan evenly. At least this way I can spend my holiday doing other stuff and know my tan will be great at the end of it. I am sooo glad I found this thread!

esmecullen

02-06-2009, 8:43 AM

I'm hoping the experienced self tanners can help me!

I've followed this thread with interest, I dont want to go too dark, just need a golden/honey colour. The self tanner that has been recommended sounds brilliant and I have a few questions before I go ahead and buy some-

1. How messy is it, by that, will it rub off on the bed linen or clothes?

2. How easy is it to apply, I live alone and dont have anyone to help with my back, thats the only prob I can see using it at home.

3. Can I apply, wash of guide colour day after and then leave it say a week before re-applying?

4. What strength should I get if I just want as I said before a golden/honey colour, rather than a very dark tan?

I did go to a salon near me and she done a wonderful job with Fake Bake for over 3 yrs, but she closed down 3 months ago. I tried using Fake Bake, but my legs got quite streaky even though I followed the instructions to the letter.

Thanks for any advice anyone can give

glowgirl

02-06-2009, 9:53 AM

Hi esmecullen, I'll try to answer your questions

1. How messy is it, by that, will it rub off on the bed linen or clothes?

Yes, the colour guide when you initially apply will come off on clothes and bed linen, it does wash out, when you have rinsed the colour guide off the remaining colour shouldn't come off on clothes, it hasn't on mine but it is a fake tan, I find with the Celeb secrets product even with the colour guide transference is minimal compared to other brands.

2. How easy is it to apply, I live alone and don't have anyone to help with my back, thats the only prob I can see using it at home.

Buy yourself a back applicator from Boots etc, its a long handled plastic thing with a removable sponge on the end, apply product to sponge and use as if it was a loofah make sure there are no white patches, dark streaks wont matter as this is just the colour guide and will wash off, word of warning, don't put too much product on the spongy it as it will make a mess, I strongly advise buying and empty spray bottle and spraying it onto the sponge a couple of times to see how you go, look in the mirror as you apply, you'll soon get the hang of it:)

3. Can I apply, wash of guide colour day after and then leave it say a week before re-applying?

You could try this, I am rather lazy and reapply over the colour guide before washing off sometimes, you will get a better result if you wash it off in between layers, less patchy, how long you leave between layers will depend on your skin type or how the colour takes and the condition of your skin, for example, really well mositurised skin will look good after 5 days dryer skin will appear lighter or patchy after maybe two, a bit of trial and error might be needed here as it really is a personal thing.

4. What strength should I get if I just want as I said before a golden/honey colour, rather than a very dark tan?

This really depends on your skin tone, my daughter is light olive and didn't want to be dark just take the edge off the paleness she put on 2 layers of 6% and was darker then me with 2/3 layers of 16% on, I am very pale pinky/blue so you can see how this varies, my daughter felt she was too dark so had a good shower and exfoliate and is now the honey coloured and looks great, remember you can buy small sizes and layer it to find what suits you as a rough guide it would seem yellow or warm toned skin turns darker pink or cool skin needs a bit of extra dha, try the 6% or 8% first remember you can layer and at the prices they charge if its that wrong (I doubt it will be) its not too costly a mistake.

Flakiness is due to dry skin, exfoliate and moisturise, having said that with the celeb secrets product I find my skin in great condition without any help at all:T Best of luck with your tanning, remember its only fake tan and enjoy it if I can be of any more help let me know:)

esmecullen

02-06-2009, 4:25 PM

Thanks glowgirl & mrs baggins for you help on this

Of to buy some, will try at the 6% and see how I get on, if I dont like the effect will try the 10% as per mrs baggins recommendation

And here's me paying £20 when I could have found out about cheaper ones here, silly me:rotfl:

esmecullen

03-06-2009, 9:08 AM

I've taken the plunge and ordered a bottle of the Celebrity Secrets tanning solution (8%), off to get a spray bottle and back applicator and see how I get on with it.

thanks for the recoomendation on this one

glowgirl

03-06-2009, 3:16 PM

I was wondering if you could mix water and dha drops to make a spray tan solution, I know there is other stuff in them but do you actually need them?

FelinePrincess, you have the drops, what do you think? I don't want you to waste them trying just thought you might have an opinion:)

Anyone else knowledgeable in this or know of any interesting links about how the solution is made?

glowgirl

03-06-2009, 6:45 PM

I think I've answered my own question having a hunt around online I came across science type sites it would appear that although dha and water would work the colour would be too yellow toned on its own thats where the other bits and pieces come in, also they kill the smell and caramel adds the colour guide, I did find out something interesting, dha is made from glycerin so I wonder if glycerin itself would be a good moisturiser, I'm not sure if you can buy this, I think I'll ask:) Any more info or comments would be great:)

jamtart6

03-06-2009, 11:14 PM

wow so do you think this celebrtity secrets tan is better than St Tropez? I like the colour of that, but it is really expensive and stinks!! I use fake tan and a factor 30 on my face (6 everywhere else) ..have abused my skin with sun in the last 10 years, and its starting to show so need to be good in the sun now!!

glowgirl

04-06-2009, 9:18 AM

Celeb secrets all the way for me, I was never much of a fan of St Tropez anyway, I found it too messy and expensive.

FelinePrincess

04-06-2009, 2:57 PM

Hi all!

Glowgirl, I tried mixing a some booster drops with water and applied it to the soles of my feet (the only part of me that doesn't already have fake tan on!), they have turned brown, usual colour not really yellowey - the booster drops do have quite alot of other ingredients other then dha so maybe this is why. I don't have time right now but I could type up the list of ingredients tomorrow if you would like to see it? Judging by the colour of my feet it would be ok to mix with water and use all over. Would there be a cost benefit in doing this do you think? Or any other benefits? Wouldn't it be fun to make your own fake tan from scratch?!

Jamtart6, I totally agree with glowgirl about celeb secrets. Although I haven't used st tropez myself I think celeb secrets beats all high st brands hands down and on top of that you will save a fortune! If you get some you will never look back!

Feline Princess

esmecullen

05-06-2009, 8:35 PM

Wow my solution came today:j very quick service. So tempted to use it straight away but I'm a tad tired..... hard day at work. Decided to prepare my skin tonight .... made sure my knees and elbows are well moisturised and give it a go tomorrow.

Must say I had a sniff of the solution and it reminds me of maple syrup:D

Will update on how I did soon:D

glowgirl

06-06-2009, 6:40 AM

Good morning, its very early but daughter is working all day today so got a few mins before I get her up, FelinePrincess, well done you, that was a really interesting experiment, well done, I'm not sure what I'm thinking about really at first I had a mad idea about making your own product and selling it but when I put my sensible head on health and safety(blah blah blah) and profit margins didn't really add up and would make it more trouble than its worth, the reason for this was people (some I know and some I don't) keep asking what product I use,is that a fake tan etc and I thought I spotted a money making opportunity but I have too much going on to do it properly, the other reason was just a fun thing really, making a bespoke colour just to suit yourself and maybe saving some more cash, although the product is already more than cheap enough, if you have time a list of ingredients would be great, my last bottles came blank just with the strength written in pen so no label.

I just wanted to share with you all my daughters experience with celeb secrets the 2 layers of 6% she put on last weekend have now faded but she still has a gorgeous colour even after numerous showers, moisturising etc it just goes to show how the product reacts differently on the various skin types, having a light colour has really given her a boost, I guess because its different for her and really cheered her up and given her a certain new confidence, not that she really needed it, but it just goes to show the power of feeling good about yourself, she is a teenager so has all the teenage concerns I am sure we all had;)

esmecullen, let us know how you get on, don't forget 2 layers gives a certain depth to your colour:)

Now that I know a bit more about the science bit I am looking into using glycerin as a moisturiser, finding this stuff locally is proving to be a challenge so will update when I actually get somewhere, happy tanning all:T

miss_nadine_x

06-06-2009, 9:06 AM

Hi everyone! Im still working my way through my supplies of tan but I still follow this thread with intrest. I thought for research purposes I would go into Sallys (Salon Services) the otherday and see if they stocked this product, I didnt find it but what I did see was the DHA drops 34% im sure by a company called Tan Truth ( I have used there tan with colour guide before, very dark but very very smelly!) and for the small bottle of drops it was £25.83 !!! oh and then VAT unless you have a trade card. So Celeb Secrets is very MSE!

glowgirl

06-06-2009, 9:38 AM

Hi miss_nadine_x, I didn't know Sallys and Salon Services were the same company, I had Salon Services near to where I previously lived and I really miss it, I spent many an hour in there trying out stuff and chatting to random people:rotfl:I have used the Skin Truth products before and they were excellent, very effective and good price but never the Tan Truth, I never saw that range of tanning in the shop I used, I did buy lots of other various tan products from there, this is all about 3 years ago remember, and it was the usual story either ineffective or expensive apart from a product that came in an airbrush can called Ecotan, this was lovely, but very very messy to use and on the expensive side, nothing would tempt me away form my celeb secrets now:D

FelinePrincess, one question about the dha and water combo, did it smell bad?, can you smell your feet?:rotfl:all in the interest of research of course:T

miss_nadine_x

06-06-2009, 9:55 PM

Hi Glowgirl :D
So do you think you will use celeb tan forever now? does it smell at all?! I hate when you find a tan that smells great out the bottle then when its on the skin its that horrid biscuty smell! I think skin truth and tan truth may be made by the same company, Tan Truth is fairly new on the market so it is possible that its maybe not been available at the Salon services where you used to live at that time.
Tan truth is really good, from the bottle is smells like DKNY be delicious you know the green apple shaped bottle? Then when its on and developed it is the most foul fake tan smell ever!

Oh and another Q, lol! You know when you get apply the celeb tan how long does it have to be left on before its washed off? The reason im asking is because I hate wearing tan to bed incase I sleep in one morning and dont have time to wash it off haha! so I'd rather apply on an afternoon when im off and wash it off in the evening.

x

Ted_Hutchinson

06-06-2009, 11:43 PM

We found that DHA-induced melanoidins in skin act as a topical sunscreen attenuating the formation of 25(OH)D. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19496990) what this means is the people with tans created with sunless tanning sprays will not make much if any vitamin D when they do go out in the sun therefore it will be very important for everyone using them to be aware of this and to take an effective strength D3 supplement. (http://www.iherb.com/Now-Foods-Vitamin-D-3-Highest-Potency-5-000-IU-120-Softgels/10421?at=0) $5 discount codes in referrals board.

It usually takes around 90 days to achieve optimal status so at the end of summer check your status (http://www.grassrootshealth.net/d-action) to be sure you go into the Winter with at least 55ng 137.5nmol/l. (http://www.imminst.org/forum/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=6065)

esmecullen

07-06-2009, 9:05 AM

Hello self-tanners just to report on my first use of celebrity secrets and just got to say wow amazing!

I put on one layer and was so pleased that it dried almost instantly, very easy to apply. I left it 2hrs then put another layer on. Showered guide off this morning and I'm a nice honey/golden colour.

Was pleased that there was only a little rub off on clothes and bed sheets. No after odour which you do get with some self tans and it's very natural looking. I'm definately a convert lol!

Had a little accident knocked the bottle over and lost some in spillage but got laminate flooring and it wiped up fine, going to get 2 bottles at the price they charge it's a bargain for such an excellent product, very happy tanned person lol

glowgirl

07-06-2009, 9:25 AM

Thank you Ted_Hutchinson, what does vitamin D do for us and why is it so vital as suggested? Can you buy the necessary strength in the UK or could you obtain the desired amount through diet?

Hi miss_nadine_x, I will use Celeb secrets until the time something better comes along or if the product becomes less effective, I find this happens sometimes, mainly with make up, as your skin gets used to something, I am also wondering now as I have been using self tan (dha) for so many years if my skin has built up a resistance to it, whilst I am a lovely colour both my daughter and neighbour who has very similar skin/colouring to me have achieved great results with just 6% I have no loyalty to any product if its not performing to standard, many years in the beauty industry has taught me its all about profit and of course I am just a cosmetic tart who gets bored easily;)

The celeb secrets product smells of fruit(?) in the bottle when it goes on you get a faint fruity smell for about 15 mins then nothing at all, if like me you layer and slap it on until you wash the colour guide off you get a hint of the usual fake tan smell, however this is nothing compared to the other products I have used over the years, its very hard to compare this professional product to the ones you can buy locally aimed at the mass market, when I say a hint of fake tan smell I really do mean a hint:) I cant remember where I read it but I believe you need to leave the product on for 8 hours to achieve best results, I am an overnight girl but I have been known to put it on in the morning and go out with the colour guide not washed off, no problems there a bit does come off on your clothes but it comes out perfectly in the wash - hth:)

Ted_Hutchinson

07-06-2009, 1:23 PM

Thank you Ted_Hutchinson, what does vitamin D do for us and why is it so vital as suggested? Can you buy the necessary strength in the UK or could you obtain the desired amount through diet?I'm afraid the actions of Vitamin d are pletiopic which means they are so many and varied and apparently (to the unitiated) unrelated that it's really too complicated to explain here.

This article from Scientific American explains in reasonable detail it's role in fighting disease.
Cell Defenses and the Sunshine Vitamin (http://www.medicine.mcgill.ca/physio/whitelab/papers/VitaminD-Nov07.pdf) But remember it's an American publication and they have Vit D fortified milk/cereals we don't.

But that's only one part of the story. The role of Vitamin D insufficiency is implicated in Diabetes, MS, Cancer, Alzheimer's Parkinson's, almost any condition that involves at some stage inflammation will involve Vitamin D insufficiency.

However research in Vitamin D is progressing at such a pace that by the time any article goes to press there is new research. So the recommendations in this article that levels between 30 ng 75nmol/l and 60 ng 150nmol/l are now considered on the low side. I don't think anyone interested in disease prevention still thinks 30ng is an acceptable level 40ng 100nmol/l is the lowest acceptable level but ideally 55ng 137.5nmol/l is the NATURAL level at which human breast milk flows replete with D3 (http://www.imminst.org/forum/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=6065)and is associated with least chronic disease incidence. (http://www.imminst.org/forum/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=6065)

This thread has plenty of information about testing and supplements (http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1427913)

esmecullen

07-06-2009, 1:34 PM

Just wondered glowgirl if you can recommend a good self tan for the face? I'm currently using Johnson's Holiday Skin face cream and my usual moisturizer, then a touch of powder bronzer. Bit nervous using the Celebrity Secrets on my face just in case I mess up.

Thanks

glowgirl

07-06-2009, 2:29 PM

Thank you Ted_Hutchinson for a very informative and interesting link.

Hi esmecullen, I am so glad your tanning went well, another success story:T I don't use self tan on my face at all, it just doesn't work with my large pores, uneven skin tone and various flaws, I have however tried various products over the years but couldn't recommend any one over another, they all seem much the same. I tried the celeb secrets on my face (the devil made me;)) and it was even more of a disaster than the other ones:rotfl:Other tanners will be able to advise you more than me hopefully:)

FelinePrincess

07-06-2009, 3:52 PM

Hi all!

Esmecullen, I do put celeb secrets on my face, I just use whats left on my mit after doing my chest and neck so I don't put very much on and I don't apply it to above my top lip as it always creates a moustache effect! I think it really depends what condition your skin is in. If you have good clear skin it will probably go on ok but if you have spots or dry patches it's asking for trouble! I'm lucky that most of the time my skin is good, I just get the odd small patch of dry skin now and then and if I apply fake tan to my face when I have dry skin it always goes very dark on the dry patch. I'd suggest that you have a go with a small amount when you don't have anywhere important to go, if it goes wrong I find it wears off very quickly on my face.

Glowgirl, here is the list of ingredients for the booster drops:
Aqua
Dihydrocyacetone
ethoxidiglycol
proplylene glycol
glycernine
polyacrylami
domethylpropane
sulphonic acid
polyquaternium-4
erythulose
parfum-pf34580
polysorbate 20
dmdm hydantoin
aloe barbendensis
tocopherol
retinyl palmitate
panthenol
sodium metabisulphite
phenoxyethanol
amyl cinnamel
benzyl benzoate
benzyl salicylate
geraniol
hexyl cinnamal
butylpenyl methnylbropional
limonene
linalool cl16035
cl19140
cl42090

Not sure what they all are but I'm sure you wouldn't need most of them!

Feline Princess

Saint_Chris

07-06-2009, 4:56 PM

glow girl

i bought my glycerine from boots the chemist

glowgirl

07-06-2009, 5:09 PM

Thanks FelinePrincess and Saint_Chris, I'm going to Boots tomorrow so will ask for some, if you dont mind me asking what do you use your glycerine for and in what way? FelinePrincess if you get a sec, no rush, how do those ingredients compare to the bottles of ready made product, notice as well that the top two ingredients are in fact water and dha, interesting:)

FelinePrincess

07-06-2009, 8:13 PM

Hi Glowgirl,

My celeb secrets bottle didn't have ingredients just a 16% label but here is the list of siennasol ingredients:

Aqua
Dihydrocyacetone
ethoxidiglycol
proplylene glycol
glycernine
erythulose
dmdm hydantoin
aloe barbendensis
tocopherol
retinyl palmitate
panthenol
sodium metabisulphite
phenoxyethanol
cl16035
cl19140
cl42090

So, all the ingredients in the fake tan are also in the booster drops. I suspect celeb secrets has pretty much same ingredients as booster drops and siennasol has less different ingredients as it's not scented. I think the booster drops are just a less watered down version on the normal mix. I wonder how easily and cheaply you could buy these ingredients...

Feline Princess

Saint_Chris

07-06-2009, 8:29 PM

I use my Glycerine for cake decorating, i add it to royal icing and it give it a shine.

I have read about using it for your face, but i'm not sure

esmecullen

08-06-2009, 8:50 AM

Thanks Feline Princess, Not sure if I'm brave enough to put it on my face as I do have quite dry skin in places. Wonder if i put a few drops of celeb secrets into my moisturizer it would work?? Not into the whole bottle but just mix some up and put on my face.... I wonder

glowgirl - I think I have a book which gives receipes for making your own moistuisers, I will have a look when I get home (at work now) and see what they have on moisturisers and type up one or 2 when I have time:D

A friend popped over yesterday afternoon and she was admiring my colour so told her about celeb secrets, think she may get some too:D

glowgirl

08-06-2009, 1:20 PM

Thanks FelinePrincess, isn't it interesting, I feel all professional and sciency now:rotfl:Just been to Boots and found a 200 ml bottle of glycerin for, wait for it..............97p:T It was in the cough mixture section (?) I asked the lady behind the counter if anyone buys it for other reasons as I wanted it for moisturising, she said lots of people buy it for this including two women in the seventies who she said don't look anywhere near their age and swear by this stuff. What really made me laugh is she then went on to ask me where I had been on holiday (my bathroom;)) when I explained about celeb secrets she couldn't believe it, another convert I think, I even wrote the site address down for her. Another interesting comment from her was that she believes anti aging skincare is all a big con (I have thought this for years) and cheap and cheerful, she mentioned aqueous cream, is just as effective.

Thank you esmecullen, some recipes would be great, if you can find one using the glycerin, even better, I will search online when I get a sec, I am concerned with putting this straight on to my skin as in my other glycerin post someone suggested that using it on its own will draw moisture from the skin, it needs to be mixed with something, I'm going to try a bit on my arm anyway, daring person that I am, and see what happens.

My daughter has been on the go all weekend and not done her tan, she woke up this morning and the first thing she said was "I look so pale and patchy, I hate it, I feel much better with a bit of colour" I should explain that bits of her have more colour than others as she works/volunteers in an equestrian centre and is outdoors a lot, she doesn't look anywhere as bad as she thinks but it just goes to show the psychological effects of having a colour either real or fake. I have already said in this thread that I am never pale and if for some reason I am paler than usual I really feel down, I know that FelinePrincess agrees with me on this, does anyone else?

glowgirl

08-06-2009, 1:59 PM

Ok, update time, the glycerin is evil, it is greasy, doesn't sink in at all and doesn't even leave a sheen. Idiot here forgot that I put a layer of 16% on this morning so now I have streaked the colour guide on one arm only:rotfl:, good job it only cost 97p. Despite washing my hands it doesn't seem to go away and now my laptop is greasy as well:eek: I shall try to be positive, it has no smell, thats it. How people would put this is on their face is beyond me hopefully I will find a nice something to mix it with and be happier, I certainly hope its better on cakes:)

avstar

08-06-2009, 5:10 PM

glowgirl

08-06-2009, 5:30 PM

Welcome avstar, please let us know how you get on, the 12% is quite strong I very much doubt you will need 3 applications to achieve the same colour but if your used to fake bake I bet you love your new product, I would strongly suggest that you buy a small spray bottle as well and wear gloves under the mitt as its such a watery product it can seep through the sponge. I will be especially interested in your outcome as I buy the Celeb secrets own brand and you say you bought the React brand, I do love a comparison:T Happy tanning:)

esmecullen

08-06-2009, 9:00 PM

Damn I believe I lent my book out to a friend who hasnt brought it back yet:mad:. I did however remember I had a cutting from an american mag and was going to try this out but never got round to it lol ! It has glycerin as one of the ingredients and all the measurements are American, havent had a chance yet to do the conversions:

Rose/Lavender moisturiser

1-cup sweet almond oil
1/2-cup beeswax
3/4-cup total rosewater and glycerin blended together
1/4 tsp tincture of benzoin
5 drops essential oil (rose or lavender are the best for this)
Melt the oil and wax together, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and slowly add the blend of rosewater and glycerin, stirring rapidly until the mixture is evenly textured. Add the tincture of benzoin, followed by a few drops of essential oil.

I'm told the shelf life for this is 6-9 months, think that it because of the benzoin in it.

Will try and get my book back and put up a few more:D

FelinePrincess

08-06-2009, 9:01 PM

Hi Glowgirl! it sounds like you have got your daughter addicted! Fake tan really should come with a warning! The more you use it the worse it is when it wears off, I haven't been completely white in a good few weeks now and I don't know if I can fake being white ever again! Your comments about the 70 yr olds using glycerin are very interesting, I really want to try it now! Do you think it would soak in properly if left overnight? Have you tried applying it with a mit? I use them for moisturiser as I hate my hands being all greasy! I have been moisturising this past week abd it has made such a difference, I would normally have a full on lizard effect by now but theres only a slight hint of scaliness!

Good luck with the tanning Avstar, you will probably never want to buy a bottle of fake bake again after using the 12%!

Feline Princess

esmecullen

08-06-2009, 9:17 PM

Oooh I'm so glad I found this thread:j:j

I've got v pale skin and love looking tanned without sundamaging my skin. I've used all sorts of self tan over the years, St Tropez and me really DO NOT get on LOL!
Can't stand the stuff, have been using Fake Bake mousse from half price perfumes .com which I do like. I can get a decent colour after 3 applications, but it's soooo messy and very sticky at night, I feel like I'm stuck to the the bed sheets and get all hot and sticky yuk!:o

Just ordered the React 12% solution from celebrity secrets so lets see how I get on! Need to get a mitt as I've just been using gloves with the Fake Bake which doesn't give very even coverage.

Can't wait for it to arrive!

I'm an ex-Fake Bake user, although I used to have it done in a salon. I'm really pleased with Celebrity Secrets, they give a speedy delivery service too :D Not a brave as you, got the 8% Celebrity Secrets own brand which gives a great coverage with only 2 applications.

Let us know how you get on with it:D

avstar

08-06-2009, 9:29 PM

avstar

08-06-2009, 9:33 PM

I'm an ex-Fake Bake user, although I used to have it done in a salon. I'm really pleased with Celebrity Secrets, they give a speedy delivery service too :D Not a brave as you, got the 8% Celebrity Secrets own brand which gives a great coverage with only 2 applications.

Let us know how you get on with it:D

Ooh can't wait for it to arrive, I'm hoping I won't need to do 2 (or 3) applications in a row like I did with Fake Bake so hoping the 12% will be strong enough.

glowgirl

09-06-2009, 6:45 AM

Morning everyone, I'm up ridiculously early again, darn that dog:) he wont even go in the garden to do his thing cos its raining:rotfl:he's such a tart:D

I'm going to kind of back track on the glycerin, even though I still don't like how it feels when you put it on it has made my one arm super soft with just one small application, I'm going to have a go with FelinePrincess's excellent suggestion of using a mitt to apply, never thought of that one, I also had a bit of a brainwave last night and thought I could mix water and glycerin and maybe a few drops of essential oil, in a spray bottle and try that as a light version, esmecullen's great recipe confirmed that this might be possible so I'll give it a go, hopefully today.

FelinePrincess, which moisturiser have you been using? has it effected your tan in any bad way, I guess not or wouldn't be using it, I still really like the olive oil suggested in a previous post, it does make you colour glow but I seem to be getting bitten all the time by god knows what so maybe something thinks I'm dinner:rotfl:

avstar, we were all originally recommended to the Celebrity Secrets site by Gunna:T I remember her saying she loved the React brand so I don't think you need to worry at all, I'm pretty sure it will be very similar to their own brand, I didn't chose this one for any particular reason and would happily buy the other one if they had run out etc. although I don't think you'll actually need 2 layers of the 12% you might want to give it a go as the extra layer gives a depth/glow rather than just making it darker, I doubt you will need 3 if you do I think next time you order you should consider going up a strength, I am sure you will love the 12% and when you see how easy it is to apply and how long it lasts and looks good you'll be really happy:)

esmecullen

09-06-2009, 9:17 AM

OOOOOO let us know how you get on with that if you do try it glowgirl. I think the essential oils will make it more "softer" and easier to sink in so to speak.

avstar......... dont worry, you dont have to use 2 or more layers, as glowgirl says its a matter of choice........... though I found that 2 layers of the 8% gave me a lovely deep golden honey colour. 12% sounds quite dark so you may only need one coat:D

Sanctuary body oil mist spray is good for moisurising the body when you have dry patches.......... I was thinking of getting some Tuberose essential oil to mix with my travel size bottle of oil spray as I adore the frangrance of Tuberose and as its not cheap it may make it last longer and a ecconomic body perfume:D

glowgirl

09-06-2009, 10:54 AM

Sanctuary body oil mist spray is good for moisurising the body when you have dry patches

I have some of this, its lovely but makes my colour patchy, haven't tried it with the celeb secrets though:)

FelinePrincess

09-06-2009, 4:14 PM

Hi Glowgirl, I have been using vaseline intensive conditioning mosturiser, tbh it's not that great and I wont buy it again but I'm finishing the bottle as I'm sick of wasting beauty products! Not really sure if it has affected my colour as I have been putting it on before bed then putting tan on again the next day so it's not really had a chance to fade! I keep meaning to try using olive oil but I keep forgetting to buy essential oil to put in it! Looking forward to hearing more about your adventures with glycerin!!

Feline Princess

flea72

09-06-2009, 4:23 PM

have tried the react 8%, but as it doesnt come with any instructions, and ive never used this type of product before, not sure if i did it right

it came out quite patchy. how long can you wait between coats. i only applied one coat, and it looked like id covered my leg in gravy browning. do you need to blend until it disappears? waited overnight, and washed it off the next day, was i supposed to do that?

also what is the colour guide people refer to?

Flea

miss_nadine_x

09-06-2009, 4:28 PM

Hi ladies thought I'd mention that using oil can actually lift your tan off so its maybe not such a good idea to use it? Read it on a prof tanning forum x

FelinePrincess

09-06-2009, 5:11 PM

Hi Flea72,

The colour guide is when it goes onto your skin brown so you can see where you have applied it to, it makes applying it so much easier as there is no worry of missing patches! You need to blend it in so that it is absorbed by the skin, it does this very quickly, if this isn't happening with yours maybe you are applying a bit too much? You only need a little bit compared to normal lotion fake tans! Yes it is a good idea to leave overnight and wash the colour guide off the next day as it saves it rubbing off on to clothes, although it isn't essential if you don't want to or don't have time. I sometimes put a second coat on a couple of hours after the first coat but I expect you could do it sooner if you wanted to as it dries so quickly. If it is patchy try and even it out a bit by exfoliating gently before adding another layer.

Did you use a mit to apply it? They make a big difference in getting an even coverage and make applying it much quicker aswell.

Hope this helps! I'm sure Glowgirl will be along soon with some more advice!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

09-06-2009, 6:05 PM

Hi flea72, I second everything FelinePrincess said, a good hot shower/bath and a good exfoliate will help enormously, also invest in a spray bottle, spray onto the mitt (you must use one of these) and apply directly to your skin, do not moisturise for at least 30 mins before applying your colour and make sure you don't have any white patches, this means the product is not on your skin and you will not have a tan where its white, if you have dark streaks after applying don't worry too much its just colour guide and will come off in the shower, you will have less of this as you get more practice. Don't over apply as its such a watery product it makes it really difficult to control as FelinePrincess said, I get about 6 if not more bodies from 125ml, I know this is very good but I do a thin layer every couple of days, stick with it once you get the hang of it you'll never look back - good luck let us know how you get on:)

Hi miss_nadine_x, I find most moisturisers do this but the celeb secrets seems to hold its own:) I love the olive oil mixed with lavender essential oil but as I said so does every bug who's hungry:rotfl:

I haven't got round to the glycerin thing yet but despite having a shower earlier the arm I tried it out on is still softer than the other one, and I washed it all off and didn't put anymore on, I'm not sure whether to be pleased or not, pleased I guess:confused:

esmecullen

10-06-2009, 8:54 AM

Hi ladies thought I'd mention that using oil can actually lift your tan off so its maybe not such a good idea to use it? Read it on a prof tanning forum x

Hi miss_nadine yeah I found that when using fake bake that if I put an oily moisturiser on it would "lift" and go very patchy, but as glowgirl says, celebrity secrets tanning solution seems to stay put. I find that the Sanctuary moisutre oil spray is quite light, not too greasy and sinks in ok.

I think best way of using oil based ones is to use just a light application every few days or when your skin is dry and tight. Use a light body milk on other days

glowgirl

10-06-2009, 4:27 PM

Hi everyone, forgot to try the glycerin today, slapped on lots of palmers instead and then remembered:D

M daughter tried to do her tan herself last night and had the nightmare from hell, not only did she take too long applying so it went super patchy she missed loads of bits as well, I tried to sort it for her and realised she was using my 16% instead of her 6%:eek: this morning she looked ok but not great, its far too dark, she somehow managed to get it on her palms despite wearing gloves and it just looks a bit odd, she is ok though and not overly worried she had a bit of a moan and then just shrugged it off:T I think that this has taught me you do need a bit of experience or practice with this product so new users go slowly:) oh yeah and label your spray bottles clearly if you have more than one strength:D

esmecullen

10-06-2009, 4:48 PM

Oh dear:eek: I have a habit on not looking what I'm picking up in the bathroom......... last episode was picking up a tube of toothpaste and applying it to my face instead of what I thought was my intensive face cream, face did look gleaming afterwards:D

I know have all my stuff grouped together according to what it is for ....... face stuff...... body stuff etc lol

glowgirl

10-06-2009, 5:27 PM

last episode was picking up a tube of toothpaste and applying it to my face instead of what I thought was my intensive face cream, face did look gleaming afterwards:D

thats funny:rotfl:

avstar

11-06-2009, 4:12 PM

My React 12% solution arrived today, altho haven't managed to get to Boots to buy mitts and a spray bottle so won't be applying it until I do...even tho I'm desperate to get going LOL!:rotfl:

glowgirl

11-06-2009, 4:39 PM

I bet you cant wait:D cant wait to hear how you get on and how you compare it to fake bake:)

esmecullen

12-06-2009, 8:54 AM

thats funny:rotfl:

It will teach me to put my glasses on before doing anything in the bathroom I can tell you:rotfl:

I wondered why my "cream" smelt like mint!! LOL

esmecullen

12-06-2009, 8:57 AM

My React 12% solution arrived today, altho haven't managed to get to Boots to buy mitts and a spray bottle so won't be applying it until I do...even tho I'm desperate to get going LOL!:rotfl:

I bet you will see the difference in coverage when you do use it!!

Its 6 days since I applied my Celebrity Secrets 8% (2 applications) and there is no sign of fading or patchiness, now that is brilliant!!

glowgirl

12-06-2009, 11:44 AM

Just out of interest how many bodies is everyone getting out of the 125ml bottles?, mine seems to lasting ages, no complaints of course, just wondering if my every other day (roughly) application on top of whats already there is making it spin out more, I was thinking to invest in the big size next time but would it be worth it, how long does it last? What does everyone think?:)

Having a bit of a weird day today, OH has started a new job and I'm nervous for him, more nervous than him I have to say, got a letter from my daughters to school to say she hasn't done her homework, so not happy with that but I just got a phone call from Heart Radio to say I have won 4 tickets to the Royal Ballet, a meal for 4 at a Spanish restaurant and a £50 Debenhams voucher, all that and its only quarter to twelve:D

FelinePrincess

12-06-2009, 2:38 PM

Hi all,

Glowgirl I think I got about 9 or 10 applications out of my 125ml bottle, will definetly be buying the 1L bottle next time but I need to finish off my bottle of siennasol first!

Wow, you have had an eventful morning! Hope your OH has a good first day and well done on your competitions wins!

I've not had a great day so far, I was supposed to meet a customer to show them some product samples but the samples haven't arrived (I have been waiting all week for them) so I've had to cancel :mad:

Feline Princess

glowgirl

12-06-2009, 4:10 PM

Hi FelinePrincess, sorry about your day, thankfully its nearly the weekend:jmy day got progressively worse, nothing major just niggles but I shall be glad when its done;)

FelinePrincess

13-06-2009, 3:10 PM

Hi all,

I have changed my mind and decided daily moisturising is making my tan lighter! I'm going to carry on moisturising as it is minimising scaliness but it would be great to use something that doesn't cause my tan to fade so much! Glowgirl, have you experimented any further with glycerin?

Feline Princess

glowgirl

13-06-2009, 4:00 PM

Hi FelinePrincess, I haven't done it yet, I need another spray bottle, I'm popping to town shortly so will get one and report back as soon as;)

miss_nadine_x

14-06-2009, 4:45 PM

Just tried to order the celeb secrets 16% tan there and Its coming back telling me there is a fault authorising my card. I then tried my o/hs, then my CC, then another bank card of mines and its still not working. Have any of you tried the Siennasol extreme? Is this a 16% dha too? If anyone has used it , does it smell? x

FelinePrincess

14-06-2009, 7:29 PM

Hi Miss Nadine, you can phone up to place your order with celeb secrets which might help if they have a problem processing payment on the website.

I am actually using siennasol extreme at the moment. Yes it it 16% and it doesn't smell at all, it's definitely as good as celeb secrets and I think they sell it in more different sizes which is useful. I don't have a preference between the 2, although next time I order it will probably be celeb secrets as they do the booster drops and I'll want to buy them again.

Feline Princess

miss_nadine_x

14-06-2009, 7:39 PM

Thanks for that FP, How long did they take to deliver?
x

FelinePrincess

14-06-2009, 8:02 PM

Hi, I think they both took 2 working days, siennasol came in the post and celeb secrets came by courier :)

miss_nadine_x

14-06-2009, 8:05 PM

Even better! my oh's dad is our postman so he will keep a hold of it if we are out :D

chatty123

14-06-2009, 8:19 PM

Hi All. Anyone ever used the zhuzh products.?
i have just been talking to a neighbour of whom had a lovely tan, and as i know she hadn't been on holiday i asked her if she had used a fake tan and she mentioned this. never heard of it myself and dont use fake tans in the summer but do like to use it sometimes in the winter months.

FelinePrincess

14-06-2009, 11:12 PM

Hi Chatty123, I have never used zhuzh products but I did google them and they look quite nice, although I can't imagine them being dark enough for me now that I am used to having such a dark tan using the spray tan solution!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

15-06-2009, 6:56 AM

Morning everyone, thought I would report back o the glycerin. I bought a spray bottle, mixed the glycerin with water (just a little bit of glycerin) and shook really well, it was hardish to mix but went ok, sprayed it on in a thinnish layer and rubbed it in, I felt tacky for while and then it sunk in a bit more, I woke up this morning and yes my skin is softer but...........my beloved tan is patchy:eek: and my freshly washed hair (last night) looks like I haven't washed it for a week:eek: so the glycerin is not working out for me and I have to have another shower this morning god knows what my colour will look like afterwards:confused:we now have an extra bottle of cough syrup or whatever its supposed to be. I'm giving up on the moisturising thing for now cos I'm irritated with it ruining my colour:mad:save your pennies girls:)

esmecullen

15-06-2009, 8:57 AM

My colour has faded now but still I got a good week out of 2 applicaitons of Celebrity Secrets. Got another 2 bottles which arrived on Friday. People over this weekend were asking me if I'd been away............ of course I said I had;) lol.......... but then told them about Celebrity Secrets, think a few ladies I know will be on their way over to the site to get some:D

Will put another 2 applications on later.

FelinePrincess

15-06-2009, 2:04 PM

Hi all!

Sorry to hear the glycerin didn't go well Glowgirl, when you say you are giving up moisturising for now, does this mean you are not going to moisturise at all?!

Feline Princess

avstar

15-06-2009, 3:56 PM

Hi all

Just an update on my first attempt at home spray tanning:j

Got a mitt and a spray bottle from superdrug (v fancy spray bottle, quite large and is bright pink metal).

Couldn't wait to get started so missed out the exfoliation step....I know I know:o
Solution went on lovely - much easier to apply that the Fake Bake mousse, didn't realise my swanky spray bottle sprayed quite so wildly tho, dark spray all up my bathroom wall :eek: Luckily it's tiled and just wiped off. Will have to be more careful with the spray bottle.

Very nice deep tan (for me!) the next day - not sticky to sleep in like Fake Bake, altho patchy on my knees, feet and round armpits, think thats my fault rather than the product tho, should have exfoliated and barrier creamed them.
Yep very happy (even tho I bought the wrong product!) will try celeb secrets own next time.
Thanks everyone!

glowgirl

15-06-2009, 4:50 PM

Hi Felineprincess, yes that is what it means, for now anyway, I am so annoyed with myself for ruining my colour that was looking great, I don't even have dry skin, so what really was the point, I am going to top up with one or two layers tonight to try to get things looking normal but I am low on product so will order some more tomorrow and I still have my daughters 6% if necessary, my daughter, is not happy at the moment with her colour she has much dryer skin than me and is very patchy in the usual places, she needs to moisturise more and keep up the exfoliating but it gets in the way of her hectic social life:rotfl:no one said fake tanning was easy:D

Avstar, congratulations I am really pleased you like the product:T

FelinePrincess

15-06-2009, 11:17 PM

Hi all!

Avstar, I really like the sound of your spray bottle, mine is small and a bit rubbish! I'll have to go and see if they have the ones you have got at my local superdrug, was it with the travel bottles ect? Good to hear the tanning went well!

Glowgirl I understand how fed up you must feel, I get so fed up if my tan doesn't look good. I'm sure it will be back to normal in no time!

Feline Princess

esmecullen

16-06-2009, 8:52 AM

Reporting back on my 2nd usage of Celebrity Secrets and it definately does what it says on the tin!!:D Nice even colour again, no streakiness .......... think I will give it a day or so and apply angain, see if it'll go a bit deeper.

avstar

16-06-2009, 10:52 AM

Hi all!

Avstar, I really like the sound of your spray bottle, mine is small and a bit rubbish! I'll have to go and see if they have the ones you have got at my local superdrug, was it with the travel bottles ect? Good to hear the tanning went well!

FP, the spray bottle was with all the hair brushes, bobbles type stuff.
It's prob about 500ml size, they had bright pink and also silver ones, metal body with a black spray handle. Think it was about £2.90. Looks nice with all my toiletries :D

briggers

17-06-2009, 5:44 PM

hi all fake tan fans, i just wanted to say, that following much experimentation with many, many brand for many many years, Celebrity Secrets' staying power is unrivaled, in my opinion! I would say it smells, like they all do. So, for me, the perfect non-smelly fake tan remains elusive, but I'm impressed with Celebrity Secrets (16%) and thanks for all the great tips! I also got it all over the place with my spray bottle so have gone back to the high-risk strategy of pouring on to the mitt.

FelinePrincess

17-06-2009, 9:21 PM

Thanks Avstar, will get one next time I'm in town!

Briggers, I spray mine onto my mit keeping the spray bit quote close to the mit so it can't go far! I always end up spilling some if I don't use the spray bottle!

Feline Princess

miss_nadine_x

17-06-2009, 10:43 PM

Hi everyone! I ordered the siennasol extreme on sunday and just waiting for it to be delivered! I've been having a nosey about the interweb and looking on dance forums and seen people taking about dha powder, I seen a post that said it was £3 odd for a tub so maybe something so think about.
xxxx

FelinePrincess

17-06-2009, 11:36 PM

Wow dha powder, that sounds interesting! Do you have any links you could post please?

Feline Princess

glowgirl

18-06-2009, 6:24 AM

I've been having a nosey about the interweb and looking on dance forums and seen people taking about dha powder, I seen a post that said it was £3 odd for a tub so maybe something so think about.

As soon as I read that I was interested, any more info please:)

miss_nadine_x

18-06-2009, 9:47 PM

I dont know anything about this other than what I have read online, I think you just add it to your tan before applying, I added the links to my faves so here you go :

http://www.dance.net/topic/6308153/1/Latin/DHA-tanning-enhancer.html&replies=6 << This one is just telling you a bit about it.

http://www.dance.net/topic/6741898/1/Disco-Advice/anyone-know-about-home-made-tan-with-moistutriser.html&replies=17 << This one gives u two links where u can buy it from.

Hope that helps

x

miss_nadine_x

18-06-2009, 9:51 PM

oh oh also just found this!

http://www.dance-shop.com/acatalog/Dance_Shop_Tanning_products_6.html

£3.90!

x

glowgirl

19-06-2009, 9:00 AM

Thank you, I don't have time to read the links right now but will defiantly come back to them later, £3.90? sound good to me:)

avstar

19-06-2009, 1:37 PM

Thanks for the links Miss Nadine - £3.90 sounds exellent.:T

miss_nadine_x

19-06-2009, 1:49 PM

I know, hopefully its good! Im still waiting on my sienna sol extreme arriving - I ordered it on sunday :( I have no tan on just now whatsoever in preperation of this arriving and I look like a corpse!

glowgirl

24-06-2009, 10:41 AM

Hi everyone, haven't been around this board for a while cos I've been busy setting up a new business its all going well so far but I'm not quite there yet so fingers crossed. I've had a look at the links for the powder it sounds good to me maybe more stable than the drops if you can add it to anything and very cheap:T well done miss_nadine_x I will probably try this when I'm bored of the 16% which might be sooner than later, you'll see why below.

I've been living in tanning hell:eek::rotfl:I ran out of my 16% last tuesday and ordered from celeb secrets.....or so I thought.....by monday still no product so I called them to see what was going on, they said that my order had only just got through to them:confused:(but the money had been taken on tuesday)and they were sending it out that day, what could I do? I didn't even bother moaning cos if I started I don't think I would of stopped:( I look an absolute mess, I tried to top up with my daughters 6% but that didn't even touch the sides so part of me was darkish the rest just looked grubby I then tried to get it all off, which I hate being pale, and it came off kind of patchy so then I had to resort to whatever was lying around before I discovered celeb secrets which is just as well cos I was so annoyed with them I thought I'm going to find another product but having to use 'normal' stuff reminded me how much I like the celeb stuff, anyway I sprayed myself with Glam Bronze in dark which made me look vaguely healthy and not like I live in a cave and just got on with feeling rubbish.

Just as I was typing the postman came and brought my tan:TI have just opened the envelope and inside the bottle says DHA + extra tanning booster drops, no percentage just that, smells and looks the same as usual but what is it? It also says customise your tanning solution to match all skin types, have they sent me the drops by accident?, see, I told you I was in tanning hell:rotfl:I guess I'll have to call them, can anyone shed any light, I might just slap it on anyway cos at the moment the bottle is darker than me:rotfl:someone help me pleeeeeeease:rotfl:

miss_nadine_x

24-06-2009, 11:41 AM

Glowgirl - The same happened to me with celeb secrets! my order did not go through even though it said it did blah blah so I ordered from siennasol and its arrived today:D I think you have got booster drops:D

x

glowgirl

24-06-2009, 12:00 PM

Thanks miss_nadine_x, god I'm fed up and I'm being polite;), what do I do with the drops? Could anyone explain to me how I mix them and with what, FelinePrincess, I know you had some do you have any advice for me? Right now I feel like going for the goth look:rotfl:

glowgirl

24-06-2009, 12:39 PM

Just phoned celeb secrets and had words with them, although the girl did apologise I got the impression they didn't sound to worried about the delay or the mix up, she assured me that the product I have is indeed 16% as the booster drops come in a glass bottle not plastic, apparently the woman who puts the labels on has been sending out products with the booster drops label and crossing the booster bit out, but not on mine:confused:I suggested she should also put on the label the % that the customer has ordered if they have run out of the appropriate labels she said she would pass that on, great, thats clears that up then:rolleyes:.

I think I'm going to take my chances and put what I received on as if it were my normal 16% if I have to look at my paleness for one more minute I'm going to go insane:D

FelinePrincess

24-06-2009, 1:47 PM

Hi all!

Sorry to hear about your fake tan nightmare glowgirl, hope it's sorted ok now! If you tan does turn out to be booster drops not 16% I think your best bet would be to mix it wit some water to dilute it as it seems to have pretty much same ingredients as 16% I'm guessing it's just a stronger version. When I did a patch test of booster drops mixed with water it turned out fine!

Thinking about it, it doesn't really make sense to me the story the woman has given you about the labels. When my 16% came it was just a normal white label with 16% hand written on, so I don't see how they would really run out of them - you can get them in wh smiths! I hope it is the 16%, let us know how you get on with it!

I'm not sure what to do now about ordering my next bottle of 16%, I have been using up the last of my siennasol 16% and adding booster drops to make it 20% and I think it is a bit better then celeb secrets. I probably only have enough left to last me to the end of the week so will need to order more 16% from somewhere and I will also need more booster drops at more point although I have enough for now. I think I might order my 16% from siennasol and just order booster drops from celeb secrets. Hope I don't have hassle with my order! Do you think they are getting fed up with people like us just ordering small amounts for themselves?!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

24-06-2009, 2:50 PM

Hi everyone, I've put the 16% on, I'm pretty sure its as it should be so I feel a bit happier now, thank you for the help, I shall do another layer tonight and report back tomorrow but it seems ok.

Thinking about it, it doesn't really make sense to me the story the woman has given you about the labels. When my 16% came it was just a normal white label with 16% hand written on, so I don't see how they would really run out of them - you can get them in wh smiths!

I thought the same

Do you think they are getting fed up with people like us just ordering small amounts for themselves?!

Yes, cos she said to me thats just the sample size again isn't it? If that is the case its silly cos they must be earning from us and the people we recommend, theres probably more profit on the small sizes for them and we pay quite a lot for p&p.

FelinePrincess, why don't you try the powder suggested by miss_nadine_x, I think next time I'm going to give siennasol a try despite my 3 requests for samples not even being acknowledged, I might try a small one first and if I like it go for a larger one to stop all this aggravation.

Thanks again FelinePrincess and miss_nadine_x for your help in my moment of distress:T

miss_nadine_x

24-06-2009, 2:51 PM

Iv got my Siennasol 16% on and so far so good, I doesn't feel like I have anything on which is nice, I usually feel like I have a film over my skin and that makes my skin crawl! *shudders*

Glowgirl, I think u should whack that on then come back and tell us what it is:D:D

FelinePrincess

24-06-2009, 7:32 PM

Glad to hear tan went on ok Glowgirl! Celeb secrets should be grateful for the business, there is a recession going on! Not only do they charge alot for postage but I expect the sample size works out alot more expensive per ml so they shouldn't be complaining! Siennasol do a 500ml bottle which I think is quite a good size, I think it's probably lasted me about 6 weeks with about 5 applications a week. I'm just about to order the 1L bottle, there isn't much of a cost saving but it will save me ordering again in another 6 weeks or so!

I'd forgotten about the tanning powder, I'll have to phone up to order tomorrow as they don't seem to have a button to buy it on the site.

Feline Princess

miss_nadine_x

24-06-2009, 9:29 PM

your welcome Glowgirl, any time!

Well... Iv washed on the colour guide and ......... I love it :D! it looks like 3 coats of xen tan:D soo dark and not a streak in site:D

Feline Princess please let us know how u get on with the powder

x

esmecullen

25-06-2009, 9:02 AM

:eek: will there be a prob ordering the small bottles from Celberity Secrets then? Thank goodness I ordered 2 small ones the last time, so wioll last me a few goes.

miss_nadine_x so you think the Seinnasol is good? Do they do the 125ml or smaller bottles and in 8%?

Hmmm if Celebrity Secrets are going to get shirty about smaller orders, then just have to take my custom elsewhere:mad:

FelinePrincess

25-06-2009, 12:21 PM

Hi esmecullen, Siennasol do a 10% which you could water down a bit if it is too dark. They do 125ml, 500ml, 1l and 5l bottles. If you are using regularly I think 500ml is a good size. Having used both celeb secrets and siennasol I think siennasol is a bit better.

Feline Princess

glowgirl

25-06-2009, 1:37 PM

Hi girlies, I am human again today:TI put on another layer of the suspected 16% last night and I am super dark now, must admit I haven't washed the colour guide off yet (I'm so rough;))however, I am now questioning if the previous bottle I had was 16% cos I am much darker then I have been for a long time:confused:as you all know I layer every couple of days anyway so it could be hard to tell but I am super dark today so feel very happy:D I have made a decision that next time I'm going to try siennasol, celeb secrets have irritated me and I really believe that we don't need to put up with poor service these days, I still cant fault their product but then again I haven't tried anything else of this type.

esmecullen, I don't think you will have a problem ordering from celeb secrets in the future I just think its a bit hit and miss at the moment, if you are happy with them theres no reason to stop unless you fancy a change.

Well... Iv washed on the colour guide and ......... I love it :D! it looks like 3 coats of xen tan:D soo dark and not a streak in site:D

yay :T:T:T think of the cash you've saved as well:T

Just out of interest my neighbour ordered some celeb secrets 6% on my recommendation, her daughter also used it, my neighbour is pink toned like me and her daughter more yellow toned, both are pale. Her daughter is lovely and dark with 1 layer and my neighbour has a very slight colour with 1 layer, I have come to the conclusion that the more pink toned you are the stronger the solution needs to be - hope that helps someone:)

I read that Vaseline has a cocoa butter cream out, its in a tub and is a new product, apparently it goes on like a mouse and leaves no residue cos its so light and it smells like chocolate :TI might gives this a go tomorrow when I go shopping I'll report back if it effects my colour:)

FelinePrincess

25-06-2009, 3:11 PM

Glowgirl your skin tone theory explains why I have to slap on about 3 layers of 20% before I've got a colour I'm happy with. These yellow toned people also tan much quicker naturally - it's just not fair!

The vaseline cocoa butter cream sounds good, can't wait to hear how well it works!

Feline Princess

FelinePrincess

25-06-2009, 3:14 PM

One more thing Glowgirl, if your tan is much darker then usual, do you think you might actually have booster drops? They are 34% so it would be about twice as dark in theory.

glowgirl

25-06-2009, 3:29 PM

I really don't know what I'm using:confused:It smells slightly stronger and my daughter said I look slightly orange:rotfl:Maybe twice as dark is a slight exaggeration but not by much, I really love it and would really like to know, I might even put another layer on tonight just to see what happens but I swear I'm darker now than I was this morning:T

FelinePrincess

25-06-2009, 4:03 PM

Does it have the same fruity smell as celeb secrets when it's in the bottle or is it different? When they are in the bottle booster drops don't smell like the 16% solution at all. Lucky you if you have booster drops - they cost alot more then the normal 16% :T

glowgirl

25-06-2009, 4:56 PM

Ok, this is how bored I am today, here is a pic (I hope you can see it) of my arm with 2 layers of 16% on virtually product free pink toned skin, what really makes me laugh is that I am now the same colour as my dog:rotfl::rotfl:

FelinePrincess - it does smell fruity but stronger, I think it is 16% and the last bottle wasnt:confused:

edit at 6.18pm - ok sorry guys had to take pic away cos there was a big thing saying no direct linking cos of the photo editing site I use I guess, hope someone saw it;)

FelinePrincess

26-06-2009, 3:08 PM

Glowgirl, when you say are same colour as your dog, I hope your dog is a nice brown colour :rotfl:, unfortunatley I missed your picture!

I ordered my siennasol yesterday and I have a card to collect from post office today, I wasn't even expecting it till next week! :D

Feline Princess

glowgirl

26-06-2009, 4:33 PM

Hi all, FelinePrincess you've just confirmed my decision to order from siennasol next time:T

Glowgirl, when you say are same colour as your dog, I hope your dog is a nice brown colour

I should of said he's what they officially call fawn - which is brown:T

FelinePrincess

30-06-2009, 1:54 PM

Hope everyone's tanning is still going well!

Just to say, I picked up my siennasol parcel from post office yesterday and they had sent me a free sample bottle along with my 1L bottle :D I gave this to a friend to try out, they also sent me a little note saying if I wanted any more samples for friends to let them know, might ask for some more with my next order ;)

Glowgirl, did you try that new vaseline cocoa butter moisturiser? Would love to know how you got on if you did!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

30-06-2009, 2:04 PM

Hi FelinePrincess

My tan is not so great, a bit patchy but not too bad I have definitely see it better, and worse as well! I am still none the wiser as to what I'm using but there is certainly something different about this bottle:confused:

I am actually looking forward to ordering from Siennasol, didn't you do well:T

I cant find that cream anywhere, they have bottles but not the tub that I want I am going into my nearest large town sometime this week so will have a look there, I will find it:rotfl:. Where I live is a holiday destination and local town at the moment is full of tourists whilst I appreciate the revenue for the area it makes our lovely town very different and not really to my taste, I think I'm getting old:rotfl:and to think until a couple of years ago I lived in the middle of London:eek:.

I have a like it button appeared, is it wrong for me to press it to say I really like a thread that I started, its a good thread because of everyones input and I would of said it even if I hadn't started it - opinions girls please:)

FelinePrincess

30-06-2009, 5:56 PM

Hi Glowgirl,

Is it the one in the tub that is shown on here? http://www.vaseline.com/Carousel.aspx?Path=Consumer/OurProducts/CocoaButterRange If it is they have it in my local tescos but I didn't but it as I wasn't sure if it was the one!

Yes I think you should press the like it button, it is a great thread and has really benefited lots of us - it's almost like a tanning bible! Regardless of how dark you want to go, anyone interested in fake tan can learn and benefit from this thread! I have pressed the Like it button! :D

Feline Princess

glowgirl

30-06-2009, 6:11 PM

Hey FelinePrincess, Yes thats it, the one in the tub, right I'm off to Tesco we have a huge one and I forgot about it:o, I agree that its a really good thread regardless of who started it theres been so many contributions:TI'm going to press the button too:D

glowgirl

01-07-2009, 2:27 PM

Afternoon everyone, I bought the vaseline cream last night and gave it a go, it smells like Baileys:Dor was that wishful thinking;) It goes on really well but does feel tacky for a good half an hour then your skin feels soft, my tan is just on the verge of doing the lizard skin thing but putting the cream on instantly revitalsied it:Tand this morning I'm sure my skin looked better, I really like it but it is virtually same as Palmers Cocoa Butter which is much cheaper, vaseline one is £4.99, however Palmers ruins my tan so give me another couple of days and I'll let you know if its done any damage but so far so good:)

Hows is everyones tanning going? Does anyone have anything new to report? Did anyone see the article in the Mail on Sunday saying that Xentan is the darkest you can buy? yeah right, they should send their reporters to MSE to get the proper facts:rotfl:

glowgirl

02-07-2009, 9:30 AM

Morning, tan looks rubbish today:confused:really patchy and faded very quickly, I blame the vaseline cream it seems to of lifted it off, oh well another one down the drain, its ok cos my daughter will use it so its not a total waste. I will be having a major tanning session tonight, maybe 2 layers but will have to suffer it today, I'm pretty covered up so its not so bad, roll on this evening:D

FelinePrincess

02-07-2009, 11:05 AM

Hi Glowgirl,

Sorry to hear the vaseline cream wasn't a success, I was really hoping you had found the perfect moisturiser to use alongside fake tan. It would be great if a scientific (not sure if this is the right word!) person could give us some advise on what we should be using!

My tan is very pale this morning. It was beginning to look a quite dry and patchy yesterday so I exfoliated vigourously last night and applied another layer, I will apply at least one more layer later today to restore my usual brownness!

It's funny you should mention the article in mail on sunday about tanning as I just just wondering the other day if the magazines would ever hear about and print about using the airbrush solution. Maybe we should tell them?! If this method became more well known I think it would affect the mainstream (johnsons, loreal, xen tan) fake tan market in a big way, well at least until they brought out their own 16% solution!

Feline Princess

glowgirl

02-07-2009, 3:40 PM

It's funny you should mention the article in mail on sunday about tanning as I just just wondering the other day if the magazines would ever hear about and print about using the airbrush solution. Maybe we should tell them?! If this method became more well known I think it would affect the mainstream (johnsons, loreal, xen tan) fake tan market in a big way, well at least until they brought out their own 16% solution!

I seriously thought about setting some kind of business up selling the product to general public not just online, I agree with every thing you said above and really think that there is a market out there. It wouldn't work for me cos I'm in the middle of setting something else up and I live in a fairly remote area and like to work from home. If the big guys did bring out their own 16% that would be great for us to have more choice but if you ran a business based on the airbrush product I think you would still make money because I doubt the big guys would want to or could sell their products at that price point or lower. Sorry I've gone on a bit, got my business head on today;)

sparklegirl01

02-07-2009, 9:57 PM

Hi guys, i work for a salon in cardiff called Essentials skin and beauty clinic and we do spray tans for £25. We use celebrity 14 and also fake bake. We also use sudo bronze, dark and ultra dark for people just looking for a glow. Personally i love spray tan, feel so much better. Hope that helps, most salons should have a choice of colour so just call around if you get the time. Good Luck!!!

flea72

02-07-2009, 11:50 PM

what have you people done to me - having been lilly white for 30...years, i now find im re-tanning every 2-3 days, otherwise i feel pasty and naked. Im like 'ooh no its fading', and everyones like 'wow youre lovely and brown' - i NEED darker

Flea

glowgirl

03-07-2009, 6:40 AM

what have you people done to me - having been lilly white for 30...years, i now find im re-tanning every 2-3 days, otherwise i feel pasty and naked. I'm like 'ooh no its fading', and everyones like 'wow you're lovely and brown' - i NEED darker

:rotfl:Welcome, come join the tanorexic club:rotfl:I too have that oh no I look pale thing when really I know I don't, are you using the 16% and layering rather than starting again, that usually gives me a great colour. Feline Princess is your girl if you want even darker, she adds dha drops to the 16% to make it 20% I think, she'll give you great advice if you need it. Happy tanning:D

I was just too tired to even move last night so tan is still as yesterday, got quite a busy day today as well but will try to get at least a layer on if not will have a good go tonight.

HockeyDuo8083

03-07-2009, 9:11 AM

Morning Ladies!

I AM A TANAHOLIC:eek:..there..said it..

I have been avidly reading this thread for the past couple of days and purchased some Celeb Secrets in 12%. I have pale skin and been using St Tropez whipped mousse for a while now but wanted to give something else a go.

I just wondered it's quite a thin liquid that is in the bottle; how do you apply it?:confused: I usually apply the St Tropez with a tanning mit but as it's a mousse it doesn't soak into the mit too much so i don't waste a lot.
I have noticed peeps mentioning spray bottles; do you mean like those wee ones you get to spritz the plants??:confused:

Any advice would be appreciated!:beer:

flea72

03-07-2009, 10:26 AM

I have noticed peeps mentioning spray bottles; do you mean like those wee ones you get to spritz the plants

i use a spray bottle that used to have some hair straightening spray in, but is a travel size one - similar to this http://www.superdrug.com/invt/383996&bklist=

Boots and superdrug sell proper empty ones for about £1 - they are usually in the aisle with the loofahs, flannels and soap dishes

hth Flea

flea72

03-07-2009, 10:31 AM

:rotfl:Welcome, come join the tanorexic club:rotfl:I too have that oh no I look pale thing when really I know I don't, are you using the 16% and layering rather than starting again

16%!! im only using the React 10% lol - darent go for stronger, as this one is unbelievably dark on me, compared to my au natrelle colour

I dont remove it completely, but do scrub and moisturise every time i re-apply

However, my biggest problem is i think i must sweat alot overnight and it comes off, because i can go to bed with a lovely colour, and then the next day lots of it has rubbed off - my sheets are a right state

Also another Q, shaving. Is is best to shave before applying, or after applying? as im finding the tan seems to sit in my pores, and can look quite dotty. i dont shave my arms, and the tan seems to go on there better, than on my legs, which i do shave

Flea

avstar

03-07-2009, 10:51 AM

Also another Q, shaving. Is is best to shave before applying, or after applying? as im finding the tan seems to sit in my pores, and can look quite dotty. i dont shave my arms, and the tan seems to go on there better, than on my legs, which i do shave

Flea

I have this problem too :rotfl:

My legs look dotty, as if each hair follicle has gone darker than the surrounding skin - not sure how to combat it?

Right I'm running low now and I'm getting confused as to where everyone is buying from. I bought from celeb Secrets last time but is there a problem with these gusy now?

glowgirl

03-07-2009, 11:38 AM

Hi everyone:) I'll try to help with some questions

I don't remove it completely, but do scrub and moisturise every time i re-apply

I would suggest not to moisturise each time maybe once a week if you have to, unless you have discovered a moisturiser that doesn't do this, I find most make the tan fade much more quickly or go patchy, if yours doesn't please tell us what it is:D

However, my biggest problem is i think i must sweat alot overnight and it comes off, because i can go to bed with a lovely colour, and then the next day lots of it has rubbed off - my sheets are a right state

I have this problem too, make sure you use a decent amount of product and I find a cotton nightie helps, I have one just for tanning nights, don't moisturise before you apply or it just slides off in the night.

Also another Q, shaving. Is is best to shave before applying, or after applying? as I'm finding the tan seems to sit in my pores, and can look quite dotty. i don't shave my arms, and the tan seems to go on there better, than on my legs, which i do shave

Another problem that I also have, its mainly the colour guide that has sunk into your pores so if you apply in the night and shower in the morning (I usually do this) you can LIGHTLY exfoliate with a glove and it should look better, what really works is applying one day and shaving the other and so on although this is not so good for those who like to shave everyday (I do) - I would be interested if anyone has any other suggestions on this one.

16%!! I'm only using the React 10% lol - darent go for stronger, as this one is unbelievably dark on me, compared to my au natrelle colour

10% is still quite dark, certainly more so than whats available in the shops, 12% is usually the darkest you can get in a salon unless you specify you want more, are you yellow toned by any chance? Yellow toned people even if they are pale to start with seem to be able to build a better colour with less product and a lower % than us pinkys;)

Right I'm running low now and I'm getting confused as to where everyone is buying from. I bought from celeb Secrets last time but is there a problem with these gusy now?

A couple of us had problems with celeb secrets orders arriving late and in my case not too sure which product they sent me. I do think its a bit hit and miss with them at the moment and next time I'm going to give siennasol a go, if you really don't want to try another product then I would order from celeb secrets, as I understand it lots of people have with no probs:)

I AM A TANAHOLIC:eek:..there..said it..

:rotfl:This really made me laugh, its surprising how quickly you can actually become obsessed with it, I bore people all the time now when gunna:T first recommended the products at start of this thread she said she loved talking about it and now I know why, There really isn't a negative side to fake tanning so we could be doing a lot worse..........;)

HockeyDuo8083

03-07-2009, 11:47 AM

Thanks peeps, going to get a spray bottle at lunch:A

Does anyone else find that having a tan makes their outfits look a lot better too? I have a yellow top on today which would look really rubbish if I didn't have my subtle mahogany sheen:D

P.S I ordered my Celeb Secret stuff and it took 5 working days for it to appear which I thought was ok.

glowgirl

03-07-2009, 12:08 PM

Hi HockeyDuo8083, there is no doubt that having a colour makes clothes look better also jewelery looks great, when you go shopping at lunchtime if you haven't already got one get a back applicator, usually with the St Tropez products and some surgical gloves cos the product is very watery and can seep through the sponge of the mitt and stain your hands:)

P.S I ordered my Celeb Secret stuff and it took 5 working days for it to appear which I thought was ok. [QUOTE]

I don't agree that this is good, I think their P&P charges are quite a lot and delivery should be next day, at a push the day after, could be me just being stroppy though;)

FelinePrincess

03-07-2009, 12:11 PM

Hi all!

I don't have the dotty leg problem but I think I know what you mean, I used to get this on my hips where my jeans wasitband would be. I think they are like blackheads so just an accumuliation of fake tan stuck in the pores, I got rid of mine by exfoliating so this may be worth a try?

I think it is best to shave your legs before applying fake tan as shaving wll sometimes take some of your tan off, but I don't find it makes a huge difference myself.

Avstar, when I ordered from celeb secrets I didn't have any problems but last time I ordered I brought from siennasol as I prefer their product. I think I will continue to order my 16% solution from siennasol but when I run out of booster drops I will buy them from celeb secrets - I haven't found any others. Which reminds me about...

Dha powder, I tried phoning the website mentioned on this thread that sells it and I never get an answer, I have sent them an e-mail and they have not replied so I have been unable to order any as there is no button to do so on the website. I can't find any anywhere else which is a pain!

Feline Princess

avstar

03-07-2009, 4:03 PM

OK just ordered from Siennasol, some peeps on here prefer it and I'm always up for trying something new :D

Was reading the Sienna sol site and just browsing - found this info on the clear (non guide colour) product page which might explain the 'dotty legs' syndome:rotfl:

Sorry I know you are supposed to post a link and not copy and paste, but this is from a pop-up box and doesn't have a web link.

From siennasol.co.uk

Clogged Pores.
OK so this is what everyone is saying, "spray tan blocks your pores" "Spray Tan gives blackheads........wrong!............well mostly wrong, what can happen is sometimes a client will shave their legs just before having a tan, or perhaps have been for a sauna, as you spray tan the instant bronzer can get into the pores & if the pores contract the little spots of instant bronzer can get stuck in the pores & will stay there until your skin exfoliates that deep layer of skin, this can sometimes take longer to wear off than the tan itself lasts. Because Siennasol Clear contains no bronzers this will not happen

glowgirl

03-07-2009, 4:14 PM

Hi avstar, well found useful bit of info:Tproblem is I love my colour guide:confused:let us know how you get on with the siennasol, I'll be ordering in a week so, not that I'm counting the days of course:D

flea72

04-07-2009, 2:49 PM

Hi everyone:) I'll try to help with some questions

I would suggest not to moisturise each time maybe once a week if you have to, unless you have discovered a moisturiser that doesn't do this, I find most make the tan fade much more quickly or go patchy, if yours doesn't please tell us what it is:D

I have this problem too, make sure you use a decent amount of product and I find a cotton nightie helps, I have one just for tanning nights, don't moisturise before you apply or it just slides off in the night.

Another problem that I also have, its mainly the colour guide that has sunk into your pores so if you apply in the night and shower in the morning (I usually do this) you can LIGHTLY exfoliate with a glove and it should look better, what really works is applying one day and shaving the other and so on although this is not so good for those who like to shave everyday (I do) - I would be interested if anyone has any other suggestions on this one.

10% is still quite dark, certainly more so than whats available in the shops, 12% is usually the darkest you can get in a salon unless you specify you want more, are you yellow toned by any chance? Yellow toned people even if they are pale to start with seem to be able to build a better colour with less product and a lower % than us pinkys;)

A couple of us had problems with celeb secrets orders arriving late and in my case not too sure which product they sent me. I do think its a bit hit and miss with them at the moment and next time I'm going to give siennasol a go, if you really don't want to try another product then I would order from celeb secrets, as I understand it lots of people have with no probs:)

:rotfl:This really made me laugh, its surprising how quickly you can actually become obsessed with it, I bore people all the time now when gunna:T first recommended the products at start of this thread she said she loved talking about it and now I know why, There really isn't a negative side to fake tanning so we could be doing a lot worse..........;)

Bet youre glad they brought in the new 'multi quote' feature lol

Flea