SELF-TANNER TO THE TEST

We all know it's not good for our skin to bake under UV rays, but how do you get a golden glow without the skin damage? Self tanner, right? Well, I think we can all agree that we HATE the way self-tanner smells. Can I get an amen? I decided to go on the hunt to find a self tanner that smells great and works. 

I purchased Neutrogena's Build-a-tan, L'Oreal Sublime Bronze and Jergen's Natural Glow. Below, are the pro's and con's of each, and my final answer on which one is the best buy. 

L'OREAL SUBLIME BRONZE LUMINOUS: This is the product that many of my friends told me to buy. It definitely gives you instant color and sparkle. It has some glitter in it, and so it's a great way to add some warmth to your skin if you're in a hurry. The smell is TERRIBLE! To cut the smell, I tried to mix it with my body lotion. It helped a little, but I could still smell the tanner hours later. Plus, this stuff can get streaky if you don't make sure to hit all of the spots and wash your hands after. It wasn't my favorite, but I would consider using it in a pinch.

NEUTROGENA BUILD-A-TAN: This was my favorite of the three. It smells great, it moisturizes well and you can see a difference after applying it daily over a couple of days. They only make one kind and you can just control how deep your fake tan is by how often you apply it. It's $8.99 and you go through it pretty fast, but I think it's still worth it compared to the other three. 

JERGENS NATURAL GLOW: It smells delightful. In fact, it smells just like any other nice lotion, but it really didn't do much for my skin. I have used this product in the past and I didn't like the smell, so they have definitely updated it. However, only on lighter parts of my body that doesn't see the sun much did I see any kind of difference over a one week period. My legs are already quite tan, so it didn't do much for me. It's the cheapest of the three at $8.09, and I would say it's a great buy for those with fair skin.

Photos by Rennai Hoefer