In Part I, we talked about how self tanners can help take years off your appearance by adding that youthful, healthy glow to your skin without the sun damage that can accompany this effect. It really is one of the best ways to enliven the skin and give you that glow that tends to blend away signs of aging. It can even make you look more awake!

This time, let’s get into the different versions of self tanners that are out there today. What are the benefits and drawbacks of each? What might you consider for different seasons? And do you need to be specific if you have a specific skin type that isn’t ‘combination’?

Types of Self Tanners: Mousse, Lotions, Liquid Drops, Liquid Sprays | Which One to Use?

My personal favorite type of self-tanner is liquid drop form. Why? It’s SO easy to incorporate into your normal body lotion routine. If you use body lotion on the regular, then all you have to do is add a couple of drops, customized to your liking, to a squirt of your body lotion. Related: Vitamin E, Skin and Sunburn Recovery

The second reason I love tanning drops is the fact that, as previously touched on, it’s completely customizable and it also is good for any skin type. If I want a darker color on a part of my body that tends to be super-pale, like my legs, I can simply use a couple more drops in my portion of lotion.

Likewise, if I’m tanning my face, I only want to use about one drop, and go from there if I want to get a darker look either several hours later after the initial layer has developed, or the next day. It's best to start small on the face lest you go to dark and get an orange effect.

SO easy. Plus I have control over which lotion base I’m using it in. I don’t have to be a prisoner to all the other ingredients, which may or may not be conducive to my desire to be as natural as possible, that are sometimes found in pre-mixed self-tanning products.

Mousse

Mousse style tanners are popular because they are first of all, a novelty. Second of all, they are easy to spread. Third, they often come tinted so that you can see exactly where you already spread the product. Related: Why Sunlight Makes You Feel So Good

Some people really like the lightness of a mousse. They think it feels lighter and less occlusive on their skin. I totally can see this appeal. I have tried mousse style tanners in the past, however I’m so content with my tanning drops that I don’t think I’ll ever use another form.

Lotions

Lotions are one of the most popular, simply because they are so abundant. You can go to any store and find a self-tanning lotion. This is how they started, and the reason is that lotions are already a very popular skin care product that can be used on the entire body.

They are also convenient if you really don’t want to both with the guessing game of using drops and mixing them into a lotion. So there is an appeal of simplicity there for tanning lotions.