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How to Extend Your Summer Glow

Although there are certain aspects of Autumn and Winter that I’m looking forward to, none of them quite make up for the bitter cold of the UK throughout them. I’m one of those people that seems to have a slightly cooler body temperature than the average person, so Summer is my season. If I’m honest with you, some of it’s superficial; I look better with sun-kissed hair and a tan. I’m not quite ready yet to say goodbye to good lighting and pretty dresses in favour of frizzy, hood hair and six layers of clothing. At this time of year it’s for that reason that I make every attempt to extend Summer as much as possible within my beauty routine, and any other way I can too!

I love a natural bronzed look, so over Summer I tend to ditch the fake tan in favour of the real thing. It’s at this time of year, when it appears we’ve enjoyed the last of the sun, that I start reaching for the bottle again, or bottles to be precise. After many trials and errors, here are the products that I’ve found to work well for me.

Norvell Renew Exfoliating Prep Mitt

One of the only reasons I find tanning such a hassle is the need to exfoliate beforehand. Often I forget, and for some reason, the skin on my legs is quite sensitive, so shaving and exfoliating products can irritate them. Not to be dramatic, but the Norvell exfoliating mitt is a game changer. Not only does it exfoliate, but it does so extremely gently. The mitt is easy to use and it balances pH levels in order to maximise the colour pay off of the tan. I’m able to use this straight out of the packet and without needing to wash anything off before tan application. It’s effortless, quick, smells amazing, and I’m all for it.

Norvell 1 Hour Rapid Mousse

I’ve tried many fake tans but hadn’t found one to rival my trusted Bondi Sands until I tried Norvell. Like every fake tan I’ve ever tried, I find that keeping the tan on at least three times longer than as instructed on the bottle is essential. Despite the ‘1 hour’ in its name, the longer the tan has to develop, the better the colour pay off, or at least in my experience. I’ve also tried the Norvell Effect Hi-Res Color Creator which is a spray tan instead of a mousse. Despite it’s higher price point, I found that the colour pay off was no better. I also got tan all over my floor and sprayed unevenly so ended up having to rub it in anyway. Overall it just seemed like unnecessary effort and so I prefer the mousse (which I apply with a St Tropez mitt, please excuse how used mine is).

In the above picture, I used Norvell’s mousse on my right leg only. You can see the colour difference between it and my normal skin tone. It’s lucky that the weather’s been pretty autumnal recently and I felt no desperate need to bare my mismatched legs to the world! (don’t worry, I did even them out eventually).

Clarins Radiance-Plus Golden Glow Booster

I’ve spoken about how much I use this over Summer a few times, but it’s just as essential throughout the rest of the year too. If you go barefaced a lot (or want a little extra radiance for the rare occasion) then you need this. I find that I end up using quite a lot of this. My skincare regime often brings me back to square one, so I usually apply it daily. Despite that, the bottle lasts a pretty long time as you only need to add a few drops to your moisturiser.

Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs

While I’d love to write this post and pretend as though I’m always a bronzed goddess who consistently maintains her legs to a high standard, I won’t. I often allow my legs to get to that awful patchy stage which indicates that you’ve left the tan on for too long. I do, however, ensure that no-one other than myself and my oh-so-lucky other-half ever get to witness it. Over Winter it’s easily rectified by chucking on jeans or the thickest tights that Primark offers. On the rare sunshine filled Autumn days in which I do want to show my legs and haven’t tanned, the Sally Hansen airbrush becomes my saviour.

* This post contains PR samples. All words and opinions are honest and my own. Please read my full disclaimer for more information.