How to Get the Most Natural Looking Fake Tan

Disclosure: This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and it’s advertiser. All opinions are my own alone. Thank you for supporting brands that make this blog possible. #MyJergensGlow #CollectiveBias

This may be a bit of a surprise to some of you, but I was addicted to tanning when I was younger. I worked in a tanning salon through college and I tanned pretty much every day. Thankfully my obsession only lasted a couple years, and now I’m all about slathering on the SPF and protecting my skin from sun damage, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love a great summer sun-kissed glow. I’ve pretty much tried everything and after a LOT of trial and error I think I’ve finally mastered how to get the most natural looking fake tan.

JERGENS® Natural Glow® products have been my go to for YEARS and I’m so glad that they’ve expanded their gradual and instant tan product lines to accommodate all of your sunless tanning needs! Today I’m sharing my favorite products and tips to get the most natural looking fake tan that I guarantee will have people asking you where you went on vacation!

1. The first thing I do is exfoliate my entire body from head to toe. It’s important to get rid of any dead skin cells and smooth any parts of your body prone to rough skin like your elbows, knees and heels. I like using a body scrub and shower mitt on my body and a oil free scrub on my face.

2. Apply Natural Glow Gradual Moisturizers or Instant Sun Tanners to entire body after towel drying off. I like to start at my feet and work my way up. Be careful around your elbows, knees and ankles. You can also apply regular moisturizer to these areas so that not too much tanner is absorbed. Make sure your completely dry before getting dressed, feel free to blow dry yourself to speed up the process! If using an Instant Sun product avoid getting wet for at least 6 hours.

3. Use JERGENS® Natural Glow® FACE Daily Moisturizer with Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 20 to gradually create a sun-kissed glow. Fake tanning your face is tricky, but to get the most natural looking glow I like to use a gradual tanner as opposed to an instant tanner. Apply it evenly all over your face and down your neck and be careful to avoid your eyebrows. Then go back in a contour your face using a large fluffy foundation brush. Apply extra product to the hollows of your cheeks, on your jawline and around your hair line (make sure to blend it throughly into your hair). This is the best way to get that “no makeup I woke up like this” glow that is especially amazing while on vacation!

4. Apply JERGENS® Natural Glow® Wet Skin® Moisturizer after every shower to maintain your natural looking fake tan. After showering, with the water off, apply lotion evenly onto wet skin. Use sparingly around elbows, knees and ankles like you would any self tanner. No need to rinse off or wait, just towel dry and get dressed!

5. Don’t forget to throughly wash your hands anytime you use self tanner. Streaky, orange hands are a dead giveaway to a fake tan and you don’t want that after you spent all the time creating the perfect sunless glow. If your hands need some color I suggest applying regular lotion to your knuckles then take the brush you used to contour your face and lightly paint the tops of your hands making sure to avoid your nails and cuticles.

I hope these 5 tips on how to get the most natural looking fake tan will help you get ready for warmer weather to come! I’m headed to the Caribbean in 9 days and I’ve just started getting my self tanner on so the second I put my bathing suit on I’ll have the perfect sun kissed glow (no actual sun required!) Leave me a comment and let me know if you have any sunless tanning tips I should add to this list and make sure to pick up all the JERGENS® products you need to get that perfect fake tan.