Lotions & aftercare
What actually makes a difference
Most of the money people waste on tanning is spent on the session and none of it on the skin. That is the wrong way round: hydrated skin takes colour more evenly and holds it noticeably longer. Here is what each kind of product is for, in plain terms.
Why dry skin is the whole problem
Colour develops in the outer layer of the skin — and that layer is continuously shed and replaced. When it is dry it sheds faster and takes your tan with it, which is why two people can have identical sessions and one keeps the result twice as long.
Dry skin also reflects and scatters more UV than hydrated skin, so a session on parched skin is doing less than the same session on well-moisturised skin. Nothing on this page is a substitute for a sensible session length, but a moisturiser is the cheapest improvement available to most people. Individual results vary.
The categories
Six things, and what each one is really for
Accelerators
For before the session
Moisturising lotions, usually with ingredients intended to support the skin's own tanning process. The honest description is that they keep skin hydrated during a session, which is most of the benefit. Use one from the first session rather than saving it for later.
Bronzers
Immediate colour on top
An accelerator with a cosmetic tint, or DHA, which reacts with the outermost layer of skin to darken it. Useful before an event because the effect is immediate. Wash your hands afterwards and be careful around the palms.
Tingle products
Not for beginners
Formulated to increase blood flow to the skin, and they produce a strong warming or tingling sensation that a lot of people dislike. Never use one on the face, and never as your first lotion. Ask before you buy.
Tan extenders
For the days between
Daily moisturisers, often with a little DHA, aimed at keeping colour even as the skin renews. This is the category that most changes how long a tan lasts, and the one people most often skip.
Face products
Because facial skin is different
Thinner, more exposed and more prone to congestion from heavy body lotions. A separate lighter product for the face is worth it, and many people turn the facial lamps down as well.
Protective extras
Lips, tattoos, goggles
Lip balm with SPF, because lips do not tan and do burn. Tattoo balm, because UV fades ink over time. And your own goggles if you would rather — ours are free and sanitised, but plenty of people prefer their own.
Getting the most from whatever you use
- Exfoliate before, not after. A gentle scrub the day before a session clears the skin that was about to shed anyway, so colour develops on a surface that will stay put.
- Apply evenly and do not rush it. Streaky lotion is streaky colour, particularly with anything containing DHA.
- Do not forget the awkward bits. Backs of knees, elbows, ankles and the tops of the feet are dry, take colour badly and are the first places a tan looks uneven.
- Moisturise daily, generously, forever. Not just on session days. This is the whole game.
- Never use SPF on a bed. It is made for outdoors and will block the session you paid for.
- Check the ingredients if your skin is reactive. Nut oils and fragrance are common in this category. If you react to things, ask us and read the label.
Not sure what you need?
Tell us your skin type and what you are tanning for and we will point you at the right one — including telling you when you do not need to buy anything.