Over the past month I've been testing out a new sunless tanner which I've fallen in faux-glow love with. At the recommendation of a friend I began looking into Fake Bake Flawless Self Tanning Liquid. Fake Bake can be found here for $24 dollars or at Ulta for around the same price. Ulta sells a combination of drugstore brands and higher end brands so I'm counting this as a drugstore product. The real secret is, however, that you can get this for about half the price on Amazon which is where I've been getting mine. I'm on my second bottle of the liquid (I buy the 6 oz) and I've gotten each bottle for about 12-13 dollars a piece.
One thing that I really like about this product is that it's little purple package includes everything you need. It includes the self tanner itself, a pair of purple rubber gloves, two different nozzles, and a new mitt. I clean my mitt after each use to keep it in good condition but after the seemingly hundred uses I get out one bottle, by the next bottle, I'm typically ready for a new mitt anyway.
As mentioned, the product comes with two nozzles, a more traditional flip top nozzle and a spray nozzle. I only use the spray nozzle because I like to spray the product directly on my skin and it's just so much easier for me to use. I like to shower and exfoliate, as with any self tanner, and put a little regular lotion on my elbows, knees, and ankles. Then I just slip on the gloves and spray the tanner on one leg and use the mitt to rub it in, then continue to the next leg, etc.
A hot topic in terms of self tanners is often smell. I can honestly say that this is the only self tanner I've ever used (and I've used a TON) that doesn't smell like terrible DHA. Self tanner smell is horrible, and some are certainly worse than others, this tanner smells like a coconut tropical paradise. Even after it's been on the skin for a few hours it still smells good unlike some other tanners that initially smell okay and then fade into a gross DHA smell. Speaking of fading, the color fades very nicely and evenly and doesn't blotch off like some tanners tend do (i.e. white inner elbows, etc). I work out every day and sweating the tanner off hasn't been an issue for me. In terms of longevity, I like to apply this every few days and in between I like to keep moisturized and use a gradual tanning moisturizer like Hemp Golden Glow or Jergens Natural Glow.
The color of this tanning liquid may look dark in the bottle or when you first spray it out, don't be alarmed, after you rub it in with the mitt and let it develop (I recommend overnight) it's a very natural looking brown that's not too tan or over the top. I use it on my face and haven't had any problems with it breaking me out. I like to just lightly use whatever is left on the mitt for the tops of my hands and my feet. This liquid is quick drying so I would recommend doing one appendage at a time so that it doesn't dry in weird splotches, I haven't had any issues with streaking or splotching (which is amazing) and always get a natural looking even tan with this. The best part about the quick drying formula is you can get dressed almost immediately after applying and not worry about rub off on your clothes or your bed sheets. There is no fake bronzing color so it doesn't rub on my clothing or my sheets, which I love.
I would 100% recommend this product, even for fair skin tones like mine. It's easy to use and a great value for the money. I have tried tons of tanners and this is by far my favorite, I never want to be without it!
