I love gradual tanners. Who doesn't want that subtle all-year-round glow that's fool proof to even the most novice of self-tanners?

For a while I have been using Xen-Tan's Tranform Luxe, I've got it in Light/Medium and it comes out very dark...which is fine if you exfoliate and apply it well, but with no colour guide it's sometimes hard to judge where it's going. Although the colour is great (when applied properly!) and it goes onto your skin with a lovely vanilla scent it soon fades to that yucky biscuity mushroom smell. At last I have found a gradual tanner with NO mushroom smell!

I picked up the Light version of L'Oreal Sublime Bronze in Boots last week as it was on offer for only £4.66, cheap enough to bin if it was naff. I've been using it for a week now so feel I can give it a fair enough review...

I absolutely love it! In fact I popped into town this morning and picked up another bottle whilst it was still on offer! I really feel that the results supersede that of Xen-Tan's Transforme Luxe...and that stuff is like 4 times the price! It goes onto your skin really smoothly and absorbs quickly. There is not a hint of that tanning smell that I have had with all other tanners I've tried, it has a light floral fragrance to it. I have quite dry skin on the tops of my arms and shoulders and this kept them moisturised and didn't cause any weird patchy bits. Even though it's a gradual tanner I still apply with a tanning mitt, I just find you get smoother, less patchy results. After 2 days of use the colour is a lovely, natural olive brown, not at all orange like some other brands I have tried.

I'm actually won over from a high-end product to a drugstore brand!

Jodie

xoxo

Xen-Tan Transform Luxe Gradual Tanner Review

So I thought I'd share with you my first ever experience with Xen-Tan Gradual Tanner in Light/Medium. Now I am a fake tan virgin, I do however use a gradual tanner all year round which is Dove's purse-friendly Summer Glow. Whilst the scent of Dove's Summer Glow isn't the best, just the usual biscuity mushroom smell that you get with all the others, it does give a lovely, even and subtle glow. Back to my experience with Xen-Tan...

I was really excited to try Xen-Tan, before purchasing I had read many glowing reviews from people that were dedicated to this brand for excellent salon quality results. I probably wouldn't have purchased it at it's full retail of £39.95 but as it was in the ASOS sale for £18.50 I thought this was a reasonable price as the gift set included an exfoliator and tanning mitt.

 The products came in very luxurious and informative gold and cream boxes enclosed in a transparent re-usable cosmetic bag. The gradual tanner and exfoliator themselves were very generous sized 236ml bottles with the gradual tanner having a screw top and the exfoliator having a nice and easy flip top.

So that evening I showered, shaved and exfoliated in preparation for applying the gradual tanner. Just touching on the exfoliator, it was a very refreshing and non-abrasive scrub...some scrubs can leave my skin feeling dry and taught but this didn't. Straight after my shower I slathered on E45 cream...I do this every night regardless of applying my usual gradual tanner or not. Now onto my experience with the tanner itself...

Firstly, the scent is delicious! Its got a fresh vanilla scent to it which only slightly changed to that biscuity fake tan smell around 3 hours later and even then it wasn't as over-powering as some other brands I have tried. The lotion itself made my skin feel moisturised and was easy to apply. Now the set came with a tanner mitt...as this is labelled as a daily gradual tan I threw caution to the wind and applied it with my hands...big mistake! Although the rest of my body tanned evenly and streak free the colour was anything but a subtle light/medium. I love the colour, it was a deep olive, I have an olive tone to my skin anyway so the tanner only enhanced this. Although I had washed my hands thoroughly after applying to my body and rubbed a small amount to the backs of my hands using my wrists and the back of the opposite hand to rub in I ended up with a disaster on my hands that I don't usually get!

As you can see from this photo the colour difference is so dramatic! I love the colour it's very natural but I know now why it came with a tanning mitt and will definitely be using it on my next application! My disappointment of this not being as easy to use as my usual drug-store brand gradual tanner has been overshadowed by the luxurious colour and feel of Xen-Tan.

I may be converted....

Jodie
xoxo