I was recently approached by Epiphannie and LaaLaa to join a tan project for Women Of Colour (TFWOC) and happily agreed as I do feel that certain parts of my body don't see enough sunlight and are therefore more lighter than my face or hands! I also quite like that "just back from holiday"/sunkissed look on my arms etc.
A lot of people may be thinking: why is she tanning for, she's already got colour! But as I said I like the sunkissed look and really am against the usual ethnic stereotype of "whiter is better". I'd like to make a stand against these old stereotypes and I actually think I look healthier (and slimmer) with a tan and feel a lot prettier!
The first product I've been sent is the Shimmer Tan Boost from Abi-O of Beaubronz; I thought I'd test the product on one arm only and let it settle for a bit to see the difference between the two arms (don't worry I even it out after!)
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| what the product looks like straight from the bottle |
So here's the difference between the two arms after a couple hours:
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| top: bare arm, bottom: Shimmer Tan Boost arm! |
As you can see, there's only a hint of colour difference between the two arms but the shimmer is totally there.
I'd use this product on the body for a bit of shimmer and maybe the shoulders too, however not on the face at all unless you want to resemble a disco ball!
Packaging: I quite like the dinky little bottle (which is only trial size 50ml) and like the gold labelling; gives it a luxurious feel.
Finish: Golden shimmer.
Texture: The product is a golden mousse-y cream like texture.
Key Ingredients/Facts: Abi-O generally do paraben and cruelty free products (woop!) and in this particular product natural and organic ingredients are used. Key ingredients in the Shimmer Tan Boost include: BIO Active Aloe, 2.5% Ecocert DHA (the tanning agent) and shimmer mica.
Application: After the usual routine of exfoliating, shaving and moisturising before applying a tanning product (a must if you're to get a perfect self tan result!), Abi-O Shimmer Tan Boost can be applied in even circular motions on the body with hands or a velvet tanning mitt. If using hands, always wash straight after (unless you want orange palms!)
Smell: The Shimmer Tan boost has no particular smell when first pumped, however after about 5 minutes or so, a not so pleasant potato-ey smell emits from the body; not nice! It was quite pungent and made me feel totally paranoid about the smell whilst wearing it!
Who this would be perfect for: As the Shimmer Tan Boost only contains 2.5% DHA, it's perfect for tanned, brown or black skin. There's barely any visible difference in colour between the two arms above which wasn't enough for me, however for darker skin tones I think this product would be great for a bit of shimmer.
FrootiFactor: I quite like this product; from the packaging to the shimmer, however I think the smell put me off wanting to try it again; I've used St Tropez before and the smell is a bit more warmer (my husband describes it as "biscuit-y") but this tanning product only smelled of potatoes to me! I think this is probably because it does contain natural and organic ingredients and one thing I've noticed about organic products is they mostly smell quite bad. For this reason, it loses a full 2 FrootiFactors as I am very into nice smelling products, but for those who prioritise ingredients, this would be a great alternative.
The Abi-O Shimmer Tan Boost can be bought in both 50ml trial size (£8) and 200ml full size for £26 from the BeauBronz website.
So this is my first instalment of TFWOC reviews, I'll try to post my progress with the different brands I've been sent and let you know my thoughts!
Make sure you follow the other girls' reviews on this project too:
What do you think of tanning products for ethnic skintypes? Do you agree with me in thinking tanned/sunkissed skin looks healthier? I'd love to hear your thoughts below!
Bridesmaid 5:
