Nothing quite completes a summer look more than long, tanned, and toned legs. Self-tanning your legs will leave you with a beautiful summer glow. A good self-tanning application on the legs can leave them looking toned and sculpted.
How do you apply self-tanner to your legs for not only a golden glow but a sculpted look? This guide shows you how to get your legs looking summer-ready and in shape.
One of the essential components of sculpted, bronzed legs is a good self-tanner.
Are some self-tanners better than others for legs? Your legs include your feet, which are tricky to self-tan without getting streaks or an orange look. With a gradual self-tanner, you can layer the self-tanner in areas that complement where the sunlight naturally hits your body.
Find out how to tan your legs perfectly, which products to use, and how to maintain a self-tan on your legs all year round.
How to Prepare Your Legs for Self-Tanner
In order to achieve a flawless-looking tan on your legs, you need to prepare them for the application. Legs that have been badly prepared, or not prepared at all, will land up with a tan that is streaky and blotchy.
Here is how to prepare your legs for your self-tanning application.
Shave or wax
Shave or wax your legs 24 hours before application. Any hairs left on the skin will not allow the self-tanning product to be applied evenly to the legs, leaving streaky areas and darker patches on the legs.
The reason you need to wait at least 24 hours, is for your skin to recover and heal completely. If you have small micro-cuts it can cause the tan to not set correctly.
It’s also really important to not shave or wax immediately after you apply self-tanner. This can cause you to remove the outer layer of your skin, and some of the tan with it! Check out my full guide on self-tanning and shaving to learn more.
Exfoliate
Exfoliating properly before a self-tanning application is so important. Drier areas such as knees and heels hold more dead skin, and removing this dead skin by exfoliating will allow for an even and smooth tan.
Remember that DHA only reacts with the outer layer of your skin to develop the tan. If you have excess dead-skin cells, it can cause the tan to not look even and natural. Check out this guide to learn more.
Moisturize
Moisturized skin holds a self-tan much longer than dry skin. A moisturizer will even out the drier areas of the leg – allowing the self-tanner to be applied evenly.
Keeping your legs hydrated is also essential to make sure that your tan lasts longer, and fades evenly. Take a look at this guide to find out how to do this properly.
There is no point in applying a self-tanner to unprepared legs. Take a day before application to get your legs smooth and moisturized, otherwise, you will land up with a streaky orange tan that will be difficult to get rid of.
The Best Way to Apply Self-Tanner to Your Legs
Applying a self-tanner to the legs only requires a different method than applying a self-tanner to the whole body. The goal is to apply the self-tanning lotion evenly to the legs, giving them the summer glow that you desire.
Use a quality tanning mitt
Use a quality tanning mitt to help the self-tanner be applied evenly and smoothly, but it will also stop your hands from tanning dark orange as well.
If you don’t have a mitt, check out this guide on making your own DIY self-tanning mitt.
Start from the top
Start from the top of your legs and work your way down. This allows you to blend the self-tanner towards the bottom of your legs.
Starting at your feet might see you land up with dark feet that don’t match the rest of your legs. Work in a circular motion to even out the product, avoiding any streaks developing from working horizontally or vertically.
Distribute evenly
When it comes to tanning your feet, pay a little more attention to the application. Work from the front of your ankle in long swiping, circular motions.
Don’t apply too much lotion to the sides of your feet or in between your toes. The sun doesn’t really get to these areas, so they are naturally lighter than the rest of the feet – tanning them too much will make your feet look weird.
Focus on the areas where the sun reaches the most, and blend these areas for a natural-looking tan.
Consider a gradual self-tanner
Use a gradual tanning self-tanner. It allows you to decide how dark you would like to develop your tan, giving you the power to stop when you have reached your desirable tan.
5 Best Self-Tanners For Your Legs
Like with anything, there are some self-tanning products that are better than the rest. When it comes to self-tanning your legs, you want a good, easy-to-apply self-tanning lotion or mousse that leaves you with an even-looking, glowing tan.
I really take my time whenever I recommend products. I use my personal experience with the products, research, reading of customer reviews, and so much more when I make these lists.
I always factor in:
- Quality of Tan
- Price
- Customer Reviews
- Ingredients
- … and so much more.
And for this post, I made sure these products specifically work extremely well for your legs, to produce the best, most natural tan, possible.
Alright, let’s get started.
Here are the top 5 self-tanning lotions to use on your legs.
| Rank | Self Tanner | Best |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | St. Tropez Self Tanner | Self tanner for legs |
| 2. | Beauty By Earth Organic Self Tanner | Organic self tanner |
| 3. | SunLabs Overnight Self-Tanning Lotion | Overnight self tanner |
| 4. | Sally Hansen Gradual Tanning Lotion | Gradual self tanner |
| 5. | Jergens Natural Glow Wet Skin Moisturizer | Wet skin self tanner |
1. St. Tropez Self Tanner
I absolutely love all of St. Tropez’s self-tanning products, but their classic lotion self-tanner stands out when it comes to tanning legs.
This is because the lotion formula allows you to apply daily if desired, which makes it a perfect choice for gradually building up your color.
While it is not technically a gradual self-tanner, you can effectively use it as such. The application time is 3 hours, but you can leave it on for up to 8 hours before showering.
The ability to control how deep your tan is should be high on your list of priorities, and in my opinion, there is simply nothing better than St. Tropez Self Tanner.
2. Beauty By Earth Organic Self Tanner
Beauty by Earth is one of the most gentle brands on the market. Their tanning lotion is chemical-free, which makes it nourishing and kind to the skin. It is both vegan and made with all-natural ingredients.
This is a great kit to buy because it comes with an exfoliating mitt that really helps in the application of self-tanning lotion to the legs.
The lotion has been formulated to leave the skin with bronze and glowing tan. It can be built up gradually by applying the self-tanner in layers over time.
The kit also includes a waterproof zippered pouch which allows for easy and mess-free storage and travel.
The Beauty by Earth self-tanning lotion can be used by all skin types – oily, dry, dark or fair. You can control the color you want. The tanning cream also includes an organic lotion base that helps keep the skin moisturized and nourished throughout the self-tanning process.
Not only does this happen to be my absolute favorite self-tanner for my whole body right now, it happens to work extremely well for your legs! I’d encourage you to give it a try.
3. SunLabs Overnight Self-Tanning Lotion
Check it out on Amazon.
The SunLabs Overnight Self-Tanning lotion has been formulated with a natural blend of ingredients.
It not only gives you a flawless tan, but it revitalizes and nourishes the skin at the same time, enhancing the appearance of the tan. It is also completely paraben-free.
With regular use, you can develop a gradually darker tan that allows you to stop when you have reached your desired color, and then you are able to maintain the tan by regular application.
Used on the legs, it will spread evenly and smoothly, giving a toned and bronzed look that enhances the look of your legs.
The pump action bottle is really easy to use when self-tanning, and with a tanning mitt, it allows for an even and glowing tan.
It develops overnight, allowing a rich and darker tone that has a good amount of development time, making it look more natural.
4. Sally Hansen Gradual Tanning Lotion
Check it out on Amazon.
Sally Hansen is a trusted name in the beauty industry, and the Airbrush Gradual Tanning Lotions is one of the best out there.
It is a lightweight and water-resistant formula that allows you to develop light or darker tone. The water-proof formulation is perfect for the legs and allows you to wallow in the sea without worrying about your tan running off.
It gives great coverage over freckles and veins, covering varicose veins on the legs. It is a quick-tanning solution that will leave you with a bronze, summer tan.
I’ve used this stuff on my whole body, and it worked absolutely fantastic. I don’t love it quite as much as Beauty By Earth, but it is still a great self-tanner for your legs.
5. Jergens Natural Glow Wet Skin Moisturizer
Check it out on Amazon.
This self-tanner is an in-shower self-tanner.
This means it can be applied during your time in the shower. There is no need for rinsing off the self-tanner, it simply develops quickly on your skin and dries. There is no residual staining on towels or clothing.
It has a delightfully fresh scent that does not contain any of the self-tanner smell found in other products. As it is an in-shower self-tanner, it can be applied to the legs easily.
Gradually develop your color throughout the week, letting you choose the tan you want.
It is an easy-to-use product that comes in different shades, giving you the option of the tan you wish to achieve.
Related Questions
Can leg self-tanners be used on the rest of the body?
There aren’t necessarily self-tanners created to be used solely on the legs, there are just products that allow for smooth and even application. This means that self-tanners used on the legs can be used on the rest of the body.
It is a good idea to get a different self-tanner for the face. A lighter self-tanner should be used on the face, so you don’t land up with a darker facial tone. A good facial self-tanner will have great moisturizing properties to keep the face looking healthy and nourished.
Are organic self-tanners better to use?
There are many self-tanners on the market that contain harsh chemicals that can dry out and damage the skin. For this reason, it could be considered better to use organic and natural self-tanners, as they generally contain ingredients that are nourishing and gentle on the skin.
Many of the organic self-tanners also contain moisturizers such as oils or butter that continue to hydrate the skin after application.
How do you self-tan your legs?
When self-tanning your legs alone, it is better to work from the top down, but you need to do the opposite when self-tanning your whole body.
Working from the bottom up will mean that you won’t have any wet product on your stomach that might blemish when you bend over to do your legs, this might land up causing darker spots.
By working from the bottom up, you won’t have to bend over with wet products on your stomach.
Can I use a spray self-tanner on my legs?
Self-tanner spray can be used on the legs, but it is not as effective when it comes to the feet and ankles.
It can be sprayed on the feet but it would be more difficult to apply between the toes and on the sides of the feet. A tanning mitt can be used, but a lotion or foam would be much easier to apply.
The Best Self-Tanners for Legs
Give yourself the gift of toned and highlighted legs without having to spend your time at the gym.
A good and well-nourished application of self-tanner on your legs will leave you looking like a summer goddess in your summer dresses or hot pants.
I really hope you enjoyed this article, if you did, please consider sharing it!
Your friend,
Kate
