Have ever been using self-tanner, standing there like a robot waiting for it to dry, and wondered to yourself, “How can I make fake tan dry quicker?” Well in this short and sweet article we’re going to talk about a few of the simplest things you can do to get a perfect summer glow quick and easy.
In short, though, you can make fake tan dry quicker by using a Mousse self-tanner, like St. Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Mousse, which has a higher alcohol content and dries faster than lotions or gels. You can also use a blow drier on the cool setting to speed up the drying and tanning process.
Now let’s talk about these and other concepts in a bit more detail.
Tricks To Make Fake Tan Dry Quicker
So there are two main strategies that I briefly mentioned above that you can use to make your fake tan dry faster, the first being using the right kind of self-tanner, and the second using a blow dryer or fan to help speed up the process.
However, when using a fan or blow dryer, you want to be careful, which I’ll talk about more in a second.
Different Types Of Self-Tanners
First, let’s talk a little bit about the different kinds of self-tanner so you understand why some dry faster than others.
Lotions
Lotions are great for people that are fairly new to fake tanning. This is primarily because they take longer to dry and absorb into the skin, which gives you more time to get good coverage and even things out.
My favorite example of tanning lotion is the Beauty By Earth Organic Self Tanner that you can purchase on Amazon, or you can read my full review here.
Mousses
Mousses are by far my favorite self-tanning product, and probably will be yours as well after a while.
They have a higher alcohol content than lotions or gels, which allows them to dry faster. They also tend to last a while because just a small amount can give you a ton of coverage.
If you’re looking for a way to make your fake tan dry faster, the best thing you can probably do is get a self-tanner mousse.
My absolute favorite Self-tanning mousse (and favorite self-tanner overall) has to be the St. Tropez Bronzing Mousse that you can pick up for fairly cheap on Amazon.
Gels
Gels are ideally suited for people with normal, or slightly oily skin. They tent to spread extremely well, allowing you to use less self-tanner and achieve more coverage. However, like lotions, gels tend to dry a bit slower than a mousse sunless tanner.
Sunless tanning gels are far less common then lotions or mousses, but you will still see them occasionally. A good example of a self-tanning gel would be Clarins Instant Self Tanning Gel.
Glow Pads
Finally, there are pre-soaked pads that you can get. These are ideal for travel, or if you’re just on the go. Think of them sort of like make-up pads that have been pre-loaded with self-tanner. There is typically enough on the pad for a full-body application. You do want to make sure that you are thorough with these pads, as it can be easy to not rub them in enough and end up with a streaky tan.
Ok, now that we understand that a Mousse self-tanner can really help speed up the drying process through it’s higher alcohol content, let’s talk about the other ways we can make our fake tan dry quicker.
Other Ways To Make Self-Tanner Dry Quickly
Alright, next is using a bit of airflow to help speed up the drying process. You can typically do this a few ways, with some being a little bit better than others.
Blow Dryer
Using a blow dryer can help speed up the process, and actually, help the chemical reaction that forms the tan happen faster as well.
However, you want to be sure you only use a blow dryer with a cool or fan setting, and not use any heat. Heat can cause the skin to sweat, which can spread out the self-tanner and cause streaking or blotching.
Set your blow dryer on cool or fan, and on a low-flow setting so that you’re not getting too much air. Then hold in a foot or so away and gently pass air over your body to speed up the drying process. For this, I really like the BabyBliss Pro Titanium Hair Dryer because it has a cool shot button that works great for drying self-tanner.
You want to be careful that you don’t cause too much skin-to-skin contact during this time as that can also cause some splotching or streaking. This is for the same reason that you want to be careful when you wear fake tanner overnight. If you do have any mishaps that cause un-even coloring, be sure to check out my guide on how to wash off self-tanner.
Using A Fan
Essentially the same concept as a blow dryer, you’re just allowing some air to pass over the skin to speed up the drying process. Be sure to not have the fan setting too high, and stand a few feet back. Try to have the air hit your entire body as you rotate around so the drying happens evenly.
Walking Around
It can also help quite a bit to just briskly walk around your home, the gentle airflow that occurs as you walk around (albeit probably naked, you go girl/boy!) can help speed up the fake tan drying process.
