The 3 Best Self-Tanning Brushes Of 2025
For most people who self-tan at home, their go-to tanning tool is a tanning mitt.
Yes, tanning mitts have been a great help to prevent hands from turning bright orange, but are they really the best tool to use?
If you want to achieve the most perfectly blended and buffed self-tan at home, consider using a self-tanning brush.
Self-tanning brushes keep your hands free from contact with the self-tanning lotion, preventing them from turning orange.
The brushes also help you carefully and gently blend in your self-tanning product, giving it an incredibly natural glow.
A self-tanning brush might completely change your view of self-tanning at home. Here is everything you would need to know about using a self-tanning brush, and which are the best to use!
What Is A Self-Tanning Brush?
A self-tanning brush is a simple, yet highly effective self-tanning accessory.
They have been expertly designed to be super soft, yet with hard-wearing hair that can be used time and time again with various textured products, such as creams, powders, mousses, and lotions.
Self-tanning brushes are washable and long-lasting. Due to their hardy yet soft hair, the self-tanning brushes are able to apply the self-tanning lotion further down into your epidermis, giving you a deeper, darker and longer-lasting tan.
They also provide the opportunity to properly buff and blend in the tanning lotion, using small, circular motions, which will ultimately leave you with the most natural-looking tan possible.
How To Use A Self-Tanning Brush
A self-tanning brush is beautifully easy to use. There are no hidden tricks to know to help you use your self-tanning brush; it is pretty straightforward.
Most of us have been practising the technique as well. Using makeup brushes to apply foundation and base is almost the same thing.
Here is how you should use a self-tanning brush to achieve a flawless sunless tan:
Preparation:
Just like with using any self-tanning tool, you need to prep your skin beforehand. Without doing so, you will have an uneven, patchy tan, no matter the tool you use.
Shave – Remove hair from the areas where you will be applying the self-tanning product. This allows the product to absorb into the skin more effectively, without the hairs interfering with the even blending of the product.
Exfoliate – Exfoliation is so incredibly important. You should exfoliate your skin the day before the self-tanning application, focusing on the drier areas, such as your knees and elbows.
Drier areas tend to absorb more of the lotion, which can lead to them being darker and patchier.
Once you have exfoliated your skin to create an even canvas, apply a light moisturiser to add extra moisture.
Choose your product – The right self-tanning product for you will ultimately depend on personal preference.
When using a self-tanning brush, lotions, creams, and mousses are the most effective for achieving optimal results.
Using your brush –Apply a small amount of self-tanner to the brush and, using circular motions, gently apply the self-tanner to your skin.
Start with your feet and work your way up your body. You will need to use a spray tanner or the help of a friend to reach your back.
Even it out – Once you have applied the self-tanner to the areas of your feet, ankles, wrists, knees, and elbows, pat them down with a damp cloth.
This will stop the drier areas from developing darker than the rest of your body.
You should also use the self-tanning brush to achieve an even blend around your hairline and eyebrows, and to apply a small amount of self-tanner to your ears and neck.
Let it set – Check the development time of the self-tanner which you have used. Let it sit for the recommended amount of time, avoiding water and any activities that could cause you to sweat.
Any water or sweat could interfere with the development and may result in a patchy tan.
Maintenance – Keep moisturising your skin regularly once your self-tanner has developed. Moisturising once a day, at a minimum, will keep your skin healthy by protecting it from the drying effects of ingredients used in self-tanning products.
The extra hydration will give your skin a wonderful glow.
The Best Self-Tanning Brushes
The three self-tanning brushes listed below are among the best on the market. Not only will they help you evenly blend in your self-tanner, but they can also be used for makeup.
The Best Self-Tanning Brushes are:
- Coola Sunless Tan Kabuki Body Brush
- Bare Minerals Deluxe Tan Brush
- Beauty By Earth Blending Brush
1. Coola Sunless Tan Kabuki Body Brush
This is the ultimate self-tanning brush, being soft, smooth, and super effective.
This vegan kabuki brush features super-soft bristles, topped with a handle made from sustainable bamboo.
Organic and sustainable, this is the perfect brush for those who are eco-conscious yet still want a flawless sunless tan.
The brush is easy to hold, thanks to its thick handle, while still allowing for smooth blending of the self-tanner evenly.
The product can be placed directly onto the brush and swept and buffed smoothly onto the skin for flawless results.
The larger size of the brush head enables a more even application, allowing your self-tanning product to last longer than before.
Not only will you achieve a natural-looking tan, but you will also save money by using less product during each application.
For the most luxurious, even and flawless-looking sunless tan, you cannot go wrong with the Coola Kabuki Self-Tanning Brush. It will be your new favourite tanning accessory in no time!
2. Bareminerals Deluxe Tan Brush
The Bare Minerals Deluxe Tan Brush was created to make the self-tanning process easier.
The larger surface area of the brush allows you to use it on all areas of your body, including larger ones.
Being flat, the hairs of the brush will evenly blend the self-tanner into your skin, creating a flawless finish.
The short handle is easy to hold and manoeuvre around for the best possible results.
The length of the brush is 3 ¼ inches, with bristles measuring 1 inch in length and a diameter of 2 inches.
Due to the larger diameter of the brush, you will use less product during the self-tanning application, as the brush spreads the product evenly over a larger area.
Tightly packed, soft bristles help you achieve the perfect tan time and time again, with no streaks or patches.
The Deluxe Tan Brush from Bare Minerals is exactly what you need to enhance your self-tanning experience!
3. Beauty By Earth Blending Brush
This blending brush is offered by one of my absolute favorite self-tanners. Beauty By Earth is a vegan and cruelty-free brand.
This tanning brush was specifically formulated for use with a range of self-tanning products, including self-tanning lotion, spray tan, self-tan mousse, and self-tanning drops.
I love how soft these bristles are. They don’t absorb the product, so you can get the most out of your self-tanner.
It’s perfect for use on your face and body, making it the only brush you really need. It even works with self-tanning sprays like this one from St. Tropez.
What Products Self-Tanning Brushes Work For
Self-tanning brushes are specifically designed for use with certain types of self-tanning products.
To achieve the best results possible, use one of the following self-tanning products with a self-tanning brush.
Mousse – Self-tanning mousses help to give you the most gorgeous, deep, dark and rich tone. Using a self-tanning brush for a mousse is ideal.
Mousse tends to be thicker in consistency than a cream or lotion, but it can also be light and airy.
A self-tanning brush will help evenly apply the mousse to the skin, blending it in smoothly and ensuring it is applied to the correct thickness. It also helps the mousse reach deeper down into the skin for a darker tan.
Lotion – A lotion is a popular choice when using a self-tanning brush. The brush will evenly blend the lotion into the skin, smoothing it out to give the skin a consistent glow.
Due to the lotion’s lightness, using a self-tanning brush will help it sink deeper into the skin for a longer-lasting tan.
Using a self-tanning lotion on your face is also the best option, and a brush will help you create an even sunless tan on your facial skin, blending the lotion properly into the small corners and crevices.
Mist – Self-tanning mists still need to be blended into the skin. If you simply spray the mist and leave it as is, you will be sorely disappointed with a very streaky tan.
Once you have sprayed the mist onto your skin, use the self-tanning brush to gently buff it into your skin evenly.
This helps coat the skin smoothly, blending the self-tanning mist evenly for optimal results.
Spray tan – If you are brave enough to spray tan at home, you will need the help of a self-tanning brush to smooth the spray tan over the more difficult areas that are often missed.
If you spray tan your face, you will need to blend the spray tan product into your nose, hairline, cheeks, and eyebrows smoothly for a more natural-looking tan.
Tanning foam – Self-tanning foams are delightful to use. They are very lightweight and spread smoothly over the skin.
Using a self-tanning brush allows you to spread the product more evenly, reducing the amount of self-tanning foam needed during application.
Due to the almost liquid consistency of the tanning foam, it works wonderfully with the tanning brush and does not dry out before you can apply it evenly to your skin.
Self-tanning foams are also great for hydrating your skin and providing it with extra nourishment to prevent dryness.
When To Use A Brush and Not A Mitt
Many of us are used to using a self-tanning mitt. They give our hands the protection we so desperately need (who wants bright orange palms?) and help to rub the self-tanning lotion into the skin evenly.
The catch is that you need to apply self-tanning lotion to the ankles, hands, wrists, and the tops of your feet.
Self-tanning mitts tend to be too bulky and do not help to blend the self-tanning lotion evenly into the smaller crevices and spaces.
While a self-tanning mitt is great for larger areas, such as your back and stomach, it lacks effectiveness for more delicate areas of the body.
Self-tanning brushes are perfect to use all over the body. They might take a little longer to blend in larger areas, but it will pay off by giving you an even, deeper tone that can often be very hard to achieve.
You can use the same brush all over your body, including smaller areas, without needing to switch between different tools for different parts.
Self-tanning brushes are also great to use on the face, just as a makeup or foundation brush would be used. Achieving an even tone on your face is crucial for a natural-looking tan, and a self-tanning brush is the most effective way to do so.
However, if you prefer using a self-tanning mitt for your arms, back, stomach and legs, you can switch to a self-tanning brush for the smaller, harder-to-blend areas.
This will enhance the appearance of your tan while maintaining a short application time.
Related Questions
Should you moisturise before self-tanning?
It is a great idea to moisturise before self-tanning, but not right before application. If you are self-tanning in the afternoon, remember to moisturise in the morning.
Apply a light coating of moisturising cream all over your body, focusing on the drier areas of skin.
Can you leave self-tanner on for longer than the recommended time?
Self-tanners take a couple of hours to develop into a darker tone than your natural skin colour. Each product will have a different development time, so please check this information before applying.
Washing the self-tanner off before the required development time will either leave you with a very light tan or with streaks and patches.
Leaving the self-tanner on for longer than the recommended time will result in a darker tan; however, you also run the risk of certain areas tanning darker than others.
Self-Tanning Brushes
You will thank the self-tanning gods the day you choose to use a self-tanning brush for the first time.
They offer the most flawless-looking tan, allowing you to properly buff and blend the self-tanning product into your skin.
Self-tanning brushes are the solution for achieving a proper and even tan on hard-to-reach areas, such as hands, feet, wrists, and ankles.
You will be left with an even, smooth, and natural-looking tan, without any of the stress associated with self-tanning at home.
Try one of the three self-tanning brushes listed above and give yourself that summer glow that you deserve, all from the comfort of your own home!
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