Explaining tanning products

 Heyaa Bunnies!
I figured it might be helpful to show you differences of the tanning products a little further and for what they are since sometimes it's struggling to find a good product. language barriers do not help there.

I myself often had to google what certain terms mean to figure out what kinda product I am buying now.

Generally speaking: Be careful to read instructions!!!

If all terms fail, you can often find out what type of product ur using by the instructions.

Here are the terms that I use due to that problem.

Selftanner

Selftanners are either cremes or mousse to apply to skin and tan them darker over a couple hours. They usually rinse off after a couple showers. It is an alternative to tanning salon or laying in the sun to tan. However it's almost impossible to get really dark by only using selftanners. I like to speak of "toners" when talking about selftanners. I feel like they can give ur tan a certain colour, either it's orangey or choco. They need to be thin to be applied evenly, otherwise ur result will be spotty. It's obligatory that you use a tan mitten or plastic gloves -> ur hands will be orange, the colour is sucking into ur nail and skin and is way harder to get off. Generally the more layers you apply, the darker the result...but also the higher the chance of spots. Tricky spots are for example: hairline, armpits, back, neck, feet or bikini zone. Apply in circular motions, I like to use thin layers and go body part by body part to apply evenly.

They say you should not use selftanners in tanning machines. Idk what's up to that, since tons of tanning lotions for the hisalo contain selftanners. Still though, I'd not use it on the beach or at the pool.

Water is rinsing off the selftanner, just like sweat...your result will get spotty AF.

They are also called "Bronzer" sometimes. At the instructions they will often say stuff like "rinse off hands immediately. Tan is done after x.y hours". The best way to apply is over night.

Sunscreen

This one should be self-explanatory. It is protection for UV-lights. They are in sun and tanning studio. The risk of a sunburn and getting skincancer is smaller by using this. Which SPF you are supposed to use depends on your skintype, your location and how hot the day is. If you are pale, naturally blonde or redhead, you might have sensitive skin and get a sunburn quickly...I'd recommend without a tan, go high!! SPF 30/40/50 is a must. If you are a darker type of person you might go well with 20/30. The higher your location is, the bigger the risk of a sunburn. That's the reason why people skiing during cold winter get a sunburn in their face!!! Just because it's not hot, doesn't mean there are no UV-lights. That's also the reason why most korean skincare brands contain UV/SPF-protection for daily cremes whatsoever. Generally of course, the hotter the day, the faster you get a sunburn. 

Be cautious!: who is getting red, is also getting white again. and it hurts a lot. To preserve a dark tan, avoid a sunburn at all cost. You might get tanned after a sunburn but you WILL shed sometime. I am one of the darker type of people and only use SPF 10 for tanning but watch out to not be longer than 2 hours in the bare sun.

Lotion

I mean yea, that should be a short point.. BUT there is something to talk about here. Regarding tanning products there are some differences. Some lotions are to use BEFORE going tanning, wether in the machine or at the beach. They build up your "melanin production" or however to explain that, I am no scientist lol. I doubt it can be used with selftanners. They are rare but they exist. Then there are lotions for AFTER tanning. Some are for preserving a tan, others are for protection and aftercare. If you went to the sun I always recommend using "After Sun"-lotions. They are very often with Aloe Vera. If you got a slight sunburn, it is cooling off quickly. I prevent getting a sunburn with it, to go into the sun every single day and using my time at the beach (since we don't have one at home). There are also bodylotions for tanning in general, they often contain selftanners. Currently I am using choco latta-love and black emerald by emerald bay. Using lotion is important to preserve a tan. you won't shed and your tan is staying longer. Read the instructions to know what product u r buying.

K..here is my own terminology starting lol:

Sunspeed

Ye, you won't ever find that term on products lol. I put products in this category that you use in the SUN to speed up your tanning process. They usually are oils. Wether coconut or whatever. I heard that carot oil is best for tanning, but I personally haven't tried this yet. You should not use them in the tanning studio for following reasons (I unfortunately had to make my experiences with this so pls listen): Some can damage the machines and the bill will be expensive! I was lucky that I just stained the machine. They had to clean it over half an hour to get rid of it and immediately forbid the use of it. Some of them are made as sprays and lemme just tell you it was all over the floor..I DID NOT NOTICE! but one of the staff slipped and fell and had horrible back pain for weeks. I felt so bad about that, it was extremely uncomfortable. My incident was the reason they thought about generally forbidding the use of any products they don't sell. They did not do this but still though...do not use them in the tanning salon. The staff told me to not use any of these products in the sunbed, since they are blocking your pores and make tanning slower in the machine apparently. I just say, after switching products my tanning process was faster and darker.

Hisalo

And last but not least. The same type of products, but for the tanning machine. Most of them contain selftanner or anti-aging. I used a product that had specially kollagen for the kollagenlamps in the machine I was using at that time. There are plenty of these type of products and I WANT THEM ALL haha. I am not aware if any of these also work in the sun though.

Please watch out for the instructions and read reviews before buying a product. Also check FAQ of the seller if they are stating wether a product is for the tanning studio or for the sun.