tarte Brazilliance Maracuja Self-Tanner

First Impression/Review

I recently bought the Tarte Brazilliance Rejuvenating Maracuja Face and Body Self-Tanner. Phew, say that 10 times fast. QVC was having a one day deal where you would get the self-tanner (11 oz - double the size as the original), mitt and self-tanning face towelette's (5) for $49.98. With shipping and handling added, the total came out to $60.95.

Originally the tanner is $39.99 for 5.5 oz (half the size of the QVC deal) and mitt. The towelette's you'd have to buy separately at $21.00 for 10.

I'm all about trying new products so I jumped at the deal. I took a shower and exfoliated the night before with Lush's Sea Salt Scrub, shaved and then used the self-tanner right before bed.

TIP: Do not apply self-tanner right after you shave because the tanner will seep into your pores and you'll have these dark dots all over your legs and that is not cute. You should wait about a couple hours before applying.

Now on to the application.
The first thing I noticed was the smell. It wasn't a gross fake tan smell, you know exactly what I'm talking about. The smell was pleasant and tolerable. The tanner comes out as a dark brown color and it does have a slight tanning guard so you can tell where you're applying it.

I did feel as though most of the tanner was being absorbed into the mitt. I did two coats of tanner to my body. I did not use the face towelette's because you have to wash your hands right after using it and I didn't want to wash off the tanner I had put on my hands. The tanner takes about 8 hours to develop so I put it on before I went to bed and off to sleep I went. 

I have white sheets so when I woke up this morning I expected some of the tanner to have gotten on my bedding but surprisingly there was none! My skin was quite brown from the color guard but I hopped in the shower and rinsed off. I was a little disappointed that after rinsing off, much of the color was gone. I put my moisturizer (I prefer a body butter) on and have gone about my morning. 

TIP: To help the longevity of your tan, always moisturize. Use a wash cloth in the shower instead of a loofa and try not to shave because you're tan will come off on the razor.

So what do I think of this product?

PROS: The application was easy, the smell was great, it didn't stain my fingernails and it didn't come off on my sheets.
CONS: The color isn't as dark as I had hoped, even after two coats, and most of the product seemed to have absorbed into the mitt when applying.

FINAL THOUGHTS: This is a good product if you're new to self-tanning or if you just want a really subtle looking tan. For the price and what I received, it was a good buy for me. If you're looking for that deep, dark tan like you just spent a week on an island this is not the product for you.

I hope this helped some of you. Remember, stay out of the sun! Skin cancer and wrinkles are not cute. Self-tanning for the win!

-Amanda :)