Summer must-have!!!

You know how everyone looks way better with a nice tan, be it summer or winter? True, during winter, too much tan looks stupid, but just a tad of colour makes everyone look better. Also, sunbathing is very bad for your skin and right now you can’t have a decent online search without a skin cancer advertisement popping up when you least expect it. Some people are just born lucky with a nice natural colour, but I’m sad to say that I am definitely not among those (D is one of those annoying people), so every time the temps start to rise I am on a constant search for a perfect alternative to the traditional sunbathing.

This is how I came across the Vita Liberata luxury fake tan range. I have to admit that all my previous experiences with fake tan have been on the horrific side rather than on the nice and healthy side, meaning there were a lot of streaks and spots when I least needed them. So far, the classic colouring creams have done the job, but summer is here and it’s not like I am a superhuman and don’t sweat, so those coloured cream/foam/gels will not do the trick anymore. This means that I will have to venture in the fake tan experiments yet again. You’ll probably say that there’s always the airbrush tan alternative that is both foul-proof, safe and comfortable. You might be right, but at the rate my skin is naturally exfoliating, I’ll just be left with doing that once per week and that will mean less shoes per year overall. Basically, the at-home fake tan is supposed to be my saviour.

This is the first time I’ve tried the Vita Liberata range, and based on the fact that there are very few online reviews, it was kind of like playing at the lottery at this point. I went to Sephora to buy the pHenomenal tanning mouse in medium, mainly because it is very hard to believe that an at-home fake tan could last up to three weeks and I needed to try it out. To be honest, the longevity of my tan is my last concern as I was more concerned about colour, wear, streaks and basically sweating the colour on my clothes.

I bought the entire pHenomenal kit that includes the mouse tube, a mini exfoliator and a tanning mitt. Right when I was about to leave, I realised that I needed something for my face as well because no matter how skilled one might be in the art of make-up, you can never fake a tanned face if the base is milky white, so I left Sephora with the Anti-Ageing Tanning Serum as well. I started by scrubbing like there was no tomorrow and all the while I was thinking that I do not want any dry patches to turn into tanning streaks. I even used the scrubbing cream on my face and I was really happy at how well it both hydrated and cleaned it. I continued by putting two-three pumps on the mitt for every body part and distributed it evenly with a circling motion. Because the foam is coloured it’s really easy to see where you applied and where you need to apply some more, making the whole experience very pleasant. For the back I need D, so we can say that he put in the work for my great tan.

I waited for about 15  minutes, but to be honest, the mouse dried in about 5mins, but you can never take any risks. For my face I poured a pump into my hand and distributed it evenly on my face, neck and ears (do not forget about the ears!). After all that, I just put on a black t-shirt and went to bed praying that everything will be ok in the morning. I did wake up with a classic self-tan smell on my skin, that I did not notice the night before, and hopped into the shower. Because the mouse is coloured, you will see a lot of colour running out, but you will be left with a subtle medium bronze colour that is absolutely gorgeous! No orange undertones and very, very even. The same nice surprise I had for the face that had a lovely 5 days at the beach colour.

I did feel the need to reapply the mouse one more time, but I did that two days later as you need to do this in the evening and we went out. The colour did intensify a lot, but is looked just as good. Let’s just say that it looked like I was away for a week on the beach, which is what everyone wants, right? Now, about the lasting powers of this mouse, I’m not sure about the two-three week claim, but I can say that 9 days after the first application and the colour still looks great, not as intense, but you can still see it, so I do not think it will last two weeks and I’ll need to reapply it, but so far there are no streaks or spots in sight. I have to say, that this will be my go-to tanning system this summer and overall I am very happy with it. The sad part is that I can not find the exfoliator anywhere in stores in Romania, so I will have to search for an alternative. So far, it hasn’t rubbed off on my clothes and at this point I don’t think it will either. So there you have it, my absolute summer essential!

L.