Review: L'oreal Sublime Bronze Self Tanning Lotion

This is a review on the L'oreal Bronze Self-Tanning Lotion. I had previously done a review on the Sublime Bronze Self-Tanning Mist, which is the mist version of this product. I think they are essentially the same, depending on whether you prefer a lotion or a mist is the only difference. If you remember my former review, I loved the colour that the Sublime Bronze Mist gave my skin, but hated the application. The spray leaks all over when sprayed, does not dry fast at all and I go through a ton of it quickly. So I opted to try out the lotion version to see if it would work better for me.

I have both products in the shade "Medium" this is the only shade that I have found in drugstores here. I found the lotion to be quite difficult to find at first, but once I did I noticed shelves were stocking it pretty well after that. It retails for $17 CAD, which I find pretty expensive for what you get. The bottle is 150ml, so very small, the pictures here make it look bigger than it is. It's the size of my hand I would say (and I have quite small hands). But since it's a lotion, I definitely do not go through it as quickly as I do the mist.

The lotion is white, which makes it difficult to use. I would prefer to see the actual colour that the product will turn to once it's on my skin. The lotion is quite thick, not runny at all, which is nice. This version, versus the mist, is much better if you have dry skin as it will absorb better.

The bottle reads that this gives "steak-free continuous hydration". "An even, natural looking tan without steaks, skin is extremely soft and smooth, leaves skin hydrated for 8 hours. Apply to clean skin, smooth on evenly, avoid eyebrows and hairline. Use sparingly around ankles, knees and elbows. Wash hands thoroughly after use. Let skin dry before putting on clothes (approx 5 minutes). Use daily until you have achieved the desired level of tan, and then apply 1-2 times a week".

When I used the mist, I stained my hands badly, I mean I had orange palms the entire time I went on my camping trip. It was embarrassing and I tried not to attract attention to it as much as possible. Since the colour develops on your skin, if you do get it on your hands or other areas that you don't want it (clothes etc) you won't see the mess that you've made until it's too late. Since a lotion needs to be rubbed in more than a mist does, I needed to be smarter this time around. So I was on a mission to find latex gloves to use instead with the lotion, all I could find were boxes of like 50 gloves, and that was more than I needed. I came up with an idea! You know the gloves that you get with boxed hair dye? Those were perfectly fine, since I use two boxed of hair dye usually, I have left over gloves. I use one glove only to apply the lotion or mist and voila free gloves! If yo notice my thumb did turn orange though, not careful enough!

Here is the lotion compared to the mist (each have 150ml, both are around the same cost). I feel like with the mist you get a more concentrated colour, but you end up using a lot of it without noticing and go through the bottle quickly. I prefer the lotion on my skin type but what I like best is using them together. I will put on the lotion, which hydrates my skin, then put the spray overtop and I feel like it locks in better with the lotion as a base. The color is nice, not too orange and you do have to build it up if you want a noticeable tan. What I don't like is how it starts fading in patches on my skin and you have to be very careful around joints like your elbows, ankles, neck etc.

Would I recommend this product? It's an okay product, I prefer the lotion over the mist since I get more use out of it. These products do take work though (keep in mind I am very fair normally) and are definitely not perfect. It's a good option for a drugstore self-tanning product.