Get Yourself Summer Ready: Exfoliate and Tan That Ish

I mean, right? Now that the weather is getting warmer, summer ready skin is a must in my book. I just can't be walking around all pasty or with an uneven fake tan or even worse, with a real tan (No wrinkles, tysm.) True story: nothing makes me 😬 more than when I see the tell tale sign of a self tanner: orange palms, elbows, knees, and ankles. It's good thing we're bff's so I can tell you the good stuff. Just follow these steps and you will get the nicest tan of your life without giving yourself wrinkles and skin cancer.

Regardless if you spray tan or self tan at home, exfoliating IS A MUST. Any and all self tanning formulas cling on to dry patches and I just find it to look really...cheap, for lack of a better word. Save yourself from that and get this exact exfoliating mitt:

I KNOW, I know. At 48 bucks, it's not exactly cheap but OHMYGOD you guys, it's the most effective exfoliator for my body I've ever used because you can actually see ROLLS OF DEAD SKIN come off your body.

(PS, I've tried to find cheaper alternatives and nothing I found is as effective.)

There's a technique to it and it explains it on the back of the packaging and you can find some youtube videos on it but essentially, in addition to the grain of the mitt, it uses the rolls of your dead skin to exfoliate. So gross but just trust me. It took me a couple tries to figure out how to maximize the mitt and get the dead skin off but once I did, DANG. I am always wowed (and grossed out) by the amount of dead skin that I can see coming off. And my skin feels like baby skin when I step out of the shower. It's not exactly relaxing given you're in the shower literally rubbing your skin off, but the end result is worth it. And I'd describe the experience as uncomfortable, rather than painful. But man, IS IT WORTH IT.

You can also use the mitt for your face but I don't really like to. I prefer using a skincare product to exfoliate. Peep a post on my favorite one, HERE

Then for the tanning products I use, I use two. One for the face and one for the body. And why should you tan, do you ask? Ever heard that phrase, "If you can't tone it, tan it"? Well, it's true. Plus, a healthy bronzed face is called "healthy" for a reason. Ya just look more glowy!

I apply this face product is every other day or every three days and it's applied like you would a toner. I use a cotton round and swipe it over my face, neck and décolletage. It provides a very real bronze and even if I apply it kinda messy, I never see any streaks (but wash your hands after to avoid orange palms):

Another great face tanning product Clarins has is a Glow Booster. A few drops of this mixed into your moisturizer before you go to bed and you wake up with a super even, bronze-y glow. It's more subtle than the product above, but I still really like it. And again, wash your hands afterwards:

And then for the body (after you exfoliate, obviously) St. Tropez tanning foam has never done me wrong but specifically, the Express version is my favorite. No needing to wear it for 8 hours before it develops and it's never turned me orange. ("Oh I'd tell you, don't worry," Alex has said. And he would, too) This one takes 1-3 hours to develop. So much easier:

Also, do not skimp on what to buy to apply it with. NEVER apply it with your hands or else you get that dreaded orange palm look no matter how many times you wash your hands . This foam-type mitt is my far the best, least messy, streak-free way to apply:

Multiple self tanning product companies make them.

And for those times when you've been a bit lazy and not as careful around your feet, ankles, hands, etc...I'm just gonna say it. The Magic Clean Eraser. I'm not saying it's healthy or good for your skin but if there are small areas of your skin that are too orange:

It works, I'm just saying.

Obviously wash the area you've used it on with soap after and use this sparingly, only for mistakes and NOT ON YOUR FACE. I'm no doctor but it's pretty safe to say that using this regularly on your skin is a terrible idea, so use this *very* sparingly, k?

So tell me- what do you guys use to get your skin prepped for summer? What else should I be doing?