James Read Bronzing Mousse
When it comes to self tan, I have probably tried them all - the okay, the bad and the questionable. Being a pale redhead I have struggled for 20 years to get something - anything - resembling a tan.
Now I am not talking a golden bronzed tan. No, I am merely talking about a barely there tan that looks like my skin has actually seen the sun in the last 365 days. Nothing wrong with being pale, I have actually come to accept it and even embrace it. But a bit of colour is always welcome.
A couple of years ago I though I had solved my 'pale problem' with the St Tropez tanning mousse but looking back it still looked 'fake baked' and my skin was still too pale for it to actually properly absorb the mousse.
While wondering around BoxPark in Shoreditch last week I came across a little pop up store which was selling cosmetic brands from all over the world. Like any respectable British 'beauty shop' it had a good choice and variety of self tanning solutions. One of which was the James Read Bronzing Mousse. I was curious - and well let's be honest, the shopkeeper was a good sales person - and so I brought a bottle home.
The mousse comes out like whipped cream and is already tinted. After a couple of hours both the colour and mousse have settled in and will stay put until you take a shower. The colour is a light but bronzed tan which develops nicely over time. It will get darker with every application without ever going orange. It is more or less odourless, and doesn't overly smell of self tanner. As with every self tanner; exfoliate before, and prepare your skin with a good moisturiser or some dry oil (Argan oil for example - see last pic).
Basically I am sold on the product and will be trying out the James Read Studio in Harvey Nichols in the coming weeks. Not quite sure what to expect to be honest but thought it was worth a try.
And in all honesty all of this is better than lying in the sun for hours on end burning or lying under UV lights. I can stress enough your should always use UV protection and just stay out of sun beds.
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