A year ago I would have laughed at myself for thinking i'd ever be in the position to give self tanning tips and tricks BUT HERE I AM. In recent months I have become a big fake tanner. Being completely honest: I do it every week now. I just love the way it looks and because I do it so often it's become quite a fuss-free process. These days I feel so much more confident wearing shorts and shorter skits because my legs actually look okay rather than looking like milk bottles.

WILL ADD: This post is not sponsored at all. Yes, I use pretty much alll Le Tan but that's because i've tried a few things out and I find their products have been most consistent and work best. :)

If I have pre-existing fake tan on: The Bondi Sands self tan eraser is the easiest way to remove tan. I used to try and get rid of my existing tan but madly scrubbing myself but I found there would always be areas that just wouldn't fade. So I purchased this and it's fabulousss. I just put a few pumps onto each area and wait about 10 minutes before hopping into the shower to scrub it off with an exfoliating mitt. I always have to have a bottle of this around now as nothing removes my fake tan as good as this does.

If I don't have pre-existing fake tan on: Of course i'll skip the self tan eraser and just go for a good ole' exfoliating mitt. I moisturise after the shower only if I will be applying fake tan later that day/the next day. I once moisturised right before applying fake tan and it just didn't apply well, so i'd avoid that.

I use the Self Tanning Foam (coconut water) by Le Tan. What I really like about this product is that it's green based so my tan never ever goes orange. I like this product as I find it lasts about a week and fades nicely. You leave it for 1 hour for a light tan, 2 hours for a medium tan, and 3+ hours for a deep tan. Also it doesn't smell like fake tan!

I apply this is the evening before bed using the Le Tan application mitt. It doesn't matter what brand it is but make sure you have a tanning mitt, they're essential. They keep your tan from applying patchy and you don't get fake tan all over your hands. I put about 2 pumps onto each section on my body, sometimes I put a little extra on my legs.

I then let the tan dry for a few minutes before hopping into bed and sleeping in my tan overnight. This used to freak me out as I thought "oh my goodness 8 hours of having a tan on!! It'll go so dark!" but it actually doesn't go that dark. It seems a tan only will get to a certain point where it can't develop any further. I wake up, rinse off my tan, and then get on with the day. And voila - i'm not a ghost anymore.

Tips + Tricks:

• If new to self tanning I recommend starting out slow and working your way up to leaving the tan on for longer. Perhaps starting out with only leaving it on for an hour is a good way to asses how much darker you want to go
• To not stain your sheets this is something genius I came up with: sleep in a duvet cover! I sound absolutely crazy but a duvet cover is great to sleep in as you're not touching any of your actual sheets so you won't stain them brown. It makes life so much easier trust me. 
• Gently go over any bony premises (like elbow, knees, hands, feet) as fake tan loves to make them look a lot darker than anywhere else. Usually with the mitt i'll buff out an area and then what little bit is left over on the mitt i'll go over those areas. 
• Don't do your face with it. It's too risky and it's harder to cover up if anything goes wrong. Instead if you want your face to be darker invest in some self tanning drops specifically for your face. I've used a le tan one and it was great.