How to extend your natural tan?

Author: Dr. Ilene West  |  Last update: Monday, December 22, 2025

Here's how to maintain and extend your tan, ensuring you look bronzed and beautiful long after the summer sun has set.
  1. Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate. ...
  2. Moisturise Regularly. ...
  3. Use a Tan Extender. ...
  4. Avoid Hot Showers and Baths. ...
  5. Exfoliate Gently. ...
  6. Continue to Tan Safely. ...
  7. Consider a Self-Tanner. ...
  8. Eat for Your Tan.

How to prolong natural tan?

The best natural way to keep your holiday tan for longer is to hydrate your skin well. Avoid drying ingredients such as ethanol alcohol and invest in a moisturising after sun that cools and rehydrates your skin after sun exposure.

How can I extend my self tan?

How to make fake tan last longer
  1. Exfoliate and moisturise before applying fake tan. How well you prep the skin before applying your fake tan can make or break your glow. ...
  2. Avoid bathing in hot water. ...
  3. Moisturise daily. ...
  4. Exfoliate every 3 days. ...
  5. Always remove tan before reapplying.

How do I naturally get more tan?

To achieve a natural tan safely, gradually increase sun exposure while using sunscreen to protect your skin. Alternatively, consider using self-tanning products or bronzers. Results vary by individual, but patience and careful sun exposure can help you achieve a tan. For more details, refer to my Quora Profile!

How do you get a tan that stays?

1. Use tanning lotions. Tanning lotions work to give your skin a darker look, lasting longer than other topically applied tanning methods. These lotions are easy to apply and can be a great way to keep your tan lasting during the winter months. If you notice your tan fading, try reapplying the lotion.

How To Tan Without Getting Burnt [LIGHT HACK]

How long can a natural tan last?

A natural tan will usually last for around 7-10 days, although this can vary for each different skin type and colour. However, any exposure to sun during that 7-10 day period could mean that your tan will hang around for longer, so the length of time it lasts really does depend on the individual.

How do you get a constant tan?

Hydrated skin will not only tan better but will also keep its colour for longer. Moisturise your skin twice daily to prepare your skin for the sunshine and get that long-lasting tan.

How can I darken my natural tan?

6 Top Tanning Tips for a Darker and Long-lasting Tan
  1. Exfoliate your Skin prior to Tanning. ...
  2. Keep your Skin Hydrated and Moisturised. ...
  3. Apply a sunbed cream or tanning accelerator prior tanning.
  4. Remove any kind of makeup and other cosmetic products. ...
  5. Choose foods that accelerate tanning.

Can you increase your ability to tan?

Boost Your Beta-Carotene Intake

Foods rich in beta-carotene, like carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, and kale, can give your skin a natural glow while enhancing its ability to tan.

How do you keep a tan all year round?

With that in mind, here is our advice on how to keep your tan from fading in 6 steps.
  1. Moisturize.
  2. Exfoliate.
  3. Avoid hot showers and baths.
  4. Apply a face tanning serum.
  5. Use a St.Tropez gradual tan.
  6. Wear white to emphasize tanned skin.

What helps self tan develop faster?

Use a hairdryer. Once you have the perfect coverage, grab your hairdryer to help it set. Be sure it's blowing cool air and move it along your body. Not only will this help the solution dry faster, but it'll also help to kick the tanning development process into overdrive.

Can you develop a permanent tan?

Most people believe that once you start using tanning beds, you will develop a permanent tan. However, this is not true.

What foods make you more tanned?

Papaya: Like carrots, orange fruits and vegetables, such as papaya, help to enhance your tan naturally thanks to its high beta-carotene levels. Melon: This refreshing fruit, rich in antioxidants and beta-carotenes will help you to keep your golden skin tone.

Does a natural tan get darker overnight?

Once skin is exposed to UV radiation, it increases the production of melanin in an attempt to protect the skin from further damage. Melanin is the same pigment that colors your hair, eyes, and skin. The increase in melanin may cause your skin tone to darken over the next 48 hours.

Why do legs not tan?

Compared to the rest of the body, skin on the legs does not produce the same amount of melanin, which results in legs getting less tan. Skin on the legs is thicker and harder and the UV light from the sun or sunbeds cannot easily penetrate it.

What is the best tan accelerator?

  • Calypso Monoi Tahiti Bronzing Tanning Oil SPF15. ...
  • Pro Tan Beaches and Creme All-In Intensifying Serum (250ml) ...
  • ultrasun SPF30 Tan Activator Body 150ml , Pack of 1. ...
  • Power Tan Non-Stop Black Tingle Gelee (DHA Free) Hybrid UV Sunbed Tanning Accelerator Lotion 250ml.

Why is it so hard for me to tan?

Therefore, what will determine whether a person can tan or simply turn red is both the amount of melanin produced by their skin cells and its quality. Or, the ratio between “good and bad” melanin.

How can I appear more tan?

Dust on sunshine. Maria says your beauty utensils will be your best friend when it comes to looking more tanned. "Use a large brush dipped in bronzer and dust it across all the high points of the face, the cheekbones and temples, where the sun naturally hits the face," she suggests.

What triggers your body to make more melanin?

The primary stimulus for melanogenesis and subsequent melanosome production is UV radiation, which upregulates melanocyte production of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) and its downstream products, alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH).

What drug makes your skin darker?

The incidence of this change varies, and depends on the type of medication involved. Some of the most common drugs involved are NSAIDs, antimalarials, psychotropic drugs, Amiodarone, cytotoxic drugs, tetracyclines, and heavy metals such as silver and gold (which must be ingested, not just worn).

How to prolong your tan?

Moisturise

'Always keep you skin extra moisturised before, during and after tanning' says Pierotti, 'because the sun dries out your skin. ' After-sun lotions are great at giving sun-parched skin a dose of healthy hydration so keep applying it daily once you're home.

What pills make you tan?

Tanning pills claim to tint the skin by using color additives, such as canthaxanthin. Once swallowed, the additives in the pills travel through the body and typically turn the skin an orange-like color. It's important to know there are no pills approved for the purpose of tanning by the FDA.

How to deepen your tan?

The best way to develop the darkest of tans is to use a tan accelerator. Earth Tan's Carrot or Acacia accelerators give the best results for developing a deeper and darker tan, making tanning easier, less timely, and creating better and longer-lasting results.

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