... I was taken by Boots' 'No animal testing' stance and I've found their own brand beauty products to be of good quality and generally reasonably priced compared to leading brands.
So, when I spied this iridescent, golden-yellow tube amongst the moisturisers, labelled 'No 7 Naturally Sunkissed ... Read review
Advantages: Colour good, reasonably priced Disadvantages: Not the easiest to apply, leaves skin looking shiny, residue
~~~ Why use fake tan? ~~~
My natural skin tone is very fair and in wintertime I tend to look pale. It's not at all unknown for people to ask, in a concerned tone, whether I'm feeling alright on occasions when I venture out without make up. In the summer, I have to tan carefully and at best achieve a light, golden tan and, hopefully, a bit of a healthy glow.
~~~ Why did I try this product? ~~~
I've used ... ...was taken by Boots' 'No animal testing' stance and I've found their own brand beauty products to be of good quality and generally reasonably priced compared to leading brands.
So, when I spied this iridescent, golden-yellow tube amongst the moisturisers, labelled 'No 7 Naturally Sunkissed Facial Gradual Tan … All Skin Types … Hypo-allergenic', I decided it was definitely worth a look.
My natural skin tone is very fair and in wintertime I tend to look pale. It's not at all unknown for people to ask, in a concerned tone, whether I'm feeling alright on occasions when I venture out without make up. In the summer, I have to tan carefully and at best achieve a light, golden tan and, hopefully, a bit of a healthy glow.
~~~ Why did I try this product? ~~~
I've used No 7 products for quite a few years now. I was taken by Boots' 'No animal testing' stance and I've found their own brand beauty products to be of good quality and generally reasonably priced compared to leading brands.
So, when I spied this iridescent, golden-yellow tube amongst the moisturisers, labelled 'No 7 Naturally Sunkissed Facial Gradual Tan … All Skin Types … Hypo-allergenic', I decided it was definitely worth a look.
The product comes in a sensible, stand-on-lid tube and contains 75ml. 'Spread a little sunshine and treat yourself to summery looking soft and supple skin even on the rainiest of days.' Sounds good! This is a gradual tanning product that builds day by day, you just use it every day instead of your usual moisturiser. There are warnings to avoid contact with eyes, hair and fabric. So I hand over my £9 and take my product home to test.
~~~ Does it do what it says it does? ~~~
First, the bad news:
On opening the tube, I notice a very light fragrance, reminiscent of the No 7 Evening Primrose Moisturiser I used to use before it disappeared from Boots' shelves. The product is a thickish, white cream which doesn't spread easily and, worst of all, left my skin appearing shiny so that, yes, I did look as though I'd just come from the beach, but not for the reasons I would wish! To be fair, the shine did fade after a while, but if, like me, you usually apply moisturiser shortly before leaving home - late again! - then you'll need to apply something else to mask the shininess unless you want have strangers shielding their eyes from the reflected light whilst you explain to them that, no, you haven't just come back from a 5-mile jog. Alternatively, you could apply the cream at night.
The next minus that I've found is that, after a few hours, there's a residue on your fingers if you rub your face at all; the instructions for use say that there's no need to exfoliate before use, but I'm not sure what the residue is, if not skin.
Another thing I dislike is that, although I do apply the cream very carefully around the eye area, I notice a smarting sensation for a short time after application. I don't have sensitive skin or any eye condition, so I imagine there might be a problem for some people who do.
Then the good news:
On the plus side, the colour produced is good and there's no patchiness or streaking. I'm happy with a light tan, so I now just use the product every other day to prevent me looking like one of Dracula's brides. The colour is light golden, not at all Satsuma or Bisto! My husband assures me it does look natural, and I certainly haven't been getting the concerned looks and comments from people who wonder if I'm anaemic! I haven't noticed any staining on clothes, towels or bed linen. I've been using Naturally Sunkissed for about a month and I guess there's about half the product left, so it's certainly not an expensive way to maintain a summer glow.
~~~ My conclusion ~~~
Would I recommend this product? On balance, probably not, because of the problems with application, the shiny skin problem and the residue. I'll carry on using this until I finish the tube, but I won't be buying any more. Marks: barely 3 out of 5, and I did consider a 2. It's a shame, because the colour is good and, at £9, it's reasonably priced and far cheaper than some of the big name brands. It'sthe first No 7 product I've tried that I didn't like. Back to the drawing board, Boots!
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