Garnier Summer Face Daily Facial Moisturiser

I bought the Garnier Summerface moisturiser after trying out their Summerskin body lotion, both of which are in the group of moisturisers with self tanner, designed to add a slower, more subtle fake tan than regular self tanners. I figured I should really put something on my face that was designed for it, as opposed to slapping on the body tanner which is what I (gasp horror!) normally do.

I remember when self tanners first came out, ...
...mentioned I had tried the Garnier Summer Body lotion, and indeed preferred it to the other main brands. It has a nice peachy smell and doesn’t smell nearly as much of old socks as some of them do! Also it didn’t streak on me at all. But we’re not reviewing that, I digress.

So impressed was I with that product, and also having tried other Garnier products and liked them, I figured I’d give the Summerface a go. Like the body lotion, ... more

I bought the Garnier Summerface moisturiser after trying out their Summerskin body lotion, both of which are in the group of moisturisers with self tanner, designed to add a slower, more subtle fake tan than regular self tanners. I figured I should really put something on my face that was designed for it, as opposed to slapping on the body tanner which is what I (gasp horror!) normally do.

I remember when self tanners first came out, and the subsequent introduction of separate self tanners for the face. I remember thinking it was a wee bit of a scam, I mean I do try to take care of my skin with regular moisturisers and whatnot, but what difference would it really make in the grand scheme of things? I know every makeup counter assistant under the sun will give me hundreds of reasons why I need a special one for my face, but after my experience with this stuff I’m even more dubious.

As mentioned I had tried the Garnier Summer Body lotion, and indeed preferred it to the other main brands. It has a nice peachy smell and doesn’t smell nearly as much of old socks as some of them do! Also it didn’t streak on me at all. But we’re not reviewing that, I digress.

So impressed was I with that product, and also having tried other Garnier products and liked them, I figured I’d give the Summerface a go. Like the body lotion, I was initially impressed with the subtle golden sheen my pasty skin had taken on. I was off on holiday to Florida and did not want to stand out too much like a shiny white beacon amongst the tanned locals. I do like the shade it gives, much less orange than some others. It takes several hours to develop so do not expect an instant glow.

After I’d used it for a day or two, however, I noticed a quite horrendous eruption of spots had formed on my shiny golden forehead. Now, I’m not immune to an occasional spot, but I rarely if ever break out like this. They were concentrated to my forehead though so I wasn’t entirely sure if I was just getting extra sweaty in Florida (as you do) and that was causing the spots. I stopped using it immediately and resumed using the body stuff on my face (which I had been doing prior with NO reaction), and my skin took about a week to clear up.

I returned home to unsunny Scotland and abandoned the search for the perfect tan for awhile. Skinflint that I am, I didn’t throw out the Summerface; I figured I would give it a second chance to make sure it wasn’t just a fluke reaction. So when the sun began to appear in shockingly unseasonable weather, out came the tan creams. I applied the Summerface with some trepidation and waited. And for a day or so it seemed fine – but then sure enough, a couple of days after the initial application (having used it twice in two days), my forehead began to erupt like Vesuvius. Ah well, it did give me a flashback of teenage kicks, but other than that I wasn’t too impressed with being 30+ and covered in spots. There were rather a large number of angry, tiny spots clustered closely together on my forehead, which did have the appearance of some sort of reaction. It was identical to the prior one, which does make me think it’s a definite response to this cream and nothing else.

I don’t know why this would make me break out when the body stuff does not, or indeed any other Garnier moisturiser I have tried, but there you have it. I wouldn’t say my skin is particularly sensitive, mildly sensitive perhaps but generally I experiment with various different moisturisers without having any reaction. My skin is normal/combination and prone to the occasional spot however, so maybe this stuff would work better with a different skin type. I personally would not recommend it, though. It is described as a 12 hour moisturiser as well as a gradual self-tanner, although I wouldn’t say my skin felt adequately moisturised with this alone. Remember that this and many other self tanners do not contain sunscreen, just so you don’t end up looking like a blood orange!

Garnier places an emphasis on natural ingredients and generally I do like their line of skincare. Just be careful with this stuff, it certainly didn’t agree with my skin.

This retails at around £5.99 but is often on sale at Superdrug.

Apologies I don’t have an ingredients list as can’t find one online and chucked mine in the bin! 

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