It's all too common that we find ourselves debating between our winter and summer foundation colours, but what if we could maintain our summer colour all year long? We're all for perking up our complexions with a warmer shade, often to match our fake-tanned and glowing bodies, but when our foundation looks multiple shades darker than our natural skin colour, we're raising eyebrows.
The make-up blunder brings us back to the image of Demi Jones we saw in 2020's winter Love Island. Demi seemed to take things to a whole other level with a foundation seemingly ten shades darker than her natural skin colour. Don't get us wrong, this girl is gorgeous, but there are better ways to go about shade matching. Even Finn knows that.
The Beauty Dilemma
The dilemma is clear. Thanks to either the sunshine or a bottle of fake tan, your body is much darker than your face. Good news for your face, which is clearly being protected from harmful UV rays and keeping out of the sun. Bad news for your beauty routine, which has clearly become slightly confused.
The Solution
When it comes to adding a bit of a faux sun-kissed glow to our complexion, we're far better off adding a few drops of some skin-friendly fake tan to an SPF infused moisturiser, than relying on a dark foundation. Grazia Beauty Editor Annie Vischer's mainstay is Tan Luxe's The Face Illuminating Self Tanning Drops, £35. The formula is infused with aloe vera, raspberry seed oil and vitamin E to hydrate and nourish skin as it tans.
Tan Luxe Face
1 of 1Tan Luxe's The Face Illuminating Self Tanning Drops, £35
Using a dark foundation might look passable for the first hour, but as soon as your make-up starts to slip or fade, the much lighter skin underneath gets revealed, and you risk a level of patchiness that can't be concealed. Boosting your complexion's colour prior to your make-up is the best route to go down, and you can then opt for a foundation a couple of shades darker than your natural skin tone to complement it. That's when you lock down your most natural look, and bonus, there's no need to slather on your foundation like face paint to cover every nook and cranny. Instead, you can opt for something with less coverage that works with your complexion rather than masking it.
Keen for some new top fake tan buys to boost your all over glow? Shop Beauty Editor Annie's ultimate favourites below.
Shop: Ultimate Fake Tan Fail-Safes
Shop: Old Fake Tan Faithfuls
1 of 5Velvotan Self Tan Applicator, £2.99
For super smooth application, look no further than this little wonder. it's sturdy enough to prevent watery formulas from leaking through and onto your palm too.
2 of 5Vita Liberata Body Blur Instant HD Skin Finish, £16.23
The perfect finishing touch. If I have fake tanned the night before a party or event, I buff this onto any bare bits whilst I get ready. It (as the name suggests) blurs out any imperfections, and doses you up on an filter-worthy sheen too.
3 of 5St. Tropez Self Tan Purity Water Gel, £33
Here it is! My current favourite. Do be careful when you apply, the colour pay off is great but it does mean that if you make mistakes, they'll shine out like a beacon.
4 of 5Tan-Luxe The Face Illuminating Tan Drops, £36
These are the only form of fake tan I now pop on my face. I mix them in with my moisturiser every other morning. I'll even do this in summer. I'm religious with my face SPF so it often ends up a few shades behind my body on holiday. This gives it a boost. It's packed with nourishing ingredients too, you can't knock the skincare benefits.
5 of 5Bondi Sands Liquid Gold Self Tanning Dry Oil, £11.99
If you feel safer with a guide colour, this dry tanning oil is my top pick. I can't abide a sticky residue when it comes to tanning, and with this, there's simply no sign of any.
READ MORE: 8 Unexpectedly Brilliant Things Love Island Has Taught Us About Beauty