What’s on my mind:

I can’t believe the weekend is over already! I had a successful spa weekend that consisted of hitting the gym, a manicure (getting new acrylic tips~~ see above!), getting an eyebrow wax, going shopping, and starting to get packed and ready for my vacation, which begins tomorrow night! Eeek!

I just went out and did a drugstore run to make sure I was fully stocked up with shampoo, conditioner, makeup, and of course, Sunscreen! (which you’ll see why this is so important below)

What’s on my body:

Aloe, lots of it. Why do you ask? Because I foolishly let myself get burnt to a crisp trying to get a nice base tan before my vacation. I know, so dumb, especially with all the articles about proper sun and skin care and how drastic a sunburn can affect your skin and possibility for cancers. And so, here is my list of favorite self-tanners, because those are all I’m going to be using for a while!

I have always been a huge fan of the gradual self-tanners, like Jergens Perfect Glow and L’Oreal Sublime Bronze. They recently re-vamped their formulas to smell better, go on easier, and last longer!

I just purchased and used the L’Oreal Sublime Bronze Lotion and Misting Spray (I usually get the gradual tanner lotion but I decided to go for the straight-up self tanner this time). Both the Self-Tanner Lotion and Aerosol Spray are effective, and give you a nice glow without looking like an Oopma Loompa. Just be careful to shave and exfoliate before hand, and to go easy around your elbows, knees, wrists and ankles or else they will be 2 shades darker than the rest of your body. For under $12 a pop, these are my favorites when I want to get glowing in a day! Depending on your activities, it could last up to a week! Personally, I apply the self-tanner about 2x per week, as I do go to the gym a few times per week. If you’re the type of person who goes into the ocean/goes to the beach 5 days a week, you may need to re-apply more often because of the salt water and sand rubbing it off. I’m going to use the Spray version to refresh/touch up my tan tomorrow,  so I’ll let you know if I recommend one over the other. I would not use the tan-towels version- suuuper streaky!

Jergens now has a 3-day ‘super’ formula that is supposed to make you gradually tanner in less time than normal! I tried this one a few weeks ago, and think it’s definitely a great product and you get the same results from applying 2x than with the regular formula you have to apply it approx. 4 times for the same result. The only downside to this product is that it’s the same price (give or take) as the normal gradual self tanner, however it’s a smaller bottle so you need to purchase it more often to maintain your tan.

Each of these companies do make separate face tanners for those of you with oily or acne-prone skin. I don’t buy them that often, but it is a nice option to have if the regular lotions are too ‘oily’ for your more delicate skin and clog your pores.

Now, if you want to talk the pricier, overnight bronze goddess formulas, I’ll point you in the direction of St. Tropez (Self Bronzing Lotion or Mousse- $40), Beautisol Summer Glow ($40) or Fake Bake ($25-35) . But please, exfoliate and wear either gloves or a mitt with these, or else your hands will be brown for days! And put down old sheets on your bed so you don’t ruin your nice stuff with brown goo! PLUS: I just found out the hard way, that these formulas (the direct tanners/not gradual tanning lotions) that while they are the best hands down for flawless application and that perfect glow, after a while they do go bad. I reently opened up my cabinet to see which I still had left to use, and when I began to pour it out, it was this EMERALD-MOSSY GREEN COLOR! So, if you’re going to spend the cash to buy it, please make sure you use it within 6 months or so.

What’s on my To-Do list:

The reviews for the June Bulu Weight Loss Box and June Wantable Beauty Box and June GlossyBox will be going up within the next day or so! Hope you’re all excited to check those out, or if you want to can look back at my recent reviews of Out of The Box Sampler, Juniper, Peckish, Sent Her Way or JackedPack!

I have a bunch of new subscriptions as well as current ones soon to arrive for July, so prepare for a busy month of posts once I’m back from vacation. I have some of the following soon to feature for July: The Fantasy Box, BeautyArmy, Ipsy Glambag, SkoshBox, NatureBox, JackedPack Custom,  FitBox by Platinum Box,  and MORE! That is a serious amount of boxes.. plus I’m sure there are more that I just can’t think of at the moment.

I’m also working on/looking into new subscription box companies for August, so if anyone knows of New or Up-and-Coming Subscription Box companies that are looking for blogger reviews, let me know! You can comment here on my post or e-mail me at kenziedegen@gmail.com

So…. what’s on your mind/to-do list and body today!?

xo, Kenzie