Don't Go on Holiday with This Skin! (Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion)

Member Name: foreveramber

Product:	Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion
Date:	03/07/09 (103 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Soft, creamy and moisturises well. Doesn't stain sheets

Disadvantages: Very streaky results, unnatural colour

I both love and hate summer. The warmer summer months mean I can herd the kids outside in half the time, without the need for donning coats, scarves and gloves. But it also means exposing more flesh and when I've got pale skin, personally, I just don't feel as confident as when I have a suntan.

My arms seem to tan quite fast, but my legs take forever. For some reason they take twice as long to become brown so I usually keep them covered up.

However, this year I thought I'd practice using some fake tan product on my legs in preparation for a holiday later on in the year. I've not had much luck in the past with using fake tans, so this time I decided to opt for the Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion. This isn't a 'fake tanning lotion' as such, rather it's a body moisturising lotion which is diluted with a tanning ingredient.

I already like Johnson's body lotion so, persuaded by the bottle's promises of building a gradual, flawless, even tan and 24 hour moisturisation, I bought it.

Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion is available for normal to fair or normal to darker skin. I purchased the normal to darker skin, mainly because I can obtain quite a dark suntan once I've been in the sun for a while.

The lotion also contains aloe vera which is often included in skin creams. It has a multitude of uses, mainly for its healing properties but also has good moisturising benefits. The lotion advises that it's new and improved , 'as natural as your own tan'. It also says it has an improved fragrance. The smell, of course, is often one of the most negative aspects of tanning lotions.

So, onto using it. Firstly, I thoroughly exfoliated my legs. After watching umpteen demonstrations on the skill required for applying fake tans, I know how important this step is. If you don't get rid of all those dead skin cells, the lotion adheres more strongly to those areas, producing a patchy and uneven tan.

The lotion is creamy white and fairly thick. The smell certainly isn't offensive, it's even quite pleasant, but I can detect a faint whiff of tanning lotion. It's extremely easy applying it over my legs and feels very light and moisturising.

As the cream isn't tinted, once you've rubbed it onto your skin, you can't see where the cream is. So you have to rub it in really well and hope for the best.

I put the cream on my legs in the evening after a shower so I could sleep with it on and wake up with 'beautifully tanned legs'.

During the night I was aware of the tanning cream smell. I think it's something that can't be avoided no matter how much the manufacturers try and disguise it. I inspected my sheets next, wishing I'd put a dark colour on and fearing the dreaded brown tell tale signs of a fake tan. But I have been pleasantly surprised to find no marks at all.

Onto my legs. A quick glance and I couldn't see much difference. Once in the bathroom though, with a bright light on, all I could see were streaks galore. How on earth could I have applied it so badly? I thought I'd been so careful and thorough.

Now, if I'd written my review then and there, I would have slated this product. However, I didn't give up. That evening I showered, exfoliated my legs again and reapplied the cream. The next day my legs were slightly darker and the streaks less noticeable. However, my knees were unnaturally dark despite the exfoliation I'd done. Repeating the process on the third day and my legs overall are now much darker and the streaks barely noticeable. In fact, I would dare to bare these legs.

The colour produced is quite dark. In fact, it's so dark I would have thought I'd applied a fake tan on its own. I almost think the colour after three days is slightly too dark for my skin tone and I probably should have used the lighter version.

Overall, although this cream is lovely to apply and feels very soft and moisturises well and doesn't have a nasty smell, it's very difficult avoiding tell tale streaks. With perseverance it seems possible somehow to blend the streaks together making them less noticeable. However, I don't know whether this is really worth the effort. I will continue until I've finished the bottle but probably wouldn't go for this brand again.

Summary: A body moisturiser that would be better without the tanning ingredients