Beat the British Weather (Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion)

Member Name: hypno06

Product:	Johnson's Holiday Skin Body Lotion
Date:	30/07/09 (87 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A natural tan with ease

Disadvantages: It stinks!

I have quite pale skin, but do tan reasonably easily, and go a decent shade of brown if I have the opportunity. Sadly, the sun never seems to be shining on the rare occasion that I am not ensconsed in my office.....andI am not lucky enough to be going abroad for two weeks of guaranteed summer sun.

Added to this, my Mum had skin cancer a few years ago, and I know of a couple of people who have lost their lives to skin cancer, so this has somewhat altered my eagerness to lay on a sunbed with a bottle of factor 4 by my side.

However, I seem to be surrounded by people who have been able to escape to the sun, and who are sporting a somewhat healthy glow, making me feel even more pasty than I was previously feeling.

I also have wonderfully "lumpy" thighs......now, there is nothing like a bit of lardy white thigh on show amongst the beautiful people with their lithe toned, tanned limbs, to make me feel dumpy, fat, and generally pah!

I am heading off to Center Parcs shortly - now I know that I will not be the only dumpy lardy pasty person there - and I also know that the opportunities to obtain a natural tan will be hindered as usual by the Great British weather - but I would very much like to have a little bit of colour about me, before I bear my skin to the world.

Lightly tanned skin looks healthy, "thins down" the appearance of lardy limbs and generally just makes me feel a bit better. I am not, however, prepared to use sunbeds, given what I know about skin cancer.

I have tried a couple of times to use fake tan, but ended up looking like David Dickenson - far too fake for my liking, with the added attraction of streaky legs when I got caught in the rain. Not something that I wish to repeat.

I could go to a salon and get the job done professionally, but I worry that I will pay a lot of money, and still end up looking like the Tango Man's mother.....

About three years ago, I discovered Johnson's holiday sun body lotion, after it was recommended to me by a friend. I have only used it in the summer months, as I want to have that distinction between seasons - I don't want to give the impression of being tanned all year round, although I know plenty that do. I wear tights in the winter, so don't bare my legs until we reach the summer months anyway.

Basically, this is a body lotion, with a very small amount of fake tan in it. You simply apply it once a day to dry skin, massage it in well, and it will both moisturise your skin, and will build up a gradual and natural looking tan over a period of a few days.

The beauty of this is, that you can stop before you look like the tango man. Once you are happy with the colour you have, you can return to your plain old body lotion, and just apply this summer sun lotion every couple of days to maintain the colour as it fades.

I buy the bottle that is for fair to medium skin, and I am very very happy with the natural looking results it provides.

There are downsides, however. One is that it takes a while to soak into the skin, so it needs lots of massage movements to get rid of the excess. While I don't mind that, because it is giving my cellulite an extra workout at the same time, it does mean that it takes a little longer than my normal routine....and I must make sure it is all massaged in otherwise it may stain any clothing or sheets etc, so there are no short cuts here.

The other downside is the smell. This, sadly, does not have a pleasant smell. Thankfully it does not linger too much on the skin, but when you are applying it it smells old and out of date, even if it is a new bottle. There is no perfume, and that is a definite improvement that could be made, in my opinion.

The colour wears off naturally over a few days, so if you do go over the top, it will fade soon, so you don't have to hide away for too long.

I don't use this on my face - I believe you can get similar products specifically for the face, but I have not needed these, so not tried them.

You should also make sure you wash your hands after use to avoid a build up of fake tan around your nails which looks most unattractive!

Overall, I am happy with this product, and would certainly buy it again. Although I wouldn't use it all year round, I have used this ahead of Christmas parties and balls, when I am wearing strappy dresses, and want my dinner-lady arms to look a little more attractive.

A bottle has a 12 month shelf life, so make the most of the current half price deals that are in many shops now, and buy yourself a bottle or two to see you through the rain......

I give this three stars - it has lost a star for the time it takes to rub in, and a star for the smell. But it is 3+ stars so still pretty positive.

Summary: I'll still get my tan without health implications......and without sun!