Xen Tan Dark Lotion Absolute Luxe and Luxury Tanning Mitt

I got this at the Xen Tan bloggers event held way back in July at the rather swanky Malmaison in Manchester.  It's my favourite tanning brand so there was no way I was missing out.  I'm only just getting round to trying it now as I've been in denial about my paleness and pretending that I still have my Mexico tan (I really don't).  The event was great, we were all offered Xen Tan spray tans, the chance to get our nails done in the spa and a bag of Xen Tan treats.  We heard all about the brand too which I thought was an excellent touch - interesting Xen Tan fact, and something I didn't know, is that they're based just down the road from me in Bredbury.

So on to the review.  The Dark Lotion Absolute Luxe packaging looks great, and as it's a tube it's really easy to dispense the tan to apply it.  First impressions of the lotion was that it looked really light, a caramel colour rather than the usual brown Xen Tan, and it smelled absolutely amazing.  Not a hint of fake tan here, it smells really sweet and like vanilla, I loved it!  Now, the lighter colour of this made it a bit tricky to see where I had applied it already but I soon got the hang of it.  Application was very straightforward and quick, the creamy formula really helped and felt really moisturising.  I also used this on my face with no problems.

Once it's applied, you can tell you're a slightly different colour but it doesn't look like you've been rolling around in mud.  Even my boyfriend commented that the colour looked more reasonable than it usually does whilst I'm mid-tan.  I would say you could legitimately go to the corner shop wearing this.  I left this overnight - Xen Tan recommend at least 3-4 hours but best results in 7-8 - and the sheets looked absolutely fine when I woke up. Yay!  However the smell of DHA (that giveaway tan smell) was definitely present but it wasn't strong and went away after a shower.

The colour had developed overnight into a really nice, noticeable un-orange tan that looks pretty natural (for November anyway) - it wasn't quite as dark as I was expecting but I'm actually quite pleased about that.  No-one wants to look like they've been Ronsealed.   Not a hint of streaking either.  Overall, this is a gorgeous tan that's easy to use and actually makes tanning a lot less of a hassle, it isn't cheap but it's a luxury product that works really well so I would pay full price for this happily.  I love the tanned look but I just find tanning so time consuming but I'm going to try and keep up the tanning regularly with the help of this, wish I'd tried it sooner!

The Luxury Tanning Mitt really impressed me too.  I tend to apply with surgical gloves or a cheap tanning mitt I bought ages ago but I've now been converted to the Xen Tan Luxury Tanning Mitt.  It applies evenly and smoothly, and there's no residue on your palms as that tell tale giveaway that you've been faking it!  If you tan regularly I would definitely invest in this.

I've noticed today that Xen Tan have introduced some new products which look pretty nice - Luminous Gold Gel and Moroccan Tan as well as a back applicator...hmmm, interesting! 

For more information about Xen Tan or to buy some visit www.xen-tan.co.uk