little white truths

I received this tanning treatment in a recent Lust Have It box and I was pleased to see it because I didn't have a facial tanner on hand so this saved me a purchase.

I was also pleased to see it because I haven't heard of Ivadore before and I'm always up for discovering new brands - it's one of the main reasons I subscribe to beauty boxes.

This one is a decent 30ml travel size and it comes in a plastic bottle with a pump. There's also a plastic stopper for the pump, which is handy because it stops any product in the nozzle from drying out.

While I like having a pump, do be careful with this one because it dispenses way too much product (for the face) if you push it all the way down. For this reason I recommend doing a half pump first and then another one if you need more product.

Verdict

I quite liked this to start with, but after having researched this post and learned a little more about the product, I like it even more.

It's a white cream that smells a bit odd (kind of mealy, if that makes sense) but it's a scent that's not too offensive and I can live with it. The consistency is also a little odd - it thins out once on the skin and there's something watery about it - but for this reason it spreads well and a little goes a long way.

I use this only on my face, neck and dec because I have another product for my body, and to start with I wasn't sure it was tanning me much but it's true what they say on the product's description: the colour does develop over time and it leaves you with a nice, natural glow.

I only use mine once or twice a week to maintain my colour so I'm not sure what the colour would look like if you used it more than that, but one or two weekly applications is enough for me to look a touch browner than I might otherwise. And indeed that's what I'm looking for in a tanning product because I don't want to stray too far from my natural skintone - I'd prefer to look just as I would if I'd been out in the sun for a while, and that's exactly what this product offers.

On the claims I haven't touched on yet: it's true that it doesn't stain your sheets/clothing or smell awful; I can tell that it doesn't contain nasties because it hasn't irritated my dry/sensitive skin, nor has it caused any breakouts; and it does apply evenly without streaking and avoids the orange look that some tans have.

I'm not sure how good this is as a stand-alone moisturiser, however: it says it's anti-ageing and hydrating but I don't get any of those benefits and indeed I need to apply my normal moisturiser over the top (after I've left this to sink in for ten mins or so) because it's not hydrating enough for me and for this reason it doesn't make me look brighter or more youthful. So I'm not sold on the product's strengths as an anti-ageing moisturiser, but I don't mind that because it does the tanning thing well and that's all I need from it.

I also like that the product is cruelty free because I look for that in my beauty products, and I'm always glad to support companies that are Australian owned and made.

All in all, this is a great facial tanner and I recommend it. I'm not sure I'd be happy to pay full price for it (seems a lot for a tanning lotion) - particularly because I don't think it's a great facial moisturiser - but other than that, I really like it.