Hi everyone, today's blog post is going to be a comparison between two very popular high end fake tans from competing brands. I have seen multiple blog posts where people are raving about the St Tropez Bronzing Mousse and other blog posts where people rave about the Xen Tan Ultra Dark Lotion Absolute Luxe. Two of my favourite bloggers/vloggers are among the fans of these products. Viviannadoesmakeup is a huge fan of the Xen Tan offering whereas Ingrid Nelson (Missglamorazzi) is team St Tropez. I decided that the only way for me to make a fair judgement and recommendation would be to purchase BOTH the tans and compare them, here goes...
Firstly, I wanted to make a couple of comparisons between size and price for these products. The St Tropez Mousse is £30.50, whereas the Xen Tan lotion is cheaper at £28.99. However the St Tropez tanner has more product than the Xen Tan, 4ml to be exact, relatively insignificant differences. I am now going to compare the two products in terms of different categories that I feel need to be considered when choosing a self tanner.
Packaging: Both products have nice packaging, in terms of appearance I prefer the Xen Tan as I like the colours used and it has more of a luxurious feel than the St Tropez Mousse, I also like that it will be easier to see how much product has been used up as the shape of the tubes will change, however the St Tropez bottle gives nothing away. However, in terms of practicality, the St Tropez packaging walks all over Xen Tan. The pump on the bottle gives you way more control and distributes even amounts of products, compared to just squeezing the tube. It also it much cleaner and less high risk (brown tan on white floors) than the tube.
Scent: When it comes to the scent, the Xen Tan lotion wins every time. It claims to be scent secure, which is something it almost lives up to. Whilst the St Tropez mousse has the typical fake tan smell (biscuits?), the Xen Tan lotion smells strongly of Vanilla and Cocoa. This is something very rare to find in a fake tan and makes going to sleep much easier as you aren't overwhelmed by the stench of fake tan.
Ease of application: The St Tropez mousse applies beautifully. I find that the skin needs a good exfoliate, however once done the tan applies easily and gives an all over even colour. This makes the tan look most natural as there are no uneven patches of orange or white. I find that a pump per arm and two pumps per leg is more than even to get the desired colour. Also the application process is made considerably easier by the fact that the instant colour given when applied shows where you have done and where you have missed. However, the application of the Xen Tan lotion is not as easy, the colour does not show up anywhere near as much upon application which may lead to applying too much or not applying and even layer. Also I found that when I used this tanner I was a lot more blotchy than I have ever been with the St Tropez tan, even though I fully exfoliated and moisturised.
Formula: In my opinion, a mousse formula will always win over a lotion. I know a lot of bloggers complain that mousse is a more drying formula than lotion, however I find that the mousse makes up for this is many different ways. The main reason I prefer a mouse is that it is much easier to apply to the skin for a 'first time tanner' as it spreads much more evenly and is a lighter texture meaning less time is needed buffing the product into the skin whilst still achieving even and natural colour. I haven't tried a Xen Tan mousse or a St Tropez lotion so this may be a bit biased, however in this instance the St Tropez mousse is a winner.
Colour: This is a difficult point to answer. I don't think I have a clear winner, although I find the colour of the St Tropez to be much more natural, sometimes I find it not to give enough of a change in colour especially for darker more olive skin tones like my own. On the other hand however, although the Xen Tan lotion is much darker and does require less layers and build up of product, it can sometimes come across a little orange and gives a more unnatural look, especially for paler skins. The colour of the lotion is also sometimes too different in colour from your original shade which gives a more 'false' effect.
Wear: The final comparison is how the product wears off. This is very important as most tans last more than one day so you could be stuck with this change in colour for quite some time. Both products have their good points, the Xen Tan lotion lasts much longer than the St Tropez one, easily a week before all the colour is gone, whereas the St Tropez mousse lasts closer to 3 or 4 days before the colour is barely noticeable. HOWEVER, the St Tropez is definitely a winner in this category as the colour fades much more naturally and evenly on the skin, so much so that people may even believe that it is just your holiday tan fading. This is key to a good fake tan as it requires less maintenance and means you don't have to cover up in jumpers so nobody sees your awful orange patchy arms, definitely the biggest issue with the Xen Tan.
It probably clear already, but I am team St Tropez bronzing mousse when it comes to high end fake tans, although I would love to hear your opinions and any advice on how to use the Xen Tan lotion in a different way to achieve a more natural glow. I hope this helps you choose a good high end fake tan, let me know if you make a purchase, I already managed to convince one or two of my friends into getting it (you know who you are, Kath Blenkinsop).
See you Sunday. X
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