SUN Laboratories Dark Sunsation Lotion

HOLY GRAIL sunless tanner for me (and I am faux-tanned almost all year long). I use the VERY DARK shade. It is amazing on my OLIVE skin, which can look quite "muddy" if I use very neutral-brown toned sunless tanners. My olive skin tone either needs a very golden-coppery sunless tanner OR it needs a sunless tanner with a bit of reddish-bronze in it (that is what this sunless tanner has). The red tone is very slight -- just enough to make the tan result look more natural, the way it would look if I really laid out in the sun. When I use to lay out (which I haven't done in over 20 years), my first day suntanned skin would have that gorgeous slightly sun-burnt rosy-bronze color to it (SO bad for the skin! but so pretty!). I have tested a ton of sunless tanners of the past 20 years, searching for that same reddish-bronze type of glow in a bottle, but had not been able to find one --- until I discovered SUN Laboratories. I cannot comment on the other shades in this line, as I have only tried the VERY DARK. (My 2nd fave sunless tanner is Fake Bake, but FB is much more of a toned down "tan" color. It's more golden-brown (no copper or red tones in it at all). I usually reserve FB for my body, but never my face -- as it can give me that muddy "2 week and fading tan" look, which I hate. SUN Labs' tan is much more vibrant, yet still very natural looking (just the way cool/neutral toned olive skinned brunettes would tan naturally).

The only down side to this product for me is that the pump top came off very easily, and no longer stays on very well. The slightest touch causes it to fall off (it "locks" if you don't have it turned in just the right spot, which is fine if the top of the pump would stay on!).

Unlike Fake Bake, SUN Labs does not include gloves or a mitt. I would highly suggest you use gloves, at least. I use the gloves and mitt from my Fake Bake for all of my sunless tanner applications. This product will stain your hands and nails if you don't wear gloves and do not wash your hands immediately.

Overally, this is a MUST HAVE sunless tanner for all those with olive skin who find other sunless tanners either too flat/muddy/taupe brown, or find sunless tanners to be too orange.

Love it! The consistency & minimal amount you need makes this product last so long ! It smells great, it is definitely true to color. It’s great day to day or any type of special event. Personally I use it daily instead of the skin damaging sun beds! Highly recommend!!!!!!

Natural looking and beautiful color!
I’m so in love with this product! The color is beautiful and natural looking. I’ve been looking for a self tanner that doesn’t look orange or streaky and I can honestly say this exceeded my expectations. I have a fair skin tone and this wasn’t too dark or anything. Highly recommend this for anyone who wants some color without having to damage your skin in the sun

This stuff is AWESOME!!

I've tried various sunless tanners over the years, my most recent favorite being Fake Bake Flawless spray. I wanted to try a lotion that would be a little less messy than the spray, and this worked great for me. I just got back from vacation and had gotten more sun on my arms than my legs; wanting to even them out, I tried this.

The application is pretty foolproof- use the gloves and apply in a circular motion. The color guide is great bc it shows where you've applied. Maybe I didn't apply it very thickly, but even the color guide looked streak free and natural. I applied to my legs only and let dry for about fifteen minutes before getting dressed. I rinsed the color guide off the next morning and was left with a natural, even tan. It didn't sink into my hair follicles, creating black dots like some tanners do on my lower legs, and it still looks good three days later. The scent while applying is pretty good and there is a little of the telltale tanner smell for the next few hours after applying, but nothing major. When comparing my arms that got a natural tan and my legs, I can tell no difference in the color. The packaging is fine and I got a two pack of 8 oz. bottle, gloves and an exfoliator off Amazon for $30- not bad at all!

For those that got a thin and runny version, I can only say it must be an issue with the vendor selling it. The version I got is brown and creamy, like a thick lotion. I definitely recommend it!

This USED to be the best self-tanner on the market. But it appears they recently changed the formulation. What was once a thick, easy-to-apply lotion with a nice scent that was the color and consistency of chocolate pudding is now a thin, runny, dark brown sludge that smells terrible. It's so different from the original version that I was under the impression that I had received a bad/expired bottle or fake product. Judging by the recent reviews I see on other sites, I'm not the only one who thought that.

Application is a nightmare. It's so thin and liquidy, it doesn't absorb into the skin readily, so before it dries fully it can migrate and pool in places. The final result is much lighter and much more orange than it used to be and it fades very quickly--it's possible that they're using a lower grade of DHA in this formulation than they did in the original.

Seriously the best tanning lotion around. I'm naturally pale to medium skin tone and this color is great. The lotion has that greenish tint to it that completely eliminates the orange-ness that comes with most self tanners. HOWEVER, there are some very important tips I can share that make this work like a dream. 1) use gloves to apply (I just use regular latex gloves) otherwise your palms will be straight up brown. 2) follow the directions and only apply to small areas at once and blend very well. 3) I find it easiest to this self tanner with a little bit of regular lotion - it eliminates streaking, goes on more easily, dries faster, and you don't need to shower it off. Then I just use it after every shower and it keeps a nice tan.

Great self tanner, but for my skin that's on the paler side, the Ultra Dark works best. This color is best suited to women who are medium dark in color, and want a deeper tan.

SCAM ALERT:

Not bad at all! I've probably used every self tanner they make.. I was using xen luxe for a while, but i found that the color came off very splotchy. Now, I ordered my sun labs from amazon (18.98 for 8 oz bottle), not realizing I selected the "very dark" (i'm very pale!). I was intimidated by the sound of it, but decided to try it anyway. I used my mitt...

Application: Great!! Dried very quickly, waited about 5 minutes and put my clothes on, but it was dry almost immediately...with that said, make sure to blend reasonably quickly!

Smell: Good at first, of course it did turn into that typical self tanner smell, but not as strong as the other tanners I've used!

Lasting quality: I'm only on my first day. I will update though!
Staining: Nope!! I have light gray sheets and pillow cases, and it did not come off on them.

Color: really nice!! I'm very very pale, and I used the "very dark" sun labs. The color does not look orange on me, but my fingers do look a little gross from washing them. I just exfoliated and applied a very thin coat to them with my mitt.

Break outs: This is a hugeeeee part for me. I have very acne prone skin and take very good care of it. I never apply self tanner to my face because I assume it will break me out. I tried the jergens to my face before and it did make me break out a little bit. I will update about the acne in a couple weeks so I can really see if it affects my skin.

Overall, I give it a 4 because it is probably the best tanner I had, but it is not perfect. I don't think a self tanner will ever be perfect considering its a fake tan, but this is certainly the best I've found :)



EDIT: This did not break me out (knock on wood), it lasted longer than any other tanner I've used! I was amazed that it did NOT come off spotchy except for my wrists hands and feet were a little uneven. But my chest, neck, back, legs etc faded really evenly!

I really haven't had the greatest experiences with this particular brand of self tanner. This one's color is decent enough but to me is rather orangey in color ( I have not tried the Ultra Dark, but would like to). It stays on a great length of time, however it comes off very patchy and doesn't seem to fade evenly. This particular self tanner definitely requires a good moisturizer to go with it. For me, I've found way better products so I doubt I would repurchase this. This will serve as my facial tanner to help use up the product. It doesn't cause breakouts which is good. Don't forget to use some latex gloves. It stains very easily. Overall, my personal rating is mediocre.