St. Tropez formulations contain a unique, completely safe active ingredient which work to give a gorgeously natural looking colour that fades naturally, too. Dihydroxyacetone (or DHA for short) is a certified organic colourless extract from sustainable sugarcane which interacts with the amino acids (protein) in the surface epidermal layers of the skin to produce a permanent colour change, of those skin cells. However it appears to be a temporary colour change – your tan, due to those tanned skin cells releasing away in about 7-10 days.

The mandatory minimum requirement is to wear your product or spray tan completely un-interrupted for 4 hours. For the longest lasting tan, however, it is ideal to leave it undisturbed overnight, and to sleep with it on. This will allow the product to penetrate deepest into the skin, tanning more skin cell layers, which maximizes tan duration. Regardless of when you shower past the 4 hour point, the tan will keep developing and reach its full level of darkness for up to 24 hours.

You will not turn orange with St Tropez – our self-tan category of products contains a green vegetable based pigment to help counteract any orange tinge. Our products are uniquely formulated to work with your natural gold and brown skin tone so, as your tan develops it will only go as dark as your skin would naturally allow.

The St. Tropez SELF TAN category of products contains an immediate guide colour so you can see exactly where you put it. You don’t need to worry about applying too much – only missed areas can give an uneven, or patchy result. The St. Tropez GRADUAL TAN category of products do not contain a guide colour but it does leave an initial moist sheen on the skin so you are able to see where you have applied it or where it may be missing.

The characteristic odour from some brands of self-tanners does not come from the products themselves, but from a chemical reaction on the skin as the tan is developing, caused by synthetic DHA… however, St. Tropez is different from most other brands because our DHA is Eco-Certified Organic, derived from pure sustainable sugar cane. As this type of DHA is processing within the skin, combined with the remaining St Tropez ingredients, we have successfully eliminated all negative odour possibility.

None of the ingredients in St. Tropez have known toxicity. All new formulation batches since early 2016 are paraben, phthalate and sulphate free, non-comedogenic, Vegan certified by the E.U., with no animal testing.

Generally, a St. Tropez self-tan will last between 7-10 days, depending on your skin type, how you’ve pre-prepared for it, and maintained care for it afterwards. To help make sure your tan lasts for as long as possible: 1) Remove all unwanted hair with your method of choice 24-72 hours before self-tanning. 2) Soak your skin for 15-20 minutes and then exfoliate thoroughly with St Tropez Body Polish 24-48 hours before self-tanning. 3) Apply your choice of St. Tropez tanning products as it develops best when your skin pH level has returned back to normal, 12-24 hours post showering or bathing. 4) For best longevity, leave the self-tanner on overnight to allow for deepest penetration. This does not make your tan become darker, only longer lasting. 5) Apply St Tropez Tan enhancing Body Moisturizer or Gradual Tan products daily. To ensure that your tan fades away as evenly as possible, continue to apply St Tropez Body Moisturizer daily, and every 2-3 days, St. Tropez Body Polish should also be used.