Product Review: Victoria's Secret Beach Sexy Custom Tan Adjustable Self Tan Lotion

This self tanner is customizeable in the fact that it has dual chamber packaging, one chamber is the dark formula and the other is the light. The dark formula has a huge concentration of DHA and the light has barely any. The ratio that's dispensed through the pump is determined by which setting you turn it to and there are around 10 settings, so you really are presented with a lot of choice. The formulas on the two sides are 99% identical except for the amount of DHA, so much so that I felt the redundancy while breaking down the ingredients (I usually find this incredibly thrilling, being the nerd that I am). Both of the formulas are fabulous for hydrating dry skin (glycerin, fatty alcohols and mineral oil all in high concentrations result in long lasting deep moisture for dry skin) and both of the formulas are highly fragranced and are likely to cause irritation to sensitive skin. All of these things are evident from perusing the ingredient list, but what wasn't evident was the ultra orange color.

Goes to show you never can know. Most of the time, with most types of products, an in depth knowledge of ingredients and formulations helps me know what's worth buying and what's not. But self tanners are always partially a shot in the dark, because the quality of the DHA cannot be determined from the list, yet it has a huge impact on the performance of the product. The orange color that old fashioned self tanners had (and that some like this one, still do) was the result of a sloppy refining process. Eventually, more effective refining processes were introduced and beauty companies started releasing self tanners that created increasingly realistic tans. Some self tanners (most L'oreal ones I've tried, the one from PurMinerals, almost all St. Tropez, almost all Mystic Tan) look so similar to a real tan, that no one can tell it's not real unless you screw up the  application. I'm sad to report this particular product gives one of the most orange colors I've ever tried, which is only somewhat noticeable when applied on the lighter or medium settings, but is incredibly evident the second you turn the setting to high. It's what makes this self tanner a no-go, despite the fabulous moisture blend.



Ingredients:

Subtly sunkissed side: 

1. Water - well the aqua is here to make sure the texture of the product isn't solid
2. Glycerin - here to ensure the skin feels well moisturized, and it does. high concentrations of humectants tend to contribute to products that make skin feel super silky while still absorbing well, so i love seeing this
3. Cetearyl alcohol - thickener, emollient, emulsifier. this also leaves a silky "buttered" feel on skin
4. Erythrulose - kind of the little sister to DHA, it tans the skin, but develops slower, less intensely, yet lasts longer. overall when added to products it makes self tanners look more natural
5. Mineral oil - the world's most potent moisturizing ingredient makes this lotion fabulous for dry skin
6. Fragrance - the world's most common irritant makes this lotion problematic for sensitive skin
7. Cyclopentasiloxane - usually seen in higher concentrations in self tanners because it creates silky spreadability and then evaporates immediately, which is a fantastic quality in self tanners.
8. Dihydroxyacetone - the ingredient that creates the tan, DHA is a sugar that reacts with skin to temporarily turn it darker. there are varying qualities of it available, leading to variations in how realistic the color looks
9. Isopropyl palmitate - fabulously effective emollient
10. Petrolatum - the buttery cousin of mineral oil, so you are definitely getting amazing hydration here
11. Cetearyl olivate - olive oil derived fatty ester, functions as an emollient
12. Ceteareth-20 - emollient, emulsifier
13. Ethoxydiglycol - solvent and carrier ingredient
14. Ethylhexyl isononanoate - emollient
15. Stearic acid - fatty acid which functions as an emollient and emulsifier
16. Dimethicone - that silky silky feel and great moisture retention
17. Magnesium aluminum silicate - slip modifier and thickener
18. Sorbitan olivate - emulsifier
19. Phenoxyethanol - preservative
20. Citric acid - pH adjuster
21. Hydroxyethyl acrylate/sodium acryloyldimethyl taurate copolymer - gelling agent that helps thicken and emulsify the product
22. Xanthan gum - thickener
23. Squalene - part of skin's NMF, it's nice to see it added but it's even nicer when it's added in higher concentrations
24. Methylparaben - my heart warms over when I see paraben preservatives, all legitimate science has shown them to be the most effective and gentlest preservatives at the lowest concentrations
25. Sodium hydroxide - pH adjuster
26. Polysorbate 60 - emulsifier
27. Butyrospermum parkii (shea butter) butter - shea butter is a fabulous moisturizer
28. Disodium EDTA - chelating agent and preservative
29. Bisabolol - having sensitive skin, I have a soft spot for this super soother, but it's largely ineffective at this concentration
30. Potassium caproyl tyrosine - a skin conditioner which was lightly added because of the marketing value of tyrosine
31. Butylparaben - :D
32. Ethylparaben - pure joy in preservative form
33. Isobutylparaben - yay, more paraben
34. Propylparaben - this product will never rot
35. Ascorbic acid - vitamin C, at this concentration the only contribution it has to the product is enhancing the preservative blend
36. Calcium pantothenate - vitamin B5/ window dressing
37. Copper gluconate - copper is a good antioxidant (the firming properties some marketing gurus want you to believe in are negligible, especially in such negligible concentrations)
38. Cysteine - amino acid, this looks good on an ingredient list
39. Euglena gracilis extract - window dressing
40. Tocopheryl acetate - vitamin E, it would be nice to see it present in higher amounts
41. Tyrosine - looks attractive to tanorexics
42. Zinc gluconate - decoration
43. Retinyl palmitate - vitamin A and vitamin window dressing
44. Aloe barbadensis leaf extract - window dressing
45. Cocos nucifera (coconut oil) oil - I love coconut oil, but at this concentration it does nada
46. Pearl extract - lot's of marketing value, little real value
47. Tocopherol - vitamin E at next-to-zilch levels
48. Benzyl alcohol - fragrance, irritant; this I DO like seeing at lower levels
49. Citronellol - this I also like seeing at low levels, potent irritating fragrance
50. Coumarin - fragrance
51. Hydroxycitronellal - fragrance
52. Hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxalehyde - fragrance
53. Limonene - fragrance
54. Linalool - fragrance
55. Butylphenyl methylpropional - more fragrance
56. Alpha-isomethyl ionone - more fragrance
57. Mica - shimmer (there's not a hugely noticeable amount)
58. Titanium dioxide (CI 77891) - opacifier
59. Iron oxides (CI 77491) - colorant
60. Caramel - window dressing

Deep bronze side:

1. Water - well, off course
2. Dihydroxyacetone - whenever you see DHA in this high of a concentration, you know you are guaranteed a deep dark tan
3. Glycerin - humectant
4. Cetearyl alcohol - thickener, emollient, emulsifier
5. Erythrulose - DHA's slower developing cousin
6. Mineral oil - the best moisturizer on the planet
7. Fragrance - counteracting that self tanner smell
8. Cyclopentasiloxane - silicone which enhances slip and blendability, then evaporates
9. Isopropyl palmitate - emollient
10. Petrolatum - moisture
11. Cetearyl olivate - emulsifier, emollient, thickener
12. Ceteareth-20 - emulsifier, emollient, thickener
13. Ethoxydiglycol - solvent, penetration enhancer
14. Ethylhexyl isononanoate - emollient
15. Stearic acid - emollient, emulsifier, thickener
16. Dimethicone - silky silky slip enhancer
17. Magnesium aluminum silicate - slip modifier and thickener
18. Sorbitan olivate - emulsifier, emollient, thickener
19. Phenoxyethanol - preservative
20. Citric acid - pH adjuster, preservative
21. Hydroxyethyl acrylate/Sodium acryloyl dimethyl taurate copolymer - gelling agent, thickener, emulsifier 
22. Xanthan gum - thickener
23. Squalene - NMF ingredient
24. Methylparaben - preservative of the Gods
25. Sodium hydroxide - pH adjuster, preservative
26. Polysorbate 60 - emollient
27. Butyrospermum parkii (shea butter) - fabulous emollient
28. Disodium EDTA - chelating agent and preservative
29. Bisabolol - soothing agent
30. Potassium caproyl tyrosine - advertising
31. Butylparaben - preservation
32. Ethylparaben - more preservative
33. Isobutylparaben - more preservative
34. Propylparaben - :D even more of what I like to see
35. Ascorbic acid - vitamin C
36. Calcium pantothenate - vitamin B5
37. Copper gluconate - modified copper
38. Cysteine - amino acid
39. Euglena gracilis extract - label appeal
40. Tocopheryl acetate - vitamin E
41. Tyrosine - label appeal
42. Zinc gluconate - modified zinc
43. Retinyl palmitate - vitamin A
44. Aloe barbadensis leaf extract - label appeal
45. Cocos nucifera (coconut oil) oil - decoration of label
46. Pearl extract - appealing to people who scan an ingredient list without understanding formulations
47. Tocopherol - vitamin E
48. Benzyl alcohol - scent
49. Citronellol - fragrance
50. Coumarin - fragrance
51. Hydroxycitronellal - fragrance
52. Hydroxyisohexyl s-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde - fragrance
53. Limonene - fragrance
54. Linalool - fragrance
55. Butylphenyl methylpropional - fragrance
56. Alpha-isomethyl ionone - fragrance
57. Mica - shimmer
58. Titanium dioxide (CI 77891) - opacifier
59. Iron oxides (CI 77491) - color
60. Caramel - label appeal