BALI BODY Deep Violet 1 Hour Express Self Tanner – Fast-Acting, Weightless Self Tanner for Natural Bronze – No-Transfer, Hydrating Quick Tan Mousse for Smooth, Radiant Skin

I have an olive skin tone and this self tanner gives me a beautiful natural, even color, nice and dark. It doesn’t smell as bad as a lot of the other self tanner’s nor is it a sticky, but does truly give a nice brown color. There’s no orange whatsoever. I really love it.

I’m a avid tanner, indoor, outdoor and sunless. I’ve tried many different brands. And when I saw this new product I needed to try it. First off, there’s no self tanner smell, it’s a light floral. Almost like a perfume. Second, it won’t make you orangey, brown, yes. Orange no. lol a little goes a long way. I’m buying another bottle already, not sure what I will do with my old self tanners, but this will be my new go to.

I’ve been self-tanning since high school, so I’m pretty picky at this point, especially about the three things that usually make or break a formula for me: scent, whether the color pulls orange, and how badly it transfers while it develops. This one does a lot right, and what stood out most to me is that the finished color leans much more brown-bronze than orange. The violet tone in this formula really seems to help keep the result looking more natural and believable, especially if you’re fair or pull cooler in undertone. On my skin, it gave more of a realistic bronzed effect instead of that overly warm, fake-looking self-tan color that some mousses can leave behind. It made my skin look healthier and more even without screaming “self-tanner.” The express aspect is also very useful. You can rinse after about an hour for a lighter glow or leave it on longer if you want more depth. That flexibility makes it feel a lot more customizable than formulas that only really give one result. If I wanted just a boost of color, the shorter development time was enough to make a visible difference but leaving it on longer gave me a richer result. Texture-wise, this is a very airy, whipped mousse. It spreads easily and feels lightweight on the skin, and I really liked that it dried down quickly without staying tacky forever. The flip side is that you do need to work fairly fast. This is not one of those super wet formulas that gives you endless blending time, so I definitely think a mitt is the best way to apply it. For hands, feet, knees, and ankles, I’d still be extra careful and use less product like usual because those areas can grab more color. The guide color is helpful because you can actually see where you’ve applied it, which makes it easier to avoid missing spots. That said, while it’s functional, it is not the prettiest guide color I’ve ever seen while it’s sitting on the skin. I care more about the final result than the in-between stage, but it’s worth mentioning. As far as scent goes, I would call this better than average for a self-tanner, but not completely free of that classic DHA smell. At first, it comes across much lighter and more pleasant than a lot of tanning mousses, which I really appreciated. Later in development, that standard self-tan scent does start to come through some, but it never felt as harsh or overpowering as many I’ve tried over the years. Transfer was also better than expected. Once it dried down, it felt relatively low mess compared to a lot of self-tanners, which is a huge plus for me. I still would not throw on white clothing immediately while the guide color is developing, but overall, it behaved much better than formulas that stay sticky and leave evidence everywhere. Another thing I liked is that it did not make my skin feel parched or look extra dry. Some self-tanners cling to elbows, knees, and texture in a way that makes everything look worse as they wear off, but this one looked smoother and more flattering than average. Prep still matters, though. I would absolutely exfoliate first and moisturize dry areas lightly, because this is one of those formulas that rewards good prep and quick, even application. The biggest mixed area with a product like this seems to be fade. On some people it may appear to fade evenly, and on others it could wear less gracefully, so I do think skin prep, skin texture, and how heavily you apply it probably matter a lot here. I would not call it foolproof, but I do think it has the potential to look very even when applied carefully. Overall, I think this is especially strong if you want a natural-looking tan that runs more brown than orange, and if you like having control over how light or deep the result gets based on timing. If you want an ultra-dark result immediately, you may need to leave it on longer or build it up. But if your biggest priorities are realistic tone, lower transfer, quick dry-down, and a better-than-average self-tanner scent, this is a really solid option.

The perfect color, I absolutely loved how deep the color was but not orange in anyway!

Update! After a second use where I left it on overnight I can say this made my legs very dark. It still looked natural in color. The tan fades nicely without odd patchiness (though I was careful not to exfoliate during the fade). My sweet spot is probably a 5-6 hour tan. I did find on subsequent use that the typical faux tanner smell was present. I dont know why I didnt detect it during that initial use, maybe the first mousse out of the bottle is a little low in active ingredient or maybe I didnt shake enough. I am still very pleased with this product and it was lovely not having very pale legs at a late March event. I ordered the BALI BODY Deep Violet 1 Hour Express Self Tanner. The product arrived in an aerosol bottle that is 7.61 oz (so not travel friendly) and marked made in Australia. The cap is taped on. It is so well done that I didnt notice this and ripped the whole top off of the can when I removed what I thought was just the cap. This doesnt seem to have affected the cans ability to dispense the mousse after I put everything back and cut off the real cap. The mouse comes out in a light tan color. The mousse immediately added a very subtle bit of shading to my skin. I used a mitt to apply the mousse and had minimal streaking that was probably more my fault than anything, although a richer color for the mousse would have prevented this. After an hour I did see a bit more color. I opted to wait until 3 hours to shower and it looks like I have picked up a little color. The color isnt as dramatic as other self tanners that I have used. That said, this color is also among the most natural of the self tanners that I have used and there was virtually no typical self tanner odor. In fact the product was so scentless that I checked it to make sure it was a self tanner that would leave color after being rinsed off...twice! I can see this product becoming a favorite this spring to color my legs as I wait for my legs to catch up to the tan level of my arms (which always tan faster). I am very pleased with this product because it was easy to use, didnt smell and was gently effective.

The first time I used this was an adventure. I've used quite a few different self tanners over the years, though I'm not a pro. I self tan maybe three times a month during the warmer weather and very rarely do during the colder months. When applying, this doesn't have a strong scent. I do notice that typical tanning scent gets more prominent as it sits on my skin. The foam comes out of the bottle quickly, and I found that I needed to use way less than I thought I would (compared to other foaming self tanners I've used). Using a mitt to apply, I noticed the foam went far but when it stopped, it was sudden and abrupt. I would have to more firmly rub in the edges or quickly get more foam to continue blending out and covering any areas I hadn't gotten yet. The first time I used this, I was sure I was going to have massive streaks all across my body. But I kept it on for the three hours and washed it off. The next morning, I was tan without any streaks. So I think there is a strong level of forgiveness with this formula, which I very much appreciate. The tan looks very natural and pretty on my olive skintone. It's not the deepest fake tan I've ever had. For me, it's more of a medium tan but still very pretty. It fades naturally and doesn't patch off. I do notice that it tends to disappear from my neck faster than the rest of my body (I don't self tan my face with this), which is because I use skincare on my neck as well as my face. At the end of the week, I do need to self tan again as it's mostly faded away by then.

Pros: develops quickly! Only need to leave this on for a couple hours, so you don’t have to sleep in the stickiness or risk is transferring to your bed. Smell is very light, still has the typical self tanner smell but it’s not as strong as most tanners I’ve tried. Did not have any of the color transfer to my clothes while it set. Actually did well on hands and feet, was worried it would stick horribly to those drier areas but it didn’t. Cons: I broke the tip off immediately when trying to get the cap off, they don’t make it obvious that there’s a plastic film around it. The foam goes on smoothly but dries very quickly, need to work fast and get a lot of foam on the mitt to work it all in. Patchy even after trying to fix it during application, my inner arms would absolutely NOT take to the tanner (see last photo of the end result). Pricey for a very light color payout. Only brought my fair skin a shade or two darker. Overall not a bad option if you want something quick and only to go a couple shades darker.

I’m fair skinned and use self tanners when I have a trip or special occasion coming up. Or- when our weather swings up 50 degrees out of nowhere and I find myself in shorts a few months ahead of schedule. Yikes! This one is a little different from the cream based formulas I’ve used before. It’s “dry” compared to those and I wouldn’t call it moisturizing at all. You definitely want to be as smooth as possible with dry patches exfoliated well. And you need to work quickly. But I love the tint which serves as a guide so I don’t miss spots or over apply. I use a self tanner application set that includes a brush, mitt and back mitt. It helps me a LOT. I don’t know how anyone gets good results without those tools personally! I showered after an hour and had a nice glow, nothing too dark but definitely made me feel more confident about wearing those warm weather clothes in March! I didn’t get any streaks. I hate self tanner smell, and unfortunately it took a day or two for that to fade completely, but it wasn’t horrible. I have noticed that if I apply self tanner prior to a beach vacation that the sand will sometimes exfoliate it right off of my feet. So I would still be careful, but it seems to be wearing well so far. I did not use it on my face as my face can be a little more reactive, and also I didn’t want my face to look so dark. So this review is based on body use only. It’s definitely worth a try for quick and buildable color!