Who Could Ask for Anything More?
Lancome Flash Bronzer Anti-Age Lotion

Beauties, this is something I have to share; with my last Lancôme order, I received a sample packet of Lancôme Flash Bronzer Anti-Age. Nice name. I know, I know, I can hear you saying–”So aside from the snazzy name, what is this stuff anyway?” It’s a tinted anti-age self-tanning face lotion with an SPF 15 sunscreen. You can understand why I was doubtful–that’s a lot to pack into one lotion. Now here’s the part you beauties are gonna kick my butt for–I can’t attest to the anti-aging claim. Hey, a sample packet only goes so far and I was lucky to get about 5 days out of it! Clearly not enough time to see any anti-aging benefits. Before you go kicking me in my ample bum again, I researched the ingredients to find which ones (if any) are related to anti-aging so you can put your stiletto boots away! 

I normally do NOT use self tanner on my face because I have some hyperpigmentation (okay, age spots–whatev) and self tanner makes the spots darker which just draws more attention to them which obviously defeats the whole purpose <insert heavy sigh.> That’s why up until now I have always used powder bronzers. But when this little Lancôme packet said tinted I thought I would give it a try. I was a bit confused as to how it could be tinted and a self-tanner but Lancôme cleverly tinted the lotion a basic bronze color and then it gradually–but not too gradually gets a bit darker–in about 10-15 minutes, max of 30. That’s what makes this special–the color. Even though the color looks like a deep brownish bronze color out of the bottle, it doesn’t deposit a lot of color onto your face, just a light–but immediate tint. Then after 10-15 minutes, it deepens a bit for that extra bit of color. No orange whatsoever and very, very natural. I look like I got a bit of sun, but it still manages to match my neck and blends really, really well.

The lotion itself has the consistency of a lightweight moisturizer and has the typical Lancôme fragrance–not a yucky self tanner fragrance. Another plus is that it’s not greasy–I hate that about self tanners, I prefer a semi-matte finish to my foundation and while I wouldn’t call this finish matte–it’s not so dewy that it looks greasy.

This is what Lancôme says and even though I agree with most of these stats it bears mentioning the key word here is perception in other words–no hard cold facts or clinical studies.

In a Consumer Perception Study of women who used the product for 2 weeks:

• 96.4% said the product spread easily without accentuating fine lines. (agree)
• 96.4% said skin felt comfortable all day. (agree)
• 94.5% said skin felt hydrated. (agree)
• 87.3% said once dried, product did NOT rub off onto clothes. (agree)
• 87.3% said skin appeared healthy. (agree)
• 81.8% said skin complexion appeared more even. (?)
• 74.5% said skin appeared more youthful/younger. (?)

Since I can’t comment on the anti-aging benefits and how they perform in this review, I decided to check out the ingredients. I researched every ingredient (see how I work for you beauties?) and while there are lots of ingredients typically used in moisturizers, sunscreen, self tanners, and fragrance, there are also emollients, skin conditioners, softening agents, preservatives, thickening agents, browning agents and surprise! bug repellent.

Ingredients:

Active Ingredients:
Avobenzone 3%, Homosalate 2%, Octisalate 5%, Octocrylene 7%.

 Ingredients:
Water, Glycerin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Dihydroxyacetone, Alcohol Denat., Propylene Glycol, Dimethicone, Isohexadecane, Caramel, Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Tri C14-15 Alkyl Citrate, Arachidyl Alcohol, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, PEG-100 Stearate, Glyceryl Stearate, Mica, Behenyl Alcohol, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol, Dimethiconol, Arachidyl Glucoside, Ethylparaben, Titanium Dioxide, Methylparaben, Polysorbate 80, Disodium EDTA, Methylsilanol Mannuronate, Hexyl Cinnamal, Tocopherol, Sorbitan Oleate, Benzyl Alcohol, Benzyl Salicylate, Butylphenyl Methylpropional, Linalool, Citronellol, Yellow 6, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Hydroxycitronellal, Geraniol, Limonene, Red 33, Eugenol

 The only anti-aging ingredients I found were Dimethiconol-a silicone commonly used in primers to fill in fine lines and temporarily plump the skin, Methylsilanol Mannuronate (sea algae) which helps to combat deterioration of collagen and elastin fibers giving it skin firming properties, and Tocopherol (Vitamin E). I am no scientist but I seriously doubt these ingredients are in high enough amounts to make a significant difference, but then I may be overlooking or misinterpreting something too.

Packaging: Pump bottle, always preferred for sanitary reasons

Quality: high quality product; no self tanner smell, lightweight lotion, no orange color, spreads evenly, delivers nice color, non-greasy. SPF of 15–I wish that was higher but I can see how increasing the SPF could compromise the bronzing effect.

Value: $36 for 1.7 oz bottle. Great bronzing effect with some anti-aging ingredients to boot, the price seems reasonable to me, especially considering you only need about a pea size for your entire face.

Best For: Women Over 40!  Perfect for lighter skin tones, because the color is not too deep. I could be wrong but I don’t think this would suitable for deeper skin tones; it just depends on how well the self tanner would perform.

Overall: Good quality, gives golden believable color, non-greasy. Although I doubt the anti-aging ingredients will make a drastic difference it’s nice that they’re in there because it does really make this a more multi-functional product. Hey, who knows it could be the only thing you need to put on your face this summer!

Grade: A