Hello! So today I thought I'd write a pre-holiday preparation post. I recently went to Greece and my tan didn't stay very long (*cries*) because I didn't really do much before hand, I didn't even exfoliate which meant that I peeled much quicker, I do still have my tan but it's not as intense as it was. I'm going away again in July and I wanted to show you the products that I have been using and will keep using in the month run up to my holiday in order to get my body beach and sunshine ready. Everyone wants to step out on the beach on day one and feel genuinely happy in their skin and hopefully, doing some of these things a month/a few weeks before you get onto that beach should help. If you're wanting smooth, soft, silky, glowing skin, ready to be hit by the sunshine then you're in the right place...
First a little photograph of my beach body so far (with a natural tan on day 3 of my holiday), hopefully it will be smoother than this after using these products more!
Exfoliate - Exfoliate before you go on holiday! It's really that easy. It's my Mum who's always taught me to do this, it means that your going on holiday with 'new', fresh skin cells which means that your skin will be smoother and wont shed as quickly, therefore, your tan will last longer. Me and my Mum have both tested this theory and it works! I am obsessed with this Circulation Body Scrub which I was kindly sent by Nip+Fab to try out. I smell absolutely incredible after using it and it really does make my body feel energised. This is designed to stimulate, energise and revitalise the skin after your work out (perfect if you're working on your beach body too). I haven't been using it after a work out I've just been using it on a morning to wake up my skin and I honestly have to say that even after one use, I feel so pampered and polished. It's meant to jump start the body and polish the skin with it's brightening and invigorating ingredients and I really believe it does just this. It really is like 'an espresso shot for the skin'. I love this and never want it to run out. Gold star for you Nip+Fab!
Another in-shower product which I love so much for smooth, hydrated skin is the amazing Body Sorbert's from The Body Shop. If you read my blog a lot you'll have definitely seen me rave about these more than once as I'm always talking about how great they are. Using this is like applying a thick, not creamy, but sorbet-like moisturiser to your skin in the shower. It doesn't lather, it just sinks into the skin. You can leave it in the fridge too and then it's super cold and hydrating. I'd definitely recommend using something like this after you've exfoliated in the shower just to make yourself extra smooth. This is available from July, please hurry up, I need to stock up.
Moisturise! - So once you've exfoliated it's time to moisturise. I strongly believe that moisturising every day before your holiday is the right thing to do. I guess we should moisturise our bodies every day anyway, we moisturise our faces twice daily after all so why don't we moisturise our bodies? I know it's an absolute pain to moisturise all your limbs, that sticky feeling is awful but if you make it part of your routine, it becomes easier. I make sure I do it as soon as I jump out of the shower, then it becomes a habit. Moisturising your body every day will obviously lead to smoother, softer, silkier skin. The best times to apply a moisturiser are apparently after you've exfoliated or showered, your skin will stay hydrated for longer if you do it this way apparently. My favourite moisturisers are the He-Shi Souffle moisturiser (you can currently get their 3-step set on Feel Unique here for just £24.50 which is amazing), because it's designed to be applied when you're wearing fake tan, this means that it's nice and strong and super duper moisturising in order to put back the moisture in your skin that's lost when you put fake tan on. Any fake tan is very drying for this skin and this is formulated to combat that awful drying sensation (full He-Shi review here). I haven't worn fake tan for months but I still swear by this particular moisturiser simply because it's one of the best I've come across for being super moisturising. I also love any body butters from The Body Shop and really swear by these for glowing limbs. Korres (another favourite brand) also do some incredible moisturisers.
Another amazing little moisturiser is the new 7 Day Moisture Miracle Balm which I was kindly sent to try by Sanctuary Spa (it's only £7.00 too). As most of you will know, I am obsessed with Sanctuary Spa, it's such an under-rated brand and one that I now swear by. This handy little tube has a rich blend of 7 precious oils for targeted moisture lasting up to 7 days, perfect for the lazy female who really can't be bothered moisturising her skin every day (me). Also perfect for banishing any dry skin before your holiday. I'll be taking this on the plane as you can use it on your hands, your elbows, your knees and your face. The list is endless and air pressure on air planes really does mess up my skin, this is a perfect little multi-tasking hydrating product. Thanks Sanctuary Spa for being fabulous again.
Firm your body - As mentioned, I exercise in order to tone up and firm my body. I would never substitute exercise for a cream but I needed to talk to you about this brand. I actually reviewed some of the Dr. Ceuticals products when I first ever started blogging and I still love them now as much as I did back then. I'm not sure if I'm just in love with the name and idea of the product: 'Beach Perfect Body Firmer', it is a bit of a customers dream, everything a girl could want in a bottle I guess. But truthfully, I just love how this feels on my legs and I do feel like this tightens them up even after one use. I'm sure it's not visible after one use but to me as the user, they do feel tighter and nicer. I am going to use this for a month so that I can give it a fair trial but I have just been using this at the top of my legs to banish cellulite and tone my horrible thighs. I would recommend this, again, it's worth a try and it's got some great ingredients in including caffeine which is a renowned anti-cellulite ingredient containing key slimming properties to stimulate skin and target areas of cellulite and fatty deposits. That's why I've just been putting this on areas where I think I have fatty deposits (my legs yuck). I do really love this product and I kind of feel like it's worth swapping my normal moisturiser for something which promises to tone, might as well give it a go for a month!
If you don't tan - Personally I would never wear any form of fake tan when going on holiday because I tan really nicely naturally, I go very dark (as you'll have probably seen from my Greece photographs). But I know that a lot of people dislike the first few days when they're pale. If you're needing a nice little glow and boost to get you ready for your holiday and those first few days I'd highly recommend the new Vichy Moisturizing milk for face and body. I recommend this because it's moisturising and light rather than being a drying fake tan (the sun dries your skin out enough so you don't want to add to this!), also, it's a nice natural colour and you can build your tan on top of this. My other favourite gradual tanners, which I use in England are Palmers Cocoa Bronze Gradual Tan, as most of you will know I am obsessed with this, the smell, the colour, it's moisturising properties = perfection. I also love Dove natural glow. I always feel slimmer and fresher with a tan. 
Fix Your Feet - Lastly, I'm not really a feet person but they are really out on the beach so I probably should start caring for them. I love this new Honey & Beeswax Hand and Foot Butter from The Body Shop (anything with honey in is a winner for me, as you'll know if you read my Honey Bronze post). It makes me feel sick putting things on my feet that are too sticky and oily but this is just nice and it really does moisturise my feet nicely. I also love Volcano foot mask from Lush, Soap and Glory Heel Genius and Bliss Softening Foot Socks (they're actually really good if you can get past having wet feet for 10 minutes). This has now inspired me to go put a foot mask on and paint my toe nails, I really don't care for my feet enough and I really should because they carry me every where after all!
So there we have it, my quick and easy kind of tips and favourite products when it comes to getting yourself beach ready and body perfect, obviously everyone has a different idea of how they'd like their body to be but personally, healthy, toned and smooth is how I'd like to see mine! I can't wait to keep using these products and report back.
What do you do before going on holiday? Do you agree with any of my tips? Do you like the look of any of these products?
Lots of love, Em x
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