Pinterest Self Tanner with Tea — Big Hit or Bust?

Each week I will search for a new and unique beauty idea on Pinterest and try it out.  Then I will let you know if it’s a Beauty “Big Hit” — or a Beauty “Bust”.

This Week’s Pin: Using black tea as a self tanner.

The Claim: You can give yourself a bronzed glow from the comforts of your own home for cheap by spraying yourself with brewed Black Tea.  An added benefit is that is doesnt have that horrible "self tanning lotion" smell, it's healthy for your skin, and will last for about 4 days!

Items needed:

* a clean spray bottle

* 4 black tea bags (I chose to use Orange Spice Black Tea, for the scent)

*  2 cups of water

Directions:   Find a spot in your bathroom you don’t mind getting a little messy in, such as the shower or your bathtub.

Boil your water and let your tea bags steep for about 15 minutes. While your teabags are steeping, have a quick shower to get any excess oil or sweat off your body so your tan doesn’t end up looking streaky and will dry evenly. Once you are done with your shower, are completely dried off, and your tea has cooled down enough to touch without burning you, simply pour your tea, sans tea bags, into your spray bottle and sit down in your bathtub or shower.

Then spray yourself evenly with your tea mixture, giving it time to soak in and dry before doing your next coat.

*It's best to do one body part at a time and let that section dry before moving onto another area so you can be sure your tan looks exactly how you want it to look.*

 If you are after a darker shade, spray yourself a third or fourth time until you get your desired color. Make sure that you are fully dry before getting dressed as you don’t want to run the risk of staining your clothes.

The Results:   For the record, I am someone who loves the look of a glowing tan, and am ALWAYS in search of a great self tanning product that 1) doesnt smell like a sweaty locker room, and 2) doesnt turn my skin a shade of "Snooki orange".  This idea made sense to me, gently "staining" my skin with tea, and I was excited to give it a go.  I'm sorry to report, however, that the only thing this concoction did was stain the grout of the tile in my shower.  As noted in the below pictures, the Trophy Wife is still just as pale in the before as in the after photo.

The Verdict:  The Black Tea Self Tanner is a Beauty "Bust".