BRONZER

Some of us like a little gleam with our sun kissing. And others prefer a more matte finish – that doesn't mean it need be dull though. Different options here, all of which gave our testers a healthy glow that they loved. And you might want to sweep it on cheekbones and forehead or all over face, neck and décolletage. Different options here, all of which gave our testers a healthy glow that they loved.  Remember though, this is not an SPF – so if you go in the sun you still need to apply protection. Or do as we’re increasingly urged and apply sun protection every day.

One extra thing: readers interested in ingredients will see that, as with blusher, products may contain talc – magnesium silicate. For anyone with concerns about talc, the brands reassure that cosmetic grade talc is at the top of the purity scale; only talc that meets very high levels of quality and purity is permitted for use in cosmetics.

GOLD AWARD Guerlain Terracotta Light - Healthy Glow Bronzing Powder (03)

Mimicking the effect of a day in the sun ‘sans UV exposure’ sounds a perfectly Parisian approach to creating a sun kissed complexion, in keeping with this adored French heritage brand. The skin-illuminating formula contains ultra-fine bronzing pigments in a mosaic pattern of matte and radiant bronze, blush and highlight shades, to bring natural light and shade. In six colour ways, this is based on three ‘intensities – Light, Medium and Deep, each available in a Cool and a Warm undertone. Our testers trialled shade 03 Medium Warm, the most popular shade. With 96% naturally derived ingredients in this Natural Healthy Glow pressed powder in its signature Guerlain mirrored compact, use a kabuki brush or blusher brush to sweep a luminous Riviera glow over your face with no need to leave home.

£47 - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. Love love love this product! Great bronzer, colour blends well even with pale skin like mine. Would definitely recommend and have done already to friends. Really easy to use, and it blended easily. I used it to highlight cheeks, chin and nose in particular, applying with a big brush. Coverage was perfect. If I wanted a heavier coverage I would just apply more for evening. It sits well on top of my foundation (Estee Lauder Double wear) and it works well with my highlighter. The colour lasted all day for me’ • ‘This is a fab bronzer; the first one I tried that was not a solid colour and I loved that depth of colour the mix gave. There is a strong, old-fashioned perfume scent from the pan but it does not linger when you put it on. You could never be heavy handed when applying this bronzer and it blends so easily on my face’ • ‘Light powder bronzer that is not completely matte but not shimmery just glowing. Worked well on all make-up I tried it on; I generally set my liquid foundations with a powder and then apply this product but I have also applied this direct to liquid foundation and it work as well’ • ‘It comes in an attractive compact with a useful mirror. It was easy to swirl a large soft brush over the bronzer's surface and to get just the right amount of product. There was no excessive flaking of the product. I loved it - a joy to use. It blended seamlessly into the skin without appearing to “sit” on its surface. It looked so natural as if the healthy glow it gave my skin was the effect of a sunny, relaxing holiday. Whenever I've worn it, people have complimented me on how well I look, and asked if I've been on a recent holiday. I feel confident in my appearance when I wear this bronzer’ • ‘I would 100% buy this, as I can't live without it. A wonderful bronzer if you like your skin to have a warm, natural, not over-the-top glow.  It is a beautiful, easy product to work with, which blends quickly and easily into the skin. I can't recommend it highly enough. It is perfect. Don't wait another second before trying it’ • ‘I do not usually use a bronzer as I find them too strong in colour, too brown or too orange. This however, looked very strong in the pallet but when I used it with a large soft bronzing brush it gave a warmed look to my skin. It was economical to use; I got a good coverage without it being obvious, it blended really well and I am now converted to using a bronzer’ • ‘The perfect bronzer for me. I don’t look made-up or tangoed when using this, I look like a more healthy and glowing version of me. As I haven’t used a bronzer regularly before, due to not finding one I liked, this has been quite a revelation for me. A lovely product.’

£47 - click to buy 

SILVER (JOINT) AWARD delilah Sunset Matt Bronzer (Light Medium)

Just two shades here, which makes choosing simple. So Light Medium or Medium Dark, of which our testers trialled the first. Like the blush, which also did incredibly well, the adjective on the cosmetic high street is ‘buttery’, down to the nourishing hydrating cocktail of jojoba oil and vitamin E to help it glide over your skin and give a natural-looking warm bronze tone. The soft-focus pigments create an instant blurring effect, the brand promises. Best advice for placement is to start on the bits that stick out: tops of the cheekbones, forehead, down the bridge of the nose and the tip of the chin, with a light dusting over jawline and neck to avoid edges. Now blend, blend, blend with the Delilah Bronzer Brush – or your own, of course.

£38.50 - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. This is the best bronzer I have ever used. Being fair and freckly it blended well with my skin tone and gave a really natural look - perfect for a subtle and natural bronzed glow. It blended with foundation (the ordinary serum foundation) perfectly and worked well with top-ups.  It lasted well throughout the day at work and could be reapplied easily. People complimented my tan and noticed the glow’ • ‘Loved this buildable bronzer!! When I first started using it I didn't think you could really see any difference but it gives the skin a subtle glow and blends beautifully. Gave me a lovely matte complexion, with a good level of coverage. Worked very well with my other make-up and I liked the fact it wasn't too strong a shade on my skin. Lasted all day’ • ‘I’ve just looked up what they promise, and see they say it’s creamy and blends matte and subtle, so yes, that’s exactly what I experienced. Being matte helped it sink in and “vanish” as make-up, leaving it just looking like my natural skin, which I really appreciated. Also, the colour was only just a shade darker than my foundation, which was lovely as it just added a subtle sun-kissed tone rather than screaming TAN! or MAKE-UP! I have used bronzers and blushers in the past, and this did compare beautifully to anything I’d used before. I also loved that it didn’t have a discernible scent, which I’m sensitive to, and rarely appreciate! And all the packaging felt sumptuous and enjoyably sleek’ • ‘This complimented and blended really well with my mineral powder foundation. I used a brush first and that worked fine, but being a powder I didn’t think to use my fingers until I read this and it actually worked even better, as it was easier to apply more precisely and the effect was more subtle and natural’ • ‘A smooth powder for full face or blusher glow. Fabulous to use; it blended really well. I used a brush for even effect. It lasted all day and I topped it up in the evening if going out’ • ‘I would convert to this product.  It adds a natural glow and is not overpowering, resulting in a fake tan style appearance. With just a quick top-up it will last all day and evening.  I used it over concealer and it worked well, either full face and neck using a soft brush to work and blend or just on my cheeks, T-zone and neck for a lesser look appearance.  I really like this bronzer and the packaging is lovely too.’

£38.50 - click to buy 

SILVER (JOINT) AWARD HUDA Beauty Tantour

This is a cream to powder formula, from the brand founded by gorgeous celebrity American make-up artist Huda Kattan, whose parents came from Iraq originally. It has double billing as a bronzer and a contour creator too – so as Huda says, you can build from subtle glow to chiselled cheekbones, while the deeply pigmented formula banishes dullness for a long lasting, sweat and water resistant finish – perfect for summer then. There are five shades to choose from: Fair - a neutral honey shade best for fair to light complexions; Light for light to medium complexions; Medium - a neutral mocha shade, for medium to tan complexions; Tan - a deep cocoa shade for deeper complexions and Rich - a deep mahogany shade for very deep complexions. Our testers were sent Tan, which was on the deep side for some but suited our olive and darker skinned testers very well.

£31 - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. The product was very easy to use, and it blended evenly and smoothly on my olive skin. The texture is very smooth and creamy, which made it easy to apply with my brush. The pigmentation was just right, not too light or heavy, giving me a natural-looking sun-kissed glow. I was very impressed with how versatile it was when it came to application. I found that I could apply the product with either my fingers or a brush, depending on the look I was going for. When I used my fingers, I was able to blend the product in more precisely, while using a brush gave me more control over the overall coverage. I also tried using a sponge, and it worked well for blending’ • ‘One of the things I love about this product is how well it sinks into my complexion. It blends seamlessly into my skin, without looking heavy or cakey. It doesn't sit on top of my complexion, but rather becomes a part of it, giving me a natural-looking sun-kissed glow. The formula is very lightweight and silky, making it a pleasure to apply, and it doesn't leave any streaks or patches. I also appreciate that it's long-lasting, so I don't have to worry about reapplying throughout the day’ • ‘People have noticed how my skin looks brighter, healthier, and more radiant. They've also mentioned how my complexion looks more even and natural. I think this bronzer is a game-changer and it's really helped to enhance my features and bring out the best in my complexion’ • ‘The consistency of this bronzer and it being a cream made it very easy to blend into my skin, very seamless, smooth and even.  The container is so cute: Small but robust.  I did struggle to open it at first, as there was no indication that it is a screw top.  The feel of this bronzer is so velvety, it is a pleasure it use as it.  Maybe a little bit greasy for oily skin, but it glides on so effortlessly.  I can really change the shape and look of my face with this bronzer, with or without foundation it blends easily. I do like this more than my usual bronzer as that takes more time to apply and get the right coverage, whereas this bronzer moves to where you want it.  My usual product does give me a tanned look but this gave me a sun kissed glow. 

£31 - click to buy 

BRONZE (JOINT) AWARD and BEAUTY STEAL Sleek Face Form Bronzer

The mirrored compact is available in four shades for different skin tones: Daym (the darkest), Fire, Literally and Obsessed (the lightest, which our testers trialled although some fair skin tones still found it a bit dark) - and no, we don't understand the names. The formula contains superfine pigments and pearls to give you a ‘believable sunkissed glow’ so you can add shape, warmth and colour, they say. Sweep lightly over cheeks, chin and forehead, they advise; anywhere the sun would usually catch you really and that could include neck and décolletage. Sleek also promises that it’s long lasting, and that’s absolutely right according to our testers. Amazingly good value so a definite Beauty Steal.

£6.99 - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘This is a perfect bronzer for the winter months as it is very natural and light. It also doubled as a great eye shadow base when using eye make-up! Great for day and night as not glittery at all. The Compact was very easy to open and the palette was easy to apply and blend with my own bronzer brush (you do need a brush). It went well over tinted serum. I would leave it all day or evening and not need to reapply’ • ‘I couldn't believe how good this product is; it's long lasting, easy to apply and made my appearance look healthy and youthful - even I couldn't believe the difference. People kept saying how well I looked. Long lasting – ALL DAY!!! 10/10 amazing - good coverage and amazing value for money’ • ‘Love this product. Gives incredible coverage and colour without being glitzy, sparkly and worked brilliantly with all my make-up, giving a real boost to my make-up regime. I will definitely buy this’ • ‘Great bronzing powder. Full even coverage without looking sparkly’ • ‘A soft natural bronzer that lasts and feels very light on the skin, easy to use and can be built up without any cakeyness. Didn’t really give any coverage but it did have a slight blurring effect. It played well with my other makeup, I don’t use foundation, just concealer, so this powder sat on my skin then I applied blusher and highlighter over the top, there was no displacement of the bronzer when the other makeup was applied. The colour lasted really well and I didn’t ever feel the need to reapply even for an evening make up, so it lasted for hours’ • ‘ideal for me, I often just used it if I was just dashing out or popping to the shops to give me some colour, I really like it’ • ‘This product is a square matt black compact with a mirror the same size as the bronzer brick. The bronzer itself is a superfine powder, very soft and feather light. It looks matt in the compact but has a gentle golden sheen once on the skin. It can be used as a subtle wash of colour and glow on no make-up days when you just need a little bit of a skin pick-me-up without too much effort - a quick swipe and you're done.’

£6.99 - click to buy 

BRONZE (JOINT) AWARD and BEST NATURAL OSKIA Nutri-Bronze Tinted Serum

Like all OSKIA products, this adaptive bronzing skin tint and anti-ageing serum is chockfull of nourishing ingredients. So the super lightweight formula will give your skin a luminous, healthy holiday glow while also boosting skin health with bakuchiol (aka nature’s retinol), milk peptides, pro-vitamin B5 and Swiss apple stem cells, vitamin E and hyaluronic acid – oh and founder Georgie Cleeve’s favourite anti-inflammatory MSM. Use it on its own over face, neck and décolletage or mix with your moisturiser: a little goes a long way, they emphasise, so start with a little squish! Ingredients are 99.69% natural and natural origins, with the remaining 0.31% nature identical. Oh, and remember you can use this anywhere on your body too for a bespoke bronze glow. A multiple Beauty Bible Award winner this, as well as a trunk full of other ones. (And a personal favourite of Team BB.) A lower Award than previously as one tester ‘absolutely loved it’ but it didn’t love her skin – triggering an irritation after a couple of days. She passed it to her sister who was very happy indeed. But that brought the average score down.

£64 for 30ml - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. I have been converted by this product, as it has been a revelation to me. I don’t wear make-up, but this really doesn't feel like you are wearing any. It’s so easy to apply - actually goes on surprisingly smoothly with or without moisturiser - and the end result is a healthy, “just back from summer holiday” glow. It definitely brightens up my face and gives me a little colour and diminishes the uneven tone of my skin. My friends all noticed that I had what looked like a bit of a tan, which they all said, looked lovely. I would definitely buy this product as I have fallen in love with it’ • ‘When I first saw the shade I thought oh this could be a bit dark for my pasty skin, but it did said it was adaptive so I kept my hopes up. Sure enough it went onto my skin and blended in perfectly to just the right shade. It gave me a glow that looked like the glow you get when you have spent the day outside in the summer and come back with a fresh tan. The serum had a lovely fragrance as well, which made it feel luxurious. The coverage I was really impressive it says you can wear over make up but it was enough for me on its own. I loved the sun kissed glow that it gave my face and it was really hydrating which gave my skin a dewiness.  It was the whole package - a serum to plump and hydrate my skin, mixed with a tint to give my skin a stunning golden radiant glow. A definite must have for make up bags! Normally I would apply a moisturiser then a primer and then a foundation and concealer to cover my skin and smooth it out. Then I would be adding bronzer on top to give myself a glow. So using this one product removed the need for primer, foundation, concealer and it felt really light so my skin could breathe’ • ‘Throughout the day this lasted really well and did not go patchy. Even on hotter days when travelling to the office wearing a mask I used some setting spray on top and had no movement at all so it was pretty impressive’ • ‘Covered the thread vein on my nose, all pores, blemishes except for a spot (needed a dab of concealer) and it also smoothed my fine lines and made them less visible which is a win win for me! Throughout the day this lasted really well and did not go patchy. Even on hotter days when travelling to the office wearing a mask I used some setting spray on top and had no movement at all so it was pretty impressive’ • ‘I really liked this product, the smooth application, the subtle dewy glow and also the slight shimmer it gave. I often mixed this product with my tinted moisturiser, which also worked well’ • ‘The serum was also a beauty treatment, and I felt that my skin looked healthier and certainly more hydrated when I used it. It is also lightweight, which I find very important in a product, it did not feel heavy or masklike at all, and worked to make my skin feel comfortable, hydrated and glowy. Love it!’

£64 for 30ml - click to buy