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Get summer-ready skin with the best smoothing, softening moisturisers

12 JUNE 2009

Baring your bod when the sun comes out means your skin needs to look soft and smooth, so we’ve tested a variety of moisturiser for different needs to see which best do the job…

For intensive moisture - Elle Macpherson The Body Ultimate Moisture Body Butter, £8.95, is an incredibly thick cream, although it penetrates quickly and well. It has a strong, but pleasant lemongrassy smell that really lingers, giving skin a fresh scent. The perfect cream to slather on before bed and leave to do its work overnight.

For daily use - L’Oreal Paris Body Expertise NutriLift Firmness Restoring 24hr Hydrating Milk, £4.49. Super-light, delicately fragranced, instantly absorbed and best of all, in a pump-action dispenser, it takes the least time to apply and yet still does the job.

For pre-fake tanning - Fake Bake Oil Free Moisturiser, £12 (visit fakebake.co.uk or call 08448 565758 for stockists). Traditional moisturisers often contain greasy ingredients that sit on the skin – great for forming a barrier against moisture loss, but not so helpful if you want your fake tan ingredients to sink in evenly after you’ve moisturised.

So Fake Bake has made an oil-free moisturiser which is light but still softening and sinks in instantly. Use it on particularly dry areas – knees, feet, elbows – prior to tanning so they don’t ‘grab’ the colour, creating an uneven result. But you can probably use it all over, too, as long as you wait an hour or so to make sure it’s fully absorbed. And apply regularly in the days after you’ve self-tanned, to keep it looking smooth.