01 — The weeknight hero
2 Hour Express Mousse
Two-hour develop, golden-base, customisable depth. The fastest route into the brand and the smartest test of the formula.
AU$49.95 · Medium & Dark
Shop at Mecca →
Loving Tan
Loving Tan.
The Melbourne premium DIY tan that turned founder Renee Lee into the most-followed self-tan name in Australia.
Considered, repeatable, expensive. 2 Hour Express, Deluxe Bronzing Mousse, Glow Drops. Stocked at Mecca, Adore Beauty, Sephora AU and direct at lovingtan.com.au.
The brand
Renee Lee built the considered tan category. From Melbourne. In 2010.
Loving Tan is the Aussie premium DIY tan that turned self-tanning from a Friday-night accident into a repeatable ritual. Founder Renee Lee designed the formulas, applied them on herself, and turned her own face into the brand.
Founded in Melbourne in 2010, Loving Tan landed in the category gap that supermarket tans created: a product that costs more, behaves more like a salon spray-tan, and is built to be applied by the user without orange streaks. Renee Lee remains the founder, the formulator, and the editorial face of the brand — the most-followed self-tan name in Australia.
What supermarket tans don't do: a golden-base colour that develops to a real bronze, not a fake orange. A guide colour you can actually see when applying. A mitt that's been redesigned twice. Customer service that handles returns when the shade is wrong for your skin tone.
In Australia, the brand is stocked at Mecca (the deepest range), Adore Beauty, Sephora Australia, and direct at lovingtan.com.au. The price is the price for a reason: this sits above Bondi Sands and Bali Body, and the colour pay-off is what justifies it.
The category
Where considered DIY tan sits above the supermarket shelf.
Loving Tan is a premium-tier formula in a category dominated by $20 supermarket cans. The price difference buys colour quality, longevity, and a brand that built the considered-tan playbook before everyone else.
The three to buy
Start here. In this order.
The express mousse for weeknights. The Deluxe for longevity. The Drops for face only or top-up. The full Loving Tan starter kit, ranked.
02 — The flagship
Deluxe Bronzing Mousse
The salon-finish flagship. Deeper colour, longer wear, repeatable golden-base — not orange. Most-reviewed product in the range.
AU$49.95 · Medium & Dark
Shop at Mecca →
03 — The customiser
Glow Drops
Two-to-six drops into moisturiser or serum, applied at night, develops by morning. Face-friendly, top-up-friendly, build-it-yourself colour.
AU$39.95 · Face & Body
Shop at Adore Beauty →
The editorial case
A premium DIY tan only earns its price when the routine sticks.
Loving Tan rewards repeat use. The colour outcome compounds when you treat it like a weekly ritual — same applicator, same prep, same product. If you tan twice a year and abandon the bottle, the spend doesn’t make sense. If you treat it as your tan routine, this is the brand that defined the considered DIY category and still leads it.
The proof
What the routine actually looks like.
The Loving Tan ritual: prep, apply, develop, repeat. The colour pay-off and longevity come from the routine, not from any one bottle.
If not Loving Tan
Six self-tan brands editors keep on the shortlist.
The verdict
Loving Tan is the Melbourne premium DIY tan that defined the considered-tan category and still leads it. Renee Lee built a formula that behaves like a salon spray-tan when you treat it like a ritual — golden-base, no orange, repeatable. The price sits above Bondi Sands and Bali Body for a reason.
The Glow editors · Updated June 2026
At a glance
Appendix · quick reference
The quick answer.
Loving Tan is an Australian premium DIY self-tan brand founded in Melbourne in 2010 by Renee Lee. Hero ranges: 2 Hour Express Mousse, Deluxe Bronzing Mousse, Glow Drops, Tanning Lotion. Sits above Bondi Sands and Bali Body in price; considered the cult premium DIY tan in Australia. Stocked at Mecca, Adore Beauty, Sephora Australia and direct at lovingtan.com.au. Independently scored 9.1 / 10 by The Glow editors in June 2026.
FAQ
The six questions editors get asked.
- Where can I buy Loving Tan in Australia?
- Mecca (in-store and online), Adore Beauty, Sephora Australia, and direct at lovingtan.com.au. Mecca carries the strongest full range nationally.
- What’s the difference between 2 Hour Express and Deluxe Bronzing Mousse?
- 2 Hour Express develops in two hours — for fast turnaround, weeknights, or when you want the option to rinse early. Deluxe is the flagship long-wear: deeper colour pay-off, longer wear, the salon-finish formula. Both are golden-base, neither runs orange.
- Is Loving Tan worth the price vs Bondi Sands?
- If you use self-tan as a considered ritual — same applicator, same day of the week, same product — yes. Loving Tan’s colour outcome and longevity reward the price. If you tan twice a year, Bondi Sands is the more sensible spend. The Glow has both brands ranked at /best/self-tan-australia/.
- Is Loving Tan cruelty-free?
- Yes. Loving Tan is cruelty-free (not tested on animals) and the entire range is vegan-formulated.
- How long does Loving Tan last?
- Deluxe Bronzing Mousse: 7–10 days with normal showers. 2 Hour Express: 5–7 days. Glow Drops build colour overnight and fade with the natural skin cycle when you stop applying.
- Who founded Loving Tan?
- Renee Lee founded Loving Tan in Melbourne in 2010. She remains the most-followed self-tan founder in Australia and the editorial face of the brand.
Comparison
Where Loving Tan lands.
Same shelf, same buyer. The values that actually swing the basket.
| Brand | Hero price | Format | Develop time | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loving Tan | AU$49.95 | Mousse + drops | 2hr / overnight | Premium DIY |
| Bondi Sands | AU$22.99 | Foam + mousse | 1–3hr | Mass |
| Bali Body | AU$34.95 | Mousse + water | 2–4hr | Mid |
| Australian Glow | AU$24.99 | 1HR Express mousse | 1hr | Mass premium |
| St Tropez | AU$59.00 | Mousse + drops | 1–8hr | Prestige |
