Sometimes it seems like my skin isn’t getting any darker. What’s going on????

You’re hitting what is known as a “tanning plateau.” The tanning process thickens your skin cells, so not only does UV light have a harder time penetrating your skin, but the cells themselves are reflecting away more of the light that causes melanin to darken. To coax more color shade out of your tanning time, try a moisturizing lotion developed by the tanning industry. Moisturizers make skin more translucent, which lets in more UV rays and may net you a darker shade or two.

Just be aware that even if you do use moisturizers, your skin may simply be showing the limit to the amount of melanin it can produce. In that case, if you spend more time tanning, it will be to prolong the color but not darken its shade. Also, let your skin rest to allow it to relax and possibly produce more melalin.