He may be just a Ken, but the glow-up Ryan Gosling underwent for the Barbie movie is some next-level stuff. He traded in his mousy brown hair for a bright blonde platinum dye job and he swapped out his shirt for a torso-baring, boyband-worthy series of semi-skimpy outfits (which we guess is fine by us).
To help him achieve the perfect Ken tan, Ryan had his own personal tanner on hand to keep him topped up (it’s a dirty job, but someone’s gotta do it). So we tapped up his spray tan and skin finishing expert, Kimberley Nkosi, to find out what exactly went into getting Ryan’s tan right, as well as her other Kens and Barbies, Emma Mackay, Scott Evans, Hari Nef and Ana Cruz Kayne.
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Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros.
What was the brief?
“Most of the planning came from the head makeup artist,” Kim explained. “I was given the brief and incorporated my professional opinion based on what the actor’s skin tone and undertone looked like to achieve the truest most natural looking tan,” she said. The tricky part was ensuring that it didn’t “project any yellow or orange hues and that it didn’t give off any red tones under the lights of the set,” she explained. “We did lots of tests and looking at shades and tones prior to actually executing to make sure we got it right.”
What tan did you use?
In the end, Kim settled on drugstore brand, Isle Of Paradise’s Prep It Self-Tan Priming Spray (£14.95) and Self-Tanning Water (£18.95). “This has a colour correcting active in it,” she explained. “In technical terms, this means opposite hues cancel each other out and evens out any discolouration that the skin may have – which makes it perfect to use on set,” she revealed.
Apparently, that glow was prepped with Isle of Paradise’s Prep It Self-Tan Priming Spray (£14.95) and developed with the brand’s Self-Tanning Water (£18.95). You can save when you shop with these LookFantastic discount codes.
What was the trickiest part?
To get the tan to look flawless, Kim had to make sure everything was prepped strategically. “The areas to watch out for with the Kens was stuff like beard stubble and eyebrows,” she said. “You don’t want tan catching on either as if they do, they tend to look quite orange, so it was important to run moisturiser through these areas. They’re a tell-tale sign that someone has had a fake tan otherwise,” she advised.
How often would you need to reapply the tan?
To keep Ryan’s Barbieland tan going, Kim was called in 1-2 times per week, depending on what was going on on set. Then Ryan’s skin would be finished by a makeup artist on set using body makeup and maintaining it throughout the day.
How did you keep the tan looking good?
Kim gave her Kens and Barbies some homework when it came to maintaining their tans. “Since we were tanning regularly, it was very important that the skin was taken care of and looked after in between. To prevent any build up, exfoliation was of upmost importance,” said Kim, who would tell her Kens and Barbies to gently exfoliate every 2-3 days. And hydration was also essential. For this Kim recommended regular moisturising and lots of water. “I know it’s cliché but water really is the fountain of life when it comes to healthy hydrated skin,” she explained.
How does a Ken and Barbie tan differ from a regular tan?
Life in plastic is a little different to life in the human world, so Kim had to make sure the tans she created had an extra glow. “In order to get a flawless doll-like finish in your tan, prep is key,” she revealed. Pre tan, this meant making sure skin was “hydrated” and “silky smooth”. “Once you’ve achieved the perfect base and applied your chosen glow, if you’re wanting to create more of a blur for that doll-like finish, body blurs and skin finishing products are going to help you achieve that when applied on top of your tan,” Kim advises.
So, for a Ryan Gosling tan, you can actually skip Barbieland and head straight to Boots.
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