There are few better ways to cut back on your beauty budget than to make your own beauty booty yourself. This week, we’re sharing one of the quickest and easiest ways to get a bronzy glow a la J.Lo – without spending a whole lotta dough.

Lopez’s longtime makeup artist, Scott Barnes, has credited body oil with giving her the golden, dewy skin that’s arguably her best accessory (besides maybe her much-hyped derriere). The gorgeous girls of the Victoria’s Secret fashion show also swear by shimmer-infused lotions to get their legs looking fabulous as they strut down the runway (as if they needed any help). Like any good fashionista, these girls know that shunning the sun’s harmful U.V. rays is the best bet for preserving soft, supple skin, so they rely on these bronzing liquids to give them a subtle sheen. While products like Barnes’ own Body Bling formulation (at ScottBarnes.com) and NARS’ best-selling Body Glow (from Sephora), retail for $48 and $59, respectively, you can actually concoct your own sexy-skin potion at home.

Start with a light essential oil like Grapeseed Oil – available at health food stores everywhere and even some regular grocery and drug stores – which is deeply moisturizing yet fast-absorbing. Pour out a small amount into a bowl or cup, then add a generous sprinkling of a shimmery bronzer (we like Bonne Bell Glimmer Bronze Highlighting Dust, $3.95, at drugstore.com). Stir well or just mix with fingers, then apply over skin (for best results, use right after a shower or bath, when steam has softened skin and opened pores). For a highlighting effect, concentrate body oil in a line running down the middle of thighs and calves, and along collar bones and décolletage.

Grapeseed Oil: around $7. Bronzing powder: around $4. Knocking ‘em dead with your gorgeous, radiant skin? Priceless.