Spray tanning

[laughwithme]

I am going to a spray-tan salon this Saturday. I''ve never done it before. Can I get some thoughts from those who are more experienced with this?

1. Does it look fairly natural? Or is the concept of being "orange" somewhat true?

2. How soon ahead do I exfoliate, and how? I planned on showering the night before and using my loofah really well, esp. in my knees/elbows. Is this good enough?

3. Do spray tans "build" over time? Or will I be very dark after one application? My coworkers might think something strange is going on....

4. How long does it last? How long does it take to appear?

5. Does it spray your face with the same color of mist, or can it be lighter/darker? My face is naturally kinda pink so it doesn''t need much, if any, color.

6. Are there different levels of color? I don''t want to walk out super dark on my first trip.

I am so excited about this option as opposed to using tanning beds. I just hope I don''t look like an Oompa Loompa.

 

[Nov2109]

it all depends on the salon...

I go to Hollywood Tans and tried their spray tan last year for a friends wedding and didn''t like it...its very light feeling, but I just felt weird after wards, like it wasn''t a real tan. It does look very natural, depending on your skin tone depends on how many times you need to go...or atleast thats what they told me. I went once and wasn''t satisfied as I''m very fair and felt I needed to go a few more times...one time in the tanning booth was much better, even though its not very good for you.

As far as exfoliating, I used a loofah and exfoliating wash the two days before I went...I didn''t get blotchy and had an even tan.

I decided to go with regular old tanning booths for my wedding. ..I also wanted a "real tan"(haha) so I would have a base tan for the honeymoon. I just started yesterday for my June wedding. I figure twice a week for two months will give me a nice glow, but not look too dark that it looks fake.

I would call your salon and ask them the best way to prep for their services...

 

[BigDiamonds]

Are you talking spray tan like in a booth, or with a person with an airbrush gun? I''ll tell you that in my experience, airbrush looks much more natural IF you have a good person do it. I have seen some absolutely tragic booth spray tans. That said, I do think the technology has improved and it''s definitely possible to get one that looks good. I think most of them now have separate face sprays so you can vary the amount of color. Airbrush is a bit more expensive but totally worth it, plus it only takes one visit because they can make it as dark or light as you want. I liked that a lot because I''m too busy to be running back and forth to the tanning salon, but the downside is that you are suddenly tanned instead of gradually getting color.

I did airbrush for my wedding and I was very glad I did a trial run. The first day was really dark and a little orange. My fiance actually called me an oompa-loompa at the time. The second day was better but still a bit dark, but by day three the color was perfect, there were no dark spots, and it looked great. The color fades pretty quickly (at least it did on me), I would say after about a week it''s starting to need help. You can extend it by not exfoliating and staying really well moisturized, my tanning salon recommended full body lotion morning and night.

Before the tan I exfoliated with a non-oily scrub and a loofah, and that was fine. I would do it the day of if possible and obviously don''t apply any lotion after your shower. At least with airbrush, the liquid has both an instant bronzer that shows up immediately in addition to an underlying color that develops on your skin over a few hours. The bronzer gives you an idea of how dark you will be and helps the person applying see where they need more color. That part washes off the first time you shower, and what''s left underneath it your tanned skin. Fair warning that during the time that the tanner has developed and your skin is dark and it still covered with bronzer, you look a little scary.

Good luck!

 

[laughwithme]

Thanks BD!!

I am doing the airbrush thing - the lady takes me in a room and targets areas that need color and I can tell her how light/dark I want it. She said she''s been doing this for 7 years and she sounded extremely knowledgeable. It is pretty expensive - $20 to $30 per session depending on whether I get a package. I am definitely doing several trial runs pre-wedding to find the best time to go. Thanks for your fair warnings about the first day or so - now I won''t totally freak out if I look crazy at first!