Tips for a Flawless Sunless Tan

• Shave & Exfoliate the night before your appointment.  While exfoliating pay more attention to ankles, knees, wrists and elbows as these areas tend to be drier and need more exfoliation.  If these areas are not properly exfoliated it could cause blotching and/or the tan could come out darker in these areas.

• The day of your appointment refrain from wearing moisturizers, perfumes, sprays, deodorant, makeup, etc.  Anything that could act as a barrier to the actual tanning solution should be avoided.  The goal here is to have fresh, clean skin, that way the solution will better adhere to your skin.

• Right before your tan, take off all jewelry and put hair up.  Insist that your tanning specialist use a PH Balancing spray before spraying you with tanning solution.  We always spray our clients with PH Balancing spray and never up charge for this because we feel this is necessary to get the best outcome.

• Some sort of barrier cream should be applied to your feet, ankles, knees, elbows and hands to avoid the solution collecting in those areas and creating a darker color.

• While the tanning specialist is spraying you with the tanning solution, make sure not to accidentally touch skin or move frequently as this can create blotches on the skin.

• After your tan is applied, make sure you are dry!  Ask your tanning specialist if there is any extra moisturizing product that can be sprayed to lock in your tan.  We provide this service to our clients at no extra charge because we feel it’s needed to get the best outcome of a sunless tan.

• Once you are ready to get dressed, make sure your dry!  Loose fitting dark clothing is best.  The last thing you want is your tan to rub off around your waist because of your jeans!  A loose black summer dress is best.

• Wait at least 6-8 hours to take a shower.  Once you do shower, you will notice some of the bronzer wash away, that’s ok.  Try not to use harsh commercial body wash.  In fact, try not to use any body wash in this shower.  Your main goal is to wash away the bronzer.  Your tan is still hard at work 🙂

• Once out of the shower, pat your skin dry as if you have a bad sunburn.  Try not to rub your skin with the towel, this acts as a light exfoliation.  Also, moisturize, moisturize, moisturize!  We recommend a natural body butter, something that will lock in the moisture.

• Now that all the technicalities are out of the way…..enjoy your tan!  You should continue to apply moisturizer twice a day.  We recommend a body butter in the morning and a tan extending moisturizer at night.  Also, utilizing a body wash engineered for spray tanning wouldn’t hurt either.  Avoid harsh body washes & bar soaps, please!

Proper Sunscreens

Sunless tanning is a safe & effective alternative to traditional UV tanning, no doubt about that.  However, a sunless tan DOES NOT protect you from UVA/UVB Rays.  So, what’s a girl to do?  Wear SUNSCREEN when you are out and about.  It doesn’t matter if you are spending a day at the beach or just running errands, protecting your skin from UV rays should be your number one priority.  After all, it’s the only one you get so take care of it!  

Now that we have established how important sunscreen is, the next step is to decipher between all the different sunscreens to know which ones are “spray tan friendly”.  

Here are a few tips when shopping for “spray tan friendly” sunscreen:

• Look for active ingredients such as Zinc, Titanium dioxide, Avobenzene or Mexoryl SX
• Look for the words “Broad Spectrum” this encompasses protection from UVA & UVB rays
• Look for SPF 30+ (but no higher as anything higher contains artificial oils that may soften the skin and create a blotchy effect).
• Look for a cream- this helps to moisturize your skin!
• Avoid sunscreens that have Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A), New government data show that tumors and lesions develop sooner on skin coated with vitamin A-laced creams. 
• Look for sunscreens with soybean oil which aids in cell repair and helps reverse signs of UV damage. 
• As always, look for Paraben & PABA free (two different ingredients)
• Always try to favor sunscreens with the most natural ingredients.

Here are some of my favorite sunscreens