Everyone hopes for the best when they invest in a spray tan. But there are some things you can do for a guaranteed glow that lasts. For a flawless finish, knowing the dos and don’ts of pre-spray tan and post-spray tan care is crucial. After all, spray tan mistakes are incredibly easy to make, especially if it’s your first time in the booth.
There’s a lot more to it than merely keeping your mouth closed while you’re being painted with the tanning mist. Ultimately, all of the most common missteps have one thing in common: they’ll shorten the life of your spray tan. Many who’ve had a spray tan go wrong notice their formerly gorgeous glow becomes splotchy, blotchy, or faded a few days later.
To truly get your money’s worth, we’re here with some expert-recommended steps to make sure that your spray tan goes on evenly, soaks into your skin with ease, and lasts as long as possible. Whether you’re a rookie or you’re tired of making the same spray tan mistakes and unsure what’s going wrong, we’re here to help. Here’s how you can get the best bronzing results, the first time you go and every time.
How Spray Tans Work
If you’ve never had a spray tan before, you might not know what to expect. So before we discuss pro-tips, let’s talk about the basics.
Typically, spray tans involve standing in a tent or booth and being lightly misted with a tanning solution. The solution interacts with your body’s natural chemistry, giving it a bronzy, sunless glow. Unlike tanning beds or sizzling in the sun’s rays for hours, spray tans aren’t dangerous. While it certainly costs more than real tanning, you’ll avoid sun damage completely.
Unlike tanning sessions that penetrate the epidermis, a fake tan will only affect the top layer of your skin. As spray tan methods become more advanced, formulas are becoming formulated with ingredients that nourish the skin more often. While they won’t cause skin damage, they don’t offer any protection from the sun. So post spray tan, keep wearing sunscreen.
Because we’re always generating new skin cells, it’s natural for anything we’re wearing to fade over time. Typically, spray tans last for 7 to 10 days. The lighter your spray tan application, the sooner it will likely fade.
Eat the Right Foods Before You Go
Believe it or not, your diet can affect your spray tan results. Prior to your appointment, make sure that you’re eating a well-balanced diet. Experts recommend foods high in vitamin A, vitamin E, bioflavonoids, calcium, tyrosine, and lysine. Above all else, foods rich in amino acids are believed to improve the overall color and quality of your tan.
Read More: Eating Healthy Doesn’t Have to Be Expensive — Here’s How to Eat Clean on a Budget
Don’t Skip Pre-tan Hair Removal
Hair removal is an important pre-tan step, but timing is key. If you’re planning to get a wax, experts highly recommend having it done 24 hours before the self-tanning application. For those planning to shave, the rule of thumb is to do it at least four hours before the appointment.
Removing hair is advised because you’ll need to leave your skin alone afterward. Following your tanning session, limit your hair removal, if possible. When you shave or wax, you exfoliate your skin. In turn, you run the risk of prematurely fading your tan.
Thoroughly Clean Your Skin Beforehand
Going in with smooth, clean skin will garner the best results. So be sure to exfoliate your skin a few days before. Also, be sure to remove products like deodorant and body makeup right before. This step will help the tan adhere to your skin properly. Not to mention, if you leave it on, those areas of your skin may turn an unwanted, uneven color.
To get your skin ready before the appointment, reach for an unscented body scrub. Apply it in the shower and be sure to rinse it off thoroughly so no residue is left behind.
Avoid Moisturizing Right Before and Immediately After
While exfoliating beforehand is encouraged, using lotion is not. About 12 hours before your spray tan appointment, stop all forms of moisturizing. Like deodorant, moisturizer can leave behind a film on the skin that can prevent the spray tan from properly setting. For best results, moisturize the night before. Or if it’s an evening appointment, moisturize around noon.
Following your appointment, these are the main products that will ruin your spray tan:
- Moisturizer and lotion
- Deodorant (especially with aluminum)
- Perfume and body spray
- Makeup
- Moisturizing body wash
- Massage oil
Give Your Tan Time to Set in
When your spray tan session is over, you might feel ready to resume normal activities. But it’s important that you give your new glow time to fully take hold. Immediately after your tanning session, wait a few minutes before putting on loose-fitting, dark clothing. You’ll want to avoid rubbing any of your fresh tan off.
Spray tan pros suggest waiting 4 to 8 hours before showering, but no more than 24. Most formulas take between six and eight hours to set before it’s safe to come in contact with any moisture, which includes water, lotions, and liquid foundation. And steer clear of the gym or the beach. While you’re waiting for your spray tan to set, the last thing you need to do is sweat.
Stay Away From Your Sheets
Rubbing the spray off prematurely is one of the most common post-tan problems. So while your spray tan isn’t quite dry, there’s a high chance it will spread onto fabrics. In addition to wearing loose, dark clothes right after your session, avoid taking a power nap or coming into contact with hard-to-clean furniture.
Until it fully dries, the tanning solution can easily stain your sheets. Some bronzing brainiacs say that sprinkling baby powder all over your body will keep the skin dry and help your tan stay in place. Whether you give the baby powder a try or not, be sure to protect your linens.
Exfoliate-Lightly on a Regular Basis
For best results, you’ll need to exfoliate your skin shortly before your session. It’s also important to incorporate light exfoliating into your beauty routine following your spray tan.
If you do some online research, you’ll quickly find that the best in the bronzing biz tend to recommend exfoliating every two to three days after your tanning appointment. This step will help your tan fade evenly. St. Tropez’s Tan Enhancing Body Polish comes highly recommended.
Read More: DIY Sugar Scrub Recipes for Super Soft Skin
Moisturize Daily
Once your tan is firmly locked in, experts highly recommend moisturizing on a daily basis. It’s especially important after showering or bathing. Products like Bondi Sands’ Body Moisturizer and The Fox Tans’ Hydrating Body Spray are formulated with extending and enhancing your tan in mind.
Moisturizing will prevent dryness. If your spray tan becomes dry, you’ll notice patchy areas around the ankles, elbows, knees, and so on. If you consistently exfoliate and moisturize, you’ll extend the life of your spray tan for potentially up to 10 days.
Don’t Let Your Workout Ruin Your Tan
While consistently exercising is incredibly important, getting sweaty immediately after your spray tan is strongly discouraged. There’s also a chance that a sweat session in the gym can distort the quality of your tan beyond the first few hours.
If you leave sweat sitting on your skin for an extended period of time, it may get trapped beneath your workout clothes. If this happens, the formula may start to break down. You’ll notice discoloration and splotches. If you’re going to work out, try putting baby powder in places like your armpits and knees. This will help your sweatiest areas stay dry. In turn, your fake tan will remain intact.
Avoid Facials and Laser Treatment
If you’re planning to get a spray tan, you should avoid getting any skin-care treatment right before, particularly treatments with lasers involved. With spray tans, it’s all about timing. Not so mysteriously, most laser treatments cause the top few layers of skin to peel off. And so, your tan will come off with it.
Following laser treatments, experts recommend waiting until your skin is fully done peeling and healing. And proceed with caution if you’ve just gotten a regular facial. What’s wonderful about facials is that they open up our pores and awaken our skin. But the last thing you need in your fresh, open pores is the self-tanning solution.
Invest in a Quality Self-Tanner
Obviously, you’ll want your top dollar tan to last as long as possible. But unfortunately, spray tans are infamous for fading after only a few days. That’s why using a self-tanner might be one of your brightest, tan bolstering ideas. With that said, be sure to avoid using self-tanner prior to your spray tan session.
Experts say to apply your self-tanner every few days. Applying a bronzing cream on top of your spray tan will help it fade more evenly. So shop around for a quality self-tanner. It’ll be a small price to pay for a gorgeous tan that keeps glowing.
