If you are looking for information on spray
tanning booths or airbrush salons, check out our article Spray
Tanning at LoveToKnow Makeup. Visiting a salon will
ensure that your tan is applied by a professional, but it also
comes with the professional price. The following information
will help you to evaluate whether you would like to try a
home-done version of a spray tan.
How it Works
Whether you chose a home tan kit or a salon
spray booth, both employ the same tanning process. With the
evolution of a chemical called dihydroxyacetone (DHA), fake tans
have developed a more natural appearance. DHA causes a reaction
at the surface of your skin temporarily turning the skin a tan
color. A completely safe process, the chemical has actually been
around since the 1970s with only recently being discovered as an
artificial tanning product. When you compare the DHA chemical
reaction to the possibility of skin cancer from the sun, a spray
tan sounds like a much safer tanning option.
Spray tan products actually provide two
services. Pigments added to the spray impart an instant tan
color to your skin, while the DHA reaction takes about ten hours
to achieve a change in your skin's color. So, at about the time
the pigments wash off, the longer-lasting chemical tan has set
in. Most spray products, either done at home or the salon, only
last about five days.
Tips for Spray Tanning at
Home
With a variety of products available at as
little as $7 a tan, many people are trying an imitation tan at
home. Success is based more on the application process than the
actual product selected. The following is a step-by-step program
to ensure the most naturally even tan.
Exfoliate your entire body between three to
twelve hours before applying the tan product – ideally with a
moisturizing body scrub.
Immediately after the exfoliation process,
cover the skin with a penetrating non-oily moisturizing
lotion.
Within 30 minutes before your spray tan,
take a shower to remove all the body and product oils from
your skin.
Cover the floor area to protect it from the
coloring in the spray.
Shake the can thoroughly and spray
approximately fifteen inches from the skin in a light sweeping
motion.
Spray particularly light on your feet as
they tend to react to the tanning solution more dramatically.
Blot any drips with a soft towel.
Stand completely still after misting for
around 30 seconds.
Use gloves and spray the tanning mist on
your hands, then apply to tender areas like the face.
Wait at least ten minutes before dressing
and eight to twelve hours before bathing.
As you are dealing with chemicals not
recommended for internal use, always avoid inhaling the spray
while tanning.
Products
Tan AirBrush
As the name describes, this product provides a
tan in a can by ModelCo available for purchase at Sephora.
Advertised as ensuring no stained hands or uneven coverage, it
includes a cocoa butter scent for that fresh from the beach
smell. Applied with a fine mist, it provides both a golden
pigment for an instant glow and the self-tanner chemicals for
the longer lasting tan. Tan AirBrush offers a specially designed
spray nozzle that provides 360 degree coverage for easier
application.
Soleil Flash Bronzer
A Lancome Cosmetics version of the home
self-tanning product is the Flash Bronzer. Completely oil free
and easy to apply, they advertise its particularly unique
texture. It is available in a variety of styles, with different
color depths and application processes. Choose from a body spray
or a face gel as an example.
Body Drench Quick Tan
A particularly quick drying spray tan product,
designed for both the face and body. Guaranteed to not streak or
turn orange, this product produces an immediate golden color
followed by the longer lasting bronze of the tanning chemicals.
