In the past a tanning bed/booth used to be my best friend, I literally went every single day to the point where some people who know me have probably never seen me pale. I was addicted to tanning. Who wouldn't be? There's nothing like going into a hot capsule when it's below zero outside, and nothing like having a healthy glow that makes you look like you just got back from an island vacation. My opinion of tanning was drastically changed about 3 years ago when my roommate at college was diagnosed with skin cancer, and had to have surgery to have it removed. It was a very emotional and trying time for her, and a scary time for ME too. Her situation influenced me to stop tanning, and protect myself better against skin cancer. I won't lie the thought of not being tan depressed me, so I started looking into other outlets to get my tan on so here's a list of products or places I use to get my tan on in a healthy way!
1. The first thing I looked into was spray tanning in a booth also known as mystic tanning. I had never been a fan of this method because I had seen some girls who looked ORANGE after using the mystic tan, some who looked like leopards with spots all over them, or ones with hands that were 10 shades darker than the rest of their body. So I personally have never used mystic tanning, but my roommates in college did use it and did certain things so as to not appear orange, splotchy, or have chronic dark hands
1. OVER USE THE BARRIER CREAM. Barrier cream is the cream they give you to put on places like your hands, feet, finger nails etc. No matter what the people at the salon tell you, load up on that stuff like literally put a thick layer everywhere they tell you to.
2. After you've put the barrier cream on and a hair net, your ready to tan. A major recommendation would be to ensure that your fingers are spread WIDELY apart. I can't stress this enough because if you don't do it you'll end up with the tops of your fingers brown, and in between you fingers white as a ghost. Now who wants that? Also I would recommend holding your arms out as much as you can, while maintaining a bend. You want to do this so the tan makes it to the area near your arm pit and/or under it. You'll notice if you don't do it there will sometimes be a white line at the side of your arm pit, making you look like a nut! GROSS so don't do it
3. DO NOT SHOWER FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE- they tell you the tan usually can't get wet for 6 hours and that you can shower after that but if you want to make this tan last, I would recommend holding out on showering for as long as possible. You might look like a brown painted freak for a day, but after you shower you'll be happy when your tan lasts for about 10 days! When you finally do shower refrain from scrubbing your skin or exfoliating.
4. ENJOY YOUR TAN 8)
So if your a person who has had a terrible experience with mystic tanning there is now an even better solution (though costly) that can work for you. This is usually what I choose when I want a tan. It is called Custom Airbrush Spray tanning. From personal experience I can tell you that at the right salon, they can make you look like you just got back from a cruise to the Bahamas. I am a weirdo and intensely research things before I buy them. I love reading people's reviews because I seriously think that makes or breaks it for me. I typed in spray tanning to the google search box and came across a place known as Perfect Tan. It has been awarded Best in Boston for years now, and promotes one of their most popular choices: Custom Airbrush Spray Tanning. I had heard of this before but thought it was reserved for celebrities, not a regular gal like me, so I first decided to do a little research and see if this could take the place of my UV tanning addiction. Boy was I happy with what I read. If you go to Yelp.com and type in Perfect Tan you will come across reviews from regular people, all of whom have only AMAZING things to say about this establishment. Review after review praised the work of the airbrushers at Perfect Tan so I knew this was the spot where I would try custom airbrush spray tanning.
What is custom airbrush spray tanning? Basically it is when a person instead of a machine uses a spray tanning gun to get the most accurate spray tan on. If your a girl you have the option to wear a bathing suit, but most people opt for wearing a G string. Men are required to wear boxers. It might sound a little scary to be naked in front of someone else while they spray fake tan on you, but the people who work there are so professional, and make you feel comfortable and forget that your naked in front of them Here's the steps the workers told me to follow to ensure that I had the BEST results
1. I called Perfect Tan to set up and appointment, and the people were extremely nice and knowledgeable. I easily made an appointment ( Custom Airbrush Spray Tanning requires an appointment) and was told some steps to take before I came in. They first told me to exfoliate in the shower, and moisturize after. They also told me to refrain from wearing deodorant, or to make sure to wash it off before I went in for my spray
2. I showed up to my appointment and was brought back to the spray tanning room. There I undressed and opted to wear my own thong, rather then the paper one they offer you. Then the person spray me came in and applied the barrier cream ( in this case vaseline) to areas that need it like hands, nails, feet etc. At this establishment they have a capsule that you basically stand in while they spray you, which is awesome because they have heaters in it which helps because the spray sometimes gets chilly! You also can tell the girl how dark you want your tan, and she will do it exactly how you want
3. After the spray is done your led to the room next door where there is a big fan, meant to dry you. I'd make sure to stand in front of the fan for about 5-6 mins, and to also wear clothes that don't matter to you because the tan will rub off on the first day! Like mystic tanning they will inform you not to get wet for 6 hours, but I prefer to not shower for the whole next day, so I can let the tan sink in. One con of this is that sometimes you literally look painted brown, and you smell a little funny, but by waiting extra to shower you are going to have a deeper tan that LAST SO MUCH LONGER. Like the mystic tan refrain from scrubbing your body/face too much and do not exfoliate. Also moisturize EVERY DAY! I can't tell you how many compliments I've gotten when I have my custom airbrush spray tanning. No one can believe its spray tan! it looks very natural and even on your skin - you will not be disappointed
The cost for a custom airbrush spray tan is a little pricey. it's about $40 dollars for one time or you can buy a package 3 for $80. Another product I absolutely love that they sell at this salon is their spray tan in a bottle. It is the same formula used for the airbrush spray tan and is not only perfect for touch ups but also for your own at home spray tan. It smells really good and comes out EVENLY!
Perfect Tan is located at 1030 Commonwealth Ave on the second floor ( located across from the Agganis Arena) Their number is 6177130598!!! ENJOY!
One thing I will stress here is to do your research on places. If I didn't research I would have never found Perfect Tan or even heard about Custom Airbrush Spray Tanning. I was weary to try this because of a terrible experience I had at a high end salon in West Roxbury. I did not do my research only saw that they offered Custom Spray tanning for a cheap price, boy should I have done my research. Unlike Perfect Tan where there is a whole room dedicated to the airbrush spray tanning, this salons "spray tanning room" was more like a closet. instead of standing in a machine that sucked away excess spray tan, I was made to stand on pieces of paper with a small fan blowing on me. Instead of coming out beautifully bronzed I came out with black feet due to the excess tanning solution falling on them, and blotches everywhere. The lady who did it told me after showering everything would be more even, but she was dead wrong. I looked like a freak and will never go back to this salon for their spray tan ever again!
Hope this post helped you deal with the depression of hot weather becoming a distant memory as we trudge farther into the fall months. Nothing like a healthy looking glow to put a smile on your face!
-Kristen
No comments:
Post a Comment