For months I have had a steady stream of tanners walk into my spray tanning salon and leave 10 minutes later with their skin color no different than what they were.
Yet they come again and again.
Why, you ask, would anyone want a colorless spray tan? Isn’t that totally contrary to what the whole exercise is supposed to be about?
Welcome to the new era of spray tanning!
The newest thing on the market and which is gaining more and more followers is spray tanning with a colorless (transparent) spray tanning solution.
Once you’ve had it, it’s hard to go back to the old solution that contained bronzer.
For years, bronzer has been added to spray tanning solutions for 2 reasons:
1) For immediate gratification, so that immediately after the session it looks like you just came back from vacation,
2) To make sure you get an even tan. The person spray tanning you had to know if they weren’t missing any part of your body. The brown dye in the solution could show him exactly where it had been.
People who spray tan know that until now you had to pay for those few days of golden skin with at least one day of discomfort.
When bronzer is added to your spray tan solution, it is responsible for a myriad of problems:
o There are often streaks. Sure, most of it comes out in the first shower, but until then you’re running with what looks like a map of a river running down the back of your legs. A sure treat you just had a spray tan.
o You may get dark spots, especially on the hands and feet. Those are almost impossible to remove in a hurry.
o Brown dye stains clothing and underwear. Again, most of it comes off in the wash, but if you’re trying to put on your nice satin or silk bra, the only place for it, after a run-in with a bronzer, will be in the bin.
o If you have open pores on your face you will end up with a “blackhead effect”. The bronzer will lodge in those pores and take days to come out. Very unattractive. The same will happen if you shave or wax your legs. You will have stained legs for a week.
o Because suntan lotion sits so deep in pores, it can keep coming off for days on your sheets and towels. Also on white clothes if you sweat (no bride would sweat in her wedding dress, right?)
What if the spray tanning solution doesn’t have bronzer added?
Well, the problems described above simply do not exist. You get sprayed and your own skin develops the color. Final point.
The only drawback to being sprayed with a clear spray tanning solution is that you will have to wait 5-7 hours for your tan.
Oh, and one other thing, you may have to tan in a spray tanning booth. The reason is that most technicians who spray tan with a handheld unit simply cannot do a good job without the tanner.
So the way to get a spray tan these days is to hop in a spray tan booth, 1 minute later clean yourself up, put your clothes on and be on your way.
Unless, of course, you like being stark naked for 20 minutes or so in front of a complete stranger while you spray tan and get streaks, blackheads, and spots.
The choice is clear.