My First Spray Tan: My Sunless Tanning Experience

Sunless tanning was something that I never thought I would experience. Well to be perfectly honest, being “tan” was something I never thought I would experience, but with the help of NDDA, I was finally able to see what it was like to have the coveted tan.

I recently started at North Dallas Dermatology Associates, and I was offered the opportunity to try some of our services and give my honest opinion. I have never had a spray tan before, and I have always had a really hard time tanning. I’ve found that I either end up blotchy with an uneven tan, or I end up completely burned; so I was curious about this elusive sunless tan that I had heard so much about.

The first thing I needed to know was what do I need to do to prepare for my spray tan. It is important that you shower, shave, and exfoliate before your spray tan and to avoid lotion, make-up, and deodorant the day of (which is why I look fabulous in my pictures). Make sure you take this process seriously because you will end up with an uneven tan if you don’t. I made the mistake of ignoring the exfoliating process around my toes and I had to work at exfoliating and soaking them to get back to a normal finish. Next time, I will definitively spend more time to make sure that I have done this process properly.

The next thing I needed to know was what the actual spray tan process was like. The first step is simple. All you need to do is call NDDA and book an appointment for a spray tan. You then will need to pick out what you’re going to wear. This is important because it will correspond to your tan lines. I opted for a strapless bra and underwear. Then, you simply need to show up. After you arrive, an aesthetician will take you back to the tanning room where you will be given a shower cap and soles to put on the bottom of your feet. The aesthetician will then leave and allow you to get undressed. Once you’re ready, you will step into the tanning booth. The aesthetician will then spray you on your front, your sides, your back, your front again, and your face if desired. I said “yes” to having my face done because I wanted everything to match. The entire process takes about 10 minutes and is no big deal. You’ll notice that afterwards you won’t be that much tanner. This is because it takes a few hours for the tan to set in, so be patient. Make sure to bring loose fitting clothing, because you will be sticky for most of the day. You’ll have to wait 6-8 hours before you can shower, so be sure to avoid water and shower before you come in. That means no washing your hands; but you can use hand sanitizer. For the next 6-8 hours you will notice that you’ll get progressively darker. Don’t worry after you shower, you’ll have a perfectly natural sun-kissed look!

I was initially worried about how my skin would respond to the spray tan because I’ve always had fairly sensitive skin. Would it make me breakout? Could I have an allergic reaction? Would some areas tan and others just remain pale? I was quickly assured that none of these things would happen because our tanning product, Sun FX, is completely organic and chemical free. I realized that I had found the magical honey hole. I could get a beautiful tan without burning my face-off and without pumping chemicals all over my body! Why hadn’t I tried this sooner?!

The average spray tan should last five to ten days depending on your routine. If you shower more than once a day, swim, and/or exfoliate…your tan will fade faster, so try to avoid these things to get more bang for your buck. I also recently learned that we are upgrading our tanning services at our new location, which we will be moving to in 2014. Our new location, will allow us to have a full blown state-of-the-art tanning booth that will help those more shy individuals, like myself, feel a bit more comfortable about the whole tanning experience. Since my spray tan, I’ve noticed that my eyes and smile seem to pop and I have a lot more confidence wearing those pastel colors that usually wash me out. The compliments on my glow don’t hurt either. This will definitely not be my last spray tan and for only $45 why wouldn’t you!? It’s a perfect tan, every time.