Spring Break is finally here and everyone is flocking to the beach to get his or her tan on. Not everyone is naturally tan and if you’re going away you don’t want to be that one pale girl on the beach. Or maybe you have to spend your break at Grandma’s and want to come back to school with a tan just as great as everyone elses. There are tons of cheap ways to get yourself tan before you leave your town without risk or emptying your pocket. Everyone knows the health risks for your skin from tanning salon “baking”, which is no joke. If you want a healthy alternative for your skin to trick everyone into thinking you’ve been basking in the sun for days is spray tan. Either you can spend $30 for a “professional” in a tanning salon (probably a fellow tanned 20 year old girl) to spray you down evenly or you can take the easier route that lets you spend less, control the color yourself, and leave some extra change for partying over break.
Home Spray tanning sounds tricky because no one wants to end up orange, streaky, or uneven but the market has made the best products to avoid that from happening. The best brands range from $10 to $20 and one can will last you more than one tanning session. Spray tans in general don’t last much more than a week and they always suggest touching it up yourself, which makes it even easier when you have the can in your bedroom. You may just want you face a little more bronze, fix a few tan lines, or make yourself a whole shade darker but when it is in your control you can do whatever you want. It really is hard to tell the difference as to where you got your new color so you might as well take the least pricey, healthiest, and easiest route possible. My only warning: put some towels on your floor so avoid tanning your rug as well as your body. Keep the bottle at least 10” away from your body when spraying to keep everything even. And plan your spray tanning time accordingly so you don’t have a formal dinner an hour after you spray. Before you shower it off, you’re going to have a sunscreen scent on you. Unless that’s your perfume of choice, you might want to tan a day earlier. Last tip: If being tan is something you really want, I suggest you purchase a tanning lotion to help you out. You can get an everyday moisturizing lotion that gives you a gradual tan over days and weeks. You can also get an instant tanning lotion as an additional bronzer type product. You do have to be careful with those though because it is easy for those to leave strange streaks on your hands and feet.
My Best Recommendations: (All available at Beauty Supply)
Salon Bronze Airbrush Tanning System by Idea Village. ($13 airbrush, $9 refills)
It comes in a mini version of the airbrush sprayer they use in salons to ensure an even tan. It is a great investment because you only need to purchase refills for the airbrush. One of the best tanners on the market.
Body Drench Quick Tan Medium/Dark Bronzing Spray ($20)
My personal tanner of choice, adds serious color if that’s what you’re looking for. Of course you need to pay more attention to even spraying, verse the airbrushing products, but the color is one of the darkest instant tanners – and you definitely don’t come out orange.
Tanwise Dark Tanning Lotion ($11)
This lotion gives you instant tan for everyday use that will give you that tan glow. You can find instant lotions of all different shades and brands in just about every beauty supply store.
Moist Hemp Bronzing Moisturizer ($9)
This is one of the million everyday skin moisturizers (which you should be using everyday for your skin anyways) that gives you a gradual tan.
