Professional spray tan, anyone ever tried it?

I am talking about the spray tan you can get at the tanning salons. You stand in a booth and the "tan" sprays on you. I am thinking about doing this, and am looking for some information and advice on how well it works and costs. Anyone?

I have only seen it on TV where they sprayed a little girl who was getting ready for a pageant. Also on the food network Paula Dean and her friends did this preparing for her wedding. With the little girl they dried her with a hair dryer after spraying and IIRC hers ran on her face because she was crying while it was being done. I am anxious to hear from someone who has done it too. I am in a wedding in June and the dresses are the palest "shell pink".... not really pink, not really peach, and not really beige. I need color and don't do the sun thing anymore.

ever see teh FRIENDS episode where Ross does that... scared me out of ever trying it!

I would see if you can check out some pictures or see an actual person come out before you decide. The Ross debacle notwithstanding, the biggest complaint I've heard is that it's streaky.

The cost here (Nebraska) is $30 for two sessions, and they are alleged to last a week. I have been pondering one for awhile, too. Let me know what you decide.

I've tried the lotion before with some success, but not the full body spray. My hubby goes in for tanning every summer and loves it........not too healthy for the skin, however. I'm interested in knowing how reliable it is too......42

I've had it done at a chain called "mystic tan" I didnt have the same problems ross had on friends luckily. If you are very fair, the effect is kinda orangeish... but i am of a medium or olive skin tone so it looked pretty balanced on me. Truth be told i didnt see much difference between the professional application vs a self applied cream or gel. My favorite artificial tan is loreal sublime bronze, it lasts a very long time and is very easy to apply. Its about 7 bucks for a bottle that will last for a whole season v 15-20 bucks for one spray on session.

Well, it’s that time of year again – responsible tanning! You will need to scope out the place before you go and make sure what type of service they offer. I have known people who went to get their spray-on and were surprised to find a person with an airbrush in the room to spray them. You want to make sure they have a spray booth and not a live person (you will be glad there is no one there to see you!). Ideally, if you are going somewhere that night where you want to be glowing, you should go in the morning, because it takes 5-6 hours for the tan to develop. First, you have to exfoliate your skin before you go with a body scrub. Do not use a loofah or it will cause streaking. Then apply moisturizer all over your skin and get dressed to go to the tanning salon. You should wear old clothes because they will have orange marks from the tan (the marks will wash out). You check in and go in the room and there is this big thing like a phone booth or Star Trek “beam me up” booth. You spray on something they provide to balance the ph level in your skin, then you rub this special lotion on your fingernails and toenails to block the coloration. Anyone with long hair puts on a hair net, but people with short hair don’t need it. It is there to hold the hair off your neck, and the spray will not affect the color of your hair. I can’t remember if people with color treated hair are supposed to wear the hair net or not. You step inside and close the door and and face toward the sprayer and push a green start button.

Now, this is where it gets really funny - a recorded voice that sounds like John Tesh gives instructions on how to place your body so that the spray is even. You place your feet so that your toes are pointed out, parallel to the sprayer in front of you. You raise your hands above your head and bend your knees slightly and you look up slightly. This is a hilarious position and you have to be careful not to laugh so hard the first time that you lose your balance. You push the button to start the sprayer and close your eyes and hold your breath. The sprayer starts at the bottom and goes up on a conveyor belt; it looks nothing like Ross on Friends. The voice tells you to turn around, and you press the button again. This time the spray goes from top to bottom and it says you are done, and gives you instructions on wiping off, and says “Enjoy your tan!” I laughed out loud the first time I heard it say that.

After you step out you wipe your body off with rolled up hand towels using a circular motion to make sure there is no streaking. You wipe the lotion off your nails with wet wipes and you wash your hands thoroughly in the sink. After you are done, you have the 5-6 hours to develop, and during that time you can smell the tan. It smells the same as self tanner you would use at home, but it is stronger because it is over the whole body. For this reason, you do not want to be around co-workers or classmates. You are fine to go to the mall, movies or casual restaurants. After 5-6 hours you should take a shower and use deodorant soap to get rid of the smell. You will still notice a faint smell that night, but it is not very noticeable to others. The color usually lasts about 3 days, progressively fading each day. The color is natural and there should be no streaking if you follow all the spa’s instructions. It is not as good as the real thing, but there are no dangerous side effects like there are with UV rays that cause aging and melanoma, so you can look darker and protect your skin.

Wow! Thanks so much for all the information! I am going to check it out at a few tanning places this weekend. I am lighter skinned (not super white), so the orangish coloring warning scares me. I really want to do this, so I hope it works out. I have tried so many of the sef tanning lotions, and only end up with streaks, no matter how much I exfoliate and no matter how careful I am when putting it on.

Thanks, Brad, for the detailed description!

Longhornliz - I tried this a few days ago. I thought that since it was a spray it would be better. But it took forever to dry. Tell me, did you rub it in after you sprayed it, or just let it dry without touching it?

I did it before my wedding. The only part I hated was that between the time they do your front and your back you do have to take a breath, and at that point the room is filled with all the fumes. I did not have any problems, though. One great advantage over lotion (even professionally applied) is that the skin doesn't really smell afterwards.