The Importance of Exfoliating Before Your Spray Tan!

Of course there are a few key steps in achieving the best spray tan but, the most important step will always be exfoliating!

First, what does exfoliating do for you and your spray tan?

For starters, exfoliating helps eliminate any harsh barriers on your skin left over from your body wash, shaving cream and your everyday sweat and life that goes on our skin. This also will help balance out your PH balance. Spray tanning and PH balance go hand in hand, so this is why this is an important step.

There are three types of exfoliation:

1. Physical exfoliation. This involves the use of a gritty material. Think exfoliation mitts, dry brushes and sugar and salt scrubs!

2. Chemical exfoliation. This type would be great for anyone experiencing any type of breakouts on their body. For this you will want a body scrub that has some type of acid in it like, glycolic or salicylic acid.

3. Enzyme Exfoliation. This will require some AHA’s and BHA’s in your skin care products.

Esthetician’s am I making you proud?!

Proper exfoliation helps us achieve that beautiful even tan on the whole body that we all want!

Now, lets say you got so busy the days leading up to your appointment and you forgot to exfoliate! Whats going to happen to your spray tan?! Well it really depends on the condition of your skin! First thing that may happen is your tan may be darker in some areas and lighter in others. This is what I mean when I say uneven tan. It could also fade much faster because of the lack of fresh skin which leads to less absorption of the spray tan.

This is one reason why I apply lotion to the knees and feet. These areas are typically dryer than other parts of your body. Your knees could be so thirsty for moisture that it grabs on to the spray tan and develops much darker than the rest of your legs. So giving the knees a little taste of moisture before applying the tan is helpful!

I also make sure to prep every client when they step into the Glow Babe tent with prep spray, a ph balancer for your skin. This helps to reset and refresh the skin from any barriers that may be left on the skin! I like to think of it as insurance for your spray tan!

When should you exfoliate?

I recommend to start exfoliating two days before your appointment. Say your spray tan is scheduled for Friday, so you’ll want to exfoliate Wednesday and Thursday!

Exfoliating definitely does not need to be complicated. Just make sure you are using a dry brush or mitt as well as oil-free, all natural products.

I’ll wrap this up with telling you how I personally like to exfoliate for my spray tans!

First, I love a hot bath to soak in. I then like to take my exfoliating mitt with my favorite, oil free, all natural body scrub, and scrub my full body. I then shave with my 3-n-1, all natural soap bar from Glow By Erin because it leaves no barrier on the skin and it is amazing! Thats my exfoliation process! Its simple, easy and it gets the job done!

Glow Babe Studio has exfoliating mitts, dry brushes and spray tan approved soaps and scrubs in the studio, available to purchase for you and to help make your bronzed lifestyle a little bit easier!