Each spring presents a difficulty for many of us: Sunbathing and tanning beds are bad, but pasty white legs don’t look as good sticking out of miniskirts and shorts as do bronzed ones. After experiencing streaky self-tanners and orange spray tans, I’d reluctantly resigned myself to a lifetime professing to embrace the pale. “My skin’s not pasty, it’s porcelain,” I’d tell myself. This year, however, a new game in town may have changed my outlook.
It’s called Fantasy Tan. Body Anew Medical Spa offers this method of airbrush tanning, and I eagerly gave it a try. Fantasy Tan professes to be different than other spray tans because it allows custom color blending, offering an exact level of preferred darkness matched to your specific skintone. The technician can even add a green undertone to the formula to counteract any pinkness you might pick up.
The experience is quick and easy. After removing makeup and deodorant, you strip to your level of comfort—undies, topless or completely bare—and stand in a canvass tent-like contraption (you’ll recognize the system as what’s brought to the homes of Kardashians and “Real Housewives” on TV). A trained aesthetician applies a moisturizing primer with an airbrush to hands, elbows, knees and feet to prevent over-pigmentation of those areas. Next, she starts spraying on your glow. Front and back get covered using a large nozzled sprayer; then she addresses face, hands and touch-ups with a small airbrush before finishing with a dusting of drying powder.
The whole process took around 30 minutes. After waiting a few minutes to fully dry, I was off. The color continued to deepen a bit over the next few hours, but never became severe. It settled a perfectly sun-kissed bronze, just as I’d requested—without the slightest hint of orange! I felt great in my short shorts, and my fellow even raved about how good it smelled.
The color lasts seven to 10 days, depending on how much you exfoliate or moisturize, and at $40 a session or a package of three for $99 is well worth it for an occasion or when you just want to feel like a bronzed goddess. The system is portable, so can be brought to you, and the spa offers specials for bridal parties where they’ll come spray the whole gang (the hostess gets hers free).
Body Anew Medical Spa is located at 113 West Jackson St., Suite 1-A, in Ridgeland. Call 601-605-0452 for appointments or information, or visit bodyanewmedicalspa.com.