Getting the order right
What to book before and after a spray tan
A spray tan goes close to last. Book waxing, shaving, facials, body scrubs, manicures and hair colour before it, because all of them remove surface skin or involve washing that strips colour. Leave at least twenty-four hours between hair removal and your tan. The only things that belong after a spray tan are makeup and the event itself. Studio Rhema tans by appointment in Dundas, Ontario.
Waxing, nails, hair, lashes and facials all interact with a spray tan, and almost all of them belong before it rather than after. Here is the order, and the reason behind each one.
Written by Studio Rhema, Dundas, Ontario. Last reviewed .
The one rule everything else follows from
A spray tan lives in the outermost layer of your skin. So anything that removes surface skin, or soaks it, or scrubs it, has to happen before the tan rather than after it. That is the whole principle. Once you have it, you can work out any appointment nobody has thought to list here.
If it exfoliates, soaks, steams or strips, it goes first. If it sits on top, like makeup, it can go after.
What order should I book everything in?
| Appointment | When | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Facials, peels, microdermabrasion | A week or more before | These deliberately remove surface skin, and they can leave it reacting for days. |
| Body scrubs and massage | Several days before | Scrubs exfoliate. Massage oils leave a barrier that makes colour go on unevenly. |
| Hair colour and cuts | Before | A colour appointment ends at a shampoo bowl with hot water and product, which is the last thing a new tan wants. |
| Lash extensions | Before | Lash appointments involve steam, lying face down for an hour and a strict no-water window that clashes with tan aftercare. |
| Waxing | At least 24 hours before, ideally 48 | Wax removes hair and a layer of skin with it, and leaves pores open. Tanning too soon after can leave dotting. |
| Shaving | The day before | A razor exfoliates. Shaving after a tan takes it off in stripes. |
| Manicure and pedicure | Before | Soaking, filing and cuticle work all happen in water. Do it first and the tan is undisturbed. |
| Spray tan | Two to three days before the event | Late enough to be fresh, early enough to fix anything and to be past the guide colour. |
| Makeup | After | It sits on top and comes off at the end of the night. |
How long between waxing and a spray tan?
At least twenty-four hours, and forty-eight is better. Waxing pulls hair out of the follicle and takes surface skin with it, and it leaves the pores open for a while afterwards. A tan applied into open pores can settle into them and show as small dark dots, which is not something you can fix afterwards. Leaving a day lets the skin close and calm down.
Shaving is gentler but works the same way, so shave the day before rather than the morning of, and do not shave again until you are ready for the tan to start going. Full detail is in the prep and aftercare guide.
Do I need to do anything about my nails?
Get them done first, and then mention them at your appointment. Solution can tint the natural nail plate and the skin around the cuticle, which is harmless and temporary but noticeable in photographs of your hands. It is easily managed when the person applying your tan knows to manage it, which is one of the practical advantages of being tanned by a person rather than a booth.
Does the order change for a wedding?
The principle does not, but the stakes and the number of appointments do, and there is a trial to fit in as well. Weddings also add the dress, which introduces transfer onto fabric as a separate problem to solve. That is all set out on bridal and wedding tans, including how far ahead to run the trial.
And before a holiday?
One change: the pool and the sea are doing to your tan exactly what a scrub does, every day you are there. That moves the calculation from looking perfect on one day to lasting across a week, and it is covered on before a vacation. How long you can expect it to hold in the first place is on how long a spray tan lasts.
Ready when you are.
Send the studio your week and it can be slotted into the right place in it.
Keep reading
- Prep & aftercare guideThe full routine, before and after your appointment.
- Bridal & wedding tansExact timing, dress transfer, and sequencing your other appointments.
- How long does it last?Why it fades rather than washes off, and what buys you extra days.
- Before a vacationArrive already glowing, and keep it through sun, pool and salt water.