Ask Fashion Girl

Dear Lainie:

I have great news for you! For those of us who have a hard time tanning, or know about the harmful effects of tanning beds, there’s a new solution. It’s a mist-on tan, sometimes called Mystic Tan, and it’s a booth you step into for a few moments where you’re spray-coated with a sunless tanner. After a short time, you’re ready to get dressed. Now there’s no need to spend hours in the sun or risk the skin cancer and premature aging that can occur with sun- and tanning- bed-exposure. A mist-on tan doesn’t last long, a week at the longest, but it’s great if you have a special event such as Prom where you want to look tanned.

Spray-on tanning salons use a chemical called DHA, which has been approved by the Food & Drug Administration for decades as an external tanning agent. When applied, DHA reacts with proteins in the skin's outermost layer to form a golden brown color. If you have had previous allergic reactions to self-tanners or cosmetic products, ask the tanning salon to put a small amount of the tanning solution on a small area of your skin to test for possible reactions.

Of course, if you’ve got pale skin like Nicole Kidman’s and Julianne Moore’s, consider keeping it that way and highlighting it with either delicate makeup hues or dramatic ruby red lips. Pale is a perfectly fabulous way to go, and will definitely stand out in the crowd!

Good luck with your Prom look!

Sincerely,