Can You Put Makeup on After a Spray Tan?
When it comes to granting yourself that radiant summer glow, nothing beats a spray tan, but even that doesn’t countervail the importance of having dewy makeup on.
Sure, a spray tan will modify your skin tone, camouflage your minor imperfections, and enhance your skin's texture. Yet, without applying your volumizing mascara and having your winged liner and glossy lipstick on, there'll always be something missing from your radiant look.
For most women, makeup is a vital beauty ritual, and it’s only natural to ask if you can apply it during and after your spray tanning session. Whether that’s because you have an important event after your fake tanning session or would like to generally know if you can keep up with your daily makeup routine right after tanning, we have the answer!
Can I Wear Makeup on My Spray Tanning Session?
If you’re planning to go to the tanning salon wearing your favorite makeup look, we strictly advise against that. Having makeup on during spray tanning will simply ruin the tan because makeup stands as a barrier between the spray and your skin pores, interfering with the absorption of the fine mist sprayed on your skin.
The worst-case scenario would be that you’ll come out of the session with unsatisfying results, and even if some of the spray particles succeed in getting under your foundation and blusher, you’ll end up with a blotchy face due to the uneven distribution of the tanning material. Surely, that’s not the look you’re aiming for.
Consequently, make sure your face is clear from any makeup, including the products that don’t go directly on the skin, like mascara and lipstick – yes, even those can interfere with the spray.
Instead, get your skincare products out the day before the session, exfoliate your face, and clean your skin. That’ll help you get the best results.
Can I Wear Makeup Over a Fake Tan?
While the answer is yes, we wouldn’t recommend that you wear it right away. Although makeup may not ruin your tan completely, if you put it 2-3 hours after the session, it’ll lower the life of your tan, which is something you want to avoid.
It might be tempting to put makeup on immediately after getting the tan, especially if you have a special occasion or a get-together event right after, but it’s best to wait for 6-8 hours after the session before you apply makeup to give the tan time to set in and get absorbed.
Not just makeup, though; actually, all types of liquids and moisturizers are forbidden during this period until your tan settles in. After that, you’re free to put on foundation, blusher, mascara, and anything else.
That’s for wearing makeup, so what about wiping it with a makeup remover?
As long as you’ve given the tan enough time to kick in, there’ll be no problem with using a makeup remover. However, try using something milder to protect the tan from fading quickly; a gentle cleanser, for example, would be less harsh on the skin.
How Do You Apply Makeup After a Spray Tan?
Emergencies happen! Well, not actual emergencies but a “wedding in two hours after the session” counts as an emergency in many women’s books. So, what if there’s no way you can wait 6 hours until you put on makeup?
Make It the Last Thing on Your Schedule
You’ll have other things to do after the tanning session anyway, so make wearing makeup the last of them. Give the melanin in your skin enough time to adapt by waiting for at least 30-60 minutes.
While this won’t entirely prevent any dire consequences, it’ll reduce the number of blotches you may acquire. It’ll also give your skin pores enough time to close, reducing your chances of hitting the event with pimples or acne.
However, that doesn't apply to makeup removers. Even if you put makeup on one hour after the tan, you'll have to stay with it until 6-8 hours pass. To reduce the urge to wash your face during this period, go for less irritant makeup formulas, which takes us to the next point.
Go for Powdered Formulas
Foundations, blushers, contours, and concealers come in two forms: powders and creams. When choosing makeup to wear after spray tanning, go for powdered formulas since their risk of getting under your skin and interfering with the tanning agent is less than that of liquid-based products.
Plus, it’d be better if you steer clear of using foundation and primer and focus on accentuating your features with products that interfere less with the tan, like mascara, eyeliner, and lipstick.
Be Careful With the Lipstick, Mascara, and Eyeliner
Lipstick, mascara, and eyeliner are the safest makeup products to use, but you’ll have to be careful with them nonetheless. Sure, applying them won’t affect the tan as these body parts aren’t tanned in the first place, but the problem is with the smudges and inaccurate applications that come with them.
When filling your lips with lipstick, try not to go out of your lip lines. The same goes for the mascara and eyeliner; pay extra attention not to apply them outside your lid lines and eyelashes.
That’s because if they come in contact with your skin, they can cause heavy blotches as they’re heavily dyed themselves.
Glow Like a Supermodel!
To wrap up, it’s completely okay to apply makeup after spray tanning as long as you’ve given the tan enough time to get absorbed.
Just remember that you'll need a new makeup palette to match your recent look because you have a different skin tone now. Bolder mascara and a darker eyeliner are the answer here. Also, don't forget to match them with matte nude lipstick to achieve that sensual appearance.
