We’re in Palm Beach for a few days, and one of our first stops was at a tanning salon to help us blend in with the natives.  Lest you worry that we’re indulging in nasty, cancer-and-wrinkle-causing beds–fear not!  Our indulgence was strictly of the spray kind.  (The last thing we’re going to do is spend years slathering on anti-wrinkle lotions and potions, only to throw away the fountain of youth on a temporary bronzey glow.  That’s what makeup is for!)

Paradise Tan in Wellington, a suburban West Palm Beach horse village, was our stop, where the owner Tsvetelina Ivanova helped us choose the level of color most appropriate for our complexion (which is approaching Caspar-levels of fluorescence).  We haven’t spray-tanned in years, so we were expecting a dingy box and had visions of Ross from Friends getting charred with the auto-timer.  Not so!  Tsevetelina led us into a room, cheerfully commanded us to strip (wait, what…?) and then returned to painstakingly airbrush us as we stood there naked and tried to make small talk.  Awkward, to say the least.

After 5 quick (though not quick enough!) minutes, we were done, and had also learned that Tsevetelina is being flown out to Las Vegas in January to spray all the girls in the Miss USA pageant, so renowned are her skills.  Who knew we had stumbled upon a celebrity tanner?!  As for us, we showered several hours later as instructed, and were rewarded with a caramel bronze, several shades darker than our natural complexion, but without a hint of orange.  None of our perennially-tanned Florida friends knew the difference.

Looking to get spray-tanned yourself?  Make sure to follow these crucial tips:

- Visit the salon with clean, dry skin.
- Avoid using bar soap, heavy lotion, perfume, or oily body scrubs before your visit.  They can interfere with your skin’s ability to soak up tanner.
- Wear loose, dark clothing to the salon.
- Follow your tanner’s instructions, but you’ll want to wait at least several hours after your visit before showering.
- Apply lotion daily following your spray to keep skin hydrated and prolong the color.

Paradise Tan, Wellington, Florida: 561-333-3115