Using Coconut Oil After A Spray Tan – What You Should Know
So, you’ve treated yourself to a beautifully golden spray tan. Your skin is glowing, and you feel like a summer goddess. You want to make your spray tan last as long as possible without interfering with it too much.
After some searching, you find that coconut oil is a good oil to use to maintain your spray tan. This seems a bit weird, right? Why wouldn’t you use normal moisturizing lotions that are made specifically for your skin?
But, surprisingly enough, coconut oil is a great option to use after a spray tan. It is natural, nearly fragrance-free, and absorbs beautifully into your skin.
Have you not heard the saying that coconut oil can fix almost anything? While the jury is still out on that one, it indeed is one of the best ways to maintain your fresh spray tan.
Let’s discuss how coconut oil benefits your skin and explore its use in maintaining a healthy, bronze tan.
How Does Coconut Oil Affect the Skin?
Coconut oil is used in a wide range of beauty products. It is a natural ingredient that offers numerous benefits for your skin, hair, and face.
When applied to the skin, coconut oil has been shown to accelerate the wound healing process and is highly effective in increasing skin moisture.
Using coconut oil as a moisturizer before and after your spray tan can help prevent dry, flaky skin, which can result in an uneven, blotchy spray tan. Moisturized skin holds a spray tan much longer than dry skin.
Coconut oil contains predominantly medium-chain fatty acids, which are absorbed into your skin when massaged in.
This fat helps reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles while hydrating the skin from the inside out. Virgin coconut oil is the most effective to use as it has the most natural and concentrated moisture and fats.
Because it is one of the heavier fatty oils around, coconut oil helps to hydrate the skin, keeping the moisture locked in and preventing evaporation.
This keeps the skin hydrated for longer than other oils or creams.
To add to its moisturizing benefits, the fat content in coconut oil has also been shown to improve various aspects of the skin, including wound healing, reducing the appearance of rashes, preventing acne, and even working as an antibacterial balm.
Coconut oil does not contain high amounts of water or petroleum like many other oils or moisturizing creams.
This is why it won’t clog up pores, leaving your skin refreshed and ready for a spray tan application.
Does Coconut Oil Work Well After A Spray Tan?
Often, a natural solution is the best choice. Everything you put on your skin is absorbed into your body, so wouldn’t you only want to expose yourself to the purest and most organic ingredients?
Organic or virgin coconut oil is a pure moisturizer. There are no added chemicals that might harm your skin or hurt your fresh spray tan.
By using coconut oil on your skin after a spray tan, you ensure that your skin is hydrated and nourished, helping your spray tan stay beautiful and bronzed, and remain on your skin for longer.
Best Coconut Oil To Use After Fake Tan
I actually just use a simple organic extra-virgin coconut oil. I make sure that it’s cold-pressed and unrefined. I have just been buying this one from Amazon.
It’s not expensive, high-quality, and fantastic for use after a spray tan or any other purpose.
Other Lotions and Oils You Can Use
Coconut oil is one of the more versatile oils available, but many different options work well for maintaining a spray tan.
Shea Butter and Cocoa Butter are both moisturizers that, like coconut oil, are heavy and rich in fatty acids. They help lock in moisture to moisturize and hydrate the skin effectively, and due to their dense composition, they prevent moisture from evaporating out of the skin too easily.
Argan oil and Safflower oil are less fatty than coconut oil, but are effective on many different skin types.
Olive oil and Avocado oil are both heavy oils that are extremely rich in antioxidants and moisture. They are suitable for dry, patchy skin, they might be too heavy for those who suffer from acne.
Like many other things, you will need to try different oils before deciding which one is best for your skin. Different skin types, such as dry, oily, or combination, have varying requirements.
Ways to introduce coconut oil into your beauty regimen
There are various ways to incorporate coconut oil into your daily beauty regimen. Not only will it be great for your skin, but it will also go a long way in preparing your skin for your spray tan and maintaining it afterward.
Moisturizer – The most obvious way to use coconut oil when maintaining a spray tan is as a moisturizer. After showering, apply a generous amount to your skin.
Cleanser – You don’t need to bankrupt yourself buying makeup remover when you can use coconut oil to take care of that waterproof mascara for you.
Acne-repair – The fatty acids and natural properties in coconut oil help it act as an anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial remedy.
General Care After a Spray Tan
Preparing your skin before getting a spray tan is just as important, if not more so, than the after-maintenance.
Showing up to your spray tan with unprepared skin won’t give you that beautifully even, nourished-looking tan that you wanted to achieve.
Dry, flaky skin will result in a patchy spray tan, and skin that hasn’t been exfoliated will also give an uneven-looking tan.
Think about it this way – you can’t paint successfully on a dirty, unprepared canvas, can you?
To achieve the desired look, follow these steps before your spray tan appointment.
Exfoliate – Exfoliating is so important! Without exfoliating, your skin will still have an excess layer of dead cells that will prevent the spray tan from adhering properly to healthy skin. Check out my full guide on exfoliation here.
Do not apply moisturizer on the day – Any additional moisturizer or oils on your skin will interfere with the spray tan formula. You should ensure that you thoroughly moisturize in the days leading up to the tan to keep your skin evenly hydrated.
Shave or wax 8 hours before – Leg hairs can interfere with the spray tan adhering properly to your skin, resulting in a patchy finish. You want to make sure you shave or wax at least 8-24 hours before your appointment, though, so your skin has time to heal fully. Check out my guide on shaving before tanning here.
Things to remember:
Dark G-string or underwear – Wear a dark G-string or underwear to your spray tan. Some excess formula will probably get onto your underwear, and it is easy to remove from darker colors.
Baggy, dark clothing – Bring clothing that is loose-fitting and won’t cling to your skin. Darker colors are also easier to wash spray tan off of.
Umbrella – What is the point of a fresh tan if it is going to be washed off in the rain the moment you step outside? Be prepared!
Coconut Oil and Your Spray Tan
You really can’t argue the fact that well-hydrated and moisturized skin holds a spray tan better. Dry, flaky skin will only cause the tan to become patchy and fade quickly.
The best way to ensure your skin is ready for a spray tan is to add coconut oil into your daily beauty regimen.
This will help ensure the even application of spray tan and also maintain your spray tan by providing the moisture that coconut oil offers to your skin.
In the end, it cannot harm. It is natural, and it has many excellent properties that extend beyond just maintaining your spray tan.
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