BodiBronze Sunless Spa

I bought a radio refunds certificate to use at BodiBronze. The certificate was for $ 20 and they were running a Halloween special for an original full body spray for $ 25 (which is why I bought the certificate). However, I was unable to use my gift certificate on the special, only on full priced spray tans. The technician did an amazing job, although it was super duper awkward (for me, she didn’t make it awkward). She was extremely professional and friendly the entire time. She didn’t make me feel self-​conscious about my body and I would definitely go back and would recommend to a friend. The spa itself is lovely. OH! Note to everyone, they are appointment only, which I did not know.

BodiBronze trains its employees in airbrushing technique and their application is flawless. The salon is lovely and the tanning room is large — the size of a large bedroom. This is important to contrast with a booth or worse, tiny curtained-​off area of the sort that other places might use.
I tan nude and this is a comfortable experience thanks to the experienced and professional technicians at BodiBronze. The most uncomfortable part of the process is the cool spray down your back. There were rarely any areas of over-​saturation and there were no issues with the hands or feet, as is commonly a problem with less capable technicians.
The equipment is clearly professional-​grade. Since I moved from Champaign in the last month, I have had two miserable experiences with airbrush tanning. I have seen tiny airbrush sprayers the size of a 12-​oz bottle into which the solution was pumped. The effect from the non-​professional grade equipment was a very wet-​spray that the technician had to constantly wipe away with her gloved hand — this was considered part of her technique.
I highly recommend BodiBronze. I have used less expensive salons for airbrush tanning and I believe you will get precisely what you pay for. I am a fair-​skinned redhead and having the tan be as dark or as light as I would like was never a problem. The tan lasted about a week and I received many compliments on the incredible natural-​looking results.

I got hosed down with spray tan by BodiBronze the week of my wedding. I did it as close as possible to the wedding before I had to leave town – about 4 ½ days prior. I told the lady I was doing it for my out of town wedding on that Saturday. She gently chastised me, saying, «We really recommend you do it 2 days or less before the wedding.» I told her that I wouldn’t sue them if my tan faded in the 4 ½ days before the wedding, so I sure wasn’t going to drive 8 hours to get a spray tan. Then I said, «Now, hose me down, woman!» Not really.
BodiBronze is a nice place… very professional and spa-​like. They’re also very expensive, which is to be expected for airbrush tanning. I believe a full body «light» tan cost me $ 60 with a tip and a bottle of some sort of moisturizing cleanser that’s supposed to help keep your tan’s tone even. Since spray tans only last a week or two, it could definitely bore a hole in your wallet.
As for the experience? You get as naked as you want to get. This is with the understanding, of course, that if you wear a bra or undies, you get a tan line of wherever those undergarments fall. Since my dress was strapless, I bared the boobies to some poor lady at BodiBronze. I’m not particularly concerned with nudity, but BOY… there is something about standing there with your arms and legs outstretched (like you’re about to do jumping jacks) with a perfect stranger kneeling down and making sure every square inch of bare skin is covered with tanner. Awwwwk-​waaaard.
The tan was beautiful. It was even, not bizarrely dark or orange, and lasted about a week. Word of advice? If you wake up the week of your wedding to two bats flying around your room and need to get a round of rabies shots and the nurse puts a bandaid on your arm after you get the shot? Take off the bandaid. Otherwise, you will be like me and wake up the morning of your wedding, still wearing a bandaid and remember that, oh shit!, you probably have a bandaid-​sized pale mark on your arm. ‘Cause that will happen.