Spray-Tan Tips for Brides

You've planned every detail of your wedding: found your something blue, mastered your makeup look, and even nailed down all of your bridesmaids' hairstyles. Type A? It's OK — it's your day. And the last thing you want is for something like a spray-tan mishap — such as a bronze formula smeared on your dream white dress — distracting you from the magic of your big day.

We know wearing white can be daunting, so you're probably going to want to get some sort of faux glow (you've been wearing plenty of SPF, right?). So I created this special spray-tan guide just for brides. Once you've brushed up on the ABCs of tanning and how to exfoliate, read on the self-tanning pro by me Tomina.

When is the perfect time to get your spray tan?

I would definitely suggest doing it two days before your wedding so you will have already washed off the first layer of the tan, it will have settled into your skin, and you can add your own moisturizer. You also have the ability to see how it turned out and make sure that it's perfect. And if, god forbid, it isn't [right], you have some time to get it fixed or touched up.

Is there any chance it will get on your white dress?

No, because it already has sunk into your skin. Once you shower and rinse off that [extra formula] — which is just bronzer, not the actual tan itself — you'll be left with just the color on your skin.

White is an extreme color to wear with a tan. How should you pick what bronze shade to do?

Go by what your base color already is. So if it's in the middle of the Summer and you've been at the beach this whole time, obviously you are going to be darker than you would be during the wintertime. So then you can go a shade darker. I don't suggest doing anything more than a few shades darker than your natural skin tone, because that tends to look more artificial. You also want to choose a shade according to your features — your hair and eye color. So if you have dark hair and eyes, then you can get away with a darker tan. If you are blond with blue eyes and freckles, you want a hue that's a bit lighter.

What's the best way to convey the color you want to be to the person doing your spray tan?

I always try to get a good idea by mentioning a celebrity whom a lot of people know. For example, I often suggest Jennifer Lopez's bronze, because she looks amazing, but at the same time, she's not superdark or artificial-looking. She has that caramel sun-kissed color.

What should you look for in a tanning salon?

Choose a place that doesn't use the same shade for everyone — that's a bad sign, a really bad sign. And find out what kind of spray-tan formula they use. I only use an organic formual.