[CLOSED} Review & Giveaway: VersaSpa Spray Tan

Guys, I have a confession to make: I used to have a tanning problem. Those of you who know me now may think of me as your pale, blonde friend who wears SPF 30 every day, but I haven't always been this way. All throughout high school and up until my sophomore year of college, I used to go tanning once a week in a tanning bed, and I colored my hair way darker than my natural shade because I thought it looked better with tanned skin. I knew it was bad for my skin, but I did it anyway - maybe because it was the "cool" thing to do {hello Paris & Nicole}, maybe it was because I felt better being on stage in my skimpy costumes at dance competitions when I was tan...I'm not sure. But I only felt pretty when I had a tan. When I had a minor skin scare at age 19 that required plastic surgery on my face, I smartened up. I never went back into a tanning bed again and I started wearing high level SPF every time I was outside in the sun. I haven't seen myself with a real tan in almost 10 years.

the tan brunette formerly known as Amy

So, when VersaSpa reached out to me offering to give me and one of my readers a free spray tan, I was skeptical. I've gotten used to the pale Amy and I'm pretty happy with her, so I was hesitant to try out a spray tan for fear I would go back to liking tan Amy better. I was also terrified that I would turn orange or look streaky which I've definitely seen happen to other girls who have done spray tans. And if I didn't like my spray tan, how could I offer one up to one of you guys? I don't like to endorse anything I don't love or believe in. Lucky for me, I had a great experience with my VersaSpa spray tan! Click through to read all about it and enter to win your own!

VersaSpa has a few locations in Boston, but I chose their booth at G2O Spa on Newbury Street because it's closest to my apartment in Back Bay. {If you haven't been to G2O before, you NEED to check it out - it has 4 floors and a private roof terrace with a hot tub! I'm definitely going to be visiting again and am planning a full post on their spa amenities, so more on that later.} I went last Wednesday after work for my spray tan and was visibly nervous when I arrived. Rachael, my spa concierge, was extremely reassuring & knowledgeable and walked me through the entire process on what I should expect, which level of tan I should choose and how to take care of the tan afterwards. I am pretty sure I asked her about 100 questions and was very irritating, but she was super patient with me, thoroughly addressed all of my concerns and put me at ease.

what the VersaSpa booth looks like

The VersaSpa spray tan has 6 levels of intensity - 1 being the least noticeable and 6 being a very dark tan. Rachael told me I should go with the level 3 tan so it would actually show up on my skin, and after about 5 minutes of me agonizing over whether or not that would be too dark and if I would look like an oompa loompa, I finally trusted her and went with the level 3. The tan itself took about 5 minutes - first the booth sprayed me with a primer, then with the tanner, and finally with a moisturizer. I had to change positions a few times but the robot woman inside the booth let me know what to do so it was easy to follow. Here's a photo of what I looked like before I entered the booth (left) and what I looked like a few minutes after exiting the booth (right.)

how do you like my spa towel?

You could tell the difference right away, but it was subtle and definitely NOT orange! There were no streaks on my skin and the tan was really even over my entire body. I love that it covered up my existing tan lines as well! While I don't think I'll be getting a spray tan on a regular basis, I would definitely go back and get one before a big event now that I know it will look natural. It's pretty clear to me that the quality of the VersaSpa spray tan is much higher than some of the other spray tans out there, so even though they cost a bit more than the spray booths at your local "campus tan" salon, they're definitely worth the price.

The color shows up more about 8-10 hours after you get the tan, so I took some photos at work the day after my tan to show you what it looked like. {If you need a reminder of what my skin color looks like normally, click here for my last outfit post. And don't mind my squinting in these photos below - it was really sunny out!}

dress: H&M {similar here & here}

flats: Tory Burch | bag: vintage Louis Vuitton

sunglasses: Firmoo | necklace: vintage Chanel {similar}

watch: Hello Kitty | pink pearl earrings: vintage {similar}

chain bracelet: c/o Crush Boutique {similar} | pink bracelet: David Yurman

Now it's your chance to win your own free spray tan valid at any VersaSpa or Mystic Tan location near you! Just fill out the easy widget below to enter - good luck! :)

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