Spray Tan Colour Bases 101

Written by Andrea Taylor
Beauty Educator and Renowned Industry Spray Tan Queen

There are many spray tan solutions available on the market, so it can be confusing knowing which products to choose for your clients!

At Solaire we take pride in being tanning industry innovators and pushing the boundaries! Solaire was one of the first spray tan companies in Australia and is also the largest independent importer and manufacturer in the tanning industry. We proudly carry over 40 different blends of spray tan solution and genuinely believe we have Every Colour For Every Body™. Unlike most spray tan brands, we actually manufacture our own spray tan solution and we're excited to share accurate information about Spray Tan Colour Bases in this blog.

What is a true base tan?

True base tans are manufactured differently to each other. For example a Colourfuze Complex® Violet - VBS® - violet base solution™ is made in the opposite way to that of a COLOURFUZE COMPLEX® Green - GBS® green base solution.

It's a bit like having all the standard ingredients for baking (ie. flour, sugar, milk and eggs) and then, HOW you combine them, and HOW you cook them will produce a different result. You can have anything from pancakes to scones. But BEWARE - the beauty industry can be really confusing as some brands try to copy the success of the BASE Tan Technology that Solaire® innovated way back in 2001.

So how can you tell the difference between a TRUE base tan and an imitation - Those that have the same product and only add a different colour bronzer?

3 simple answers

1. You cannot mix a true base tan. So when brands claim you can mix their tans you know straight away it is all the same product and it's only the bronzers that are being mixed in.

2. Check out the actual marketing of the company as some brands try to confuse between the industry adopted terminology of base tans and bronzers.

3. Some brands openly admit they do not have base tans and do not understand the technology.

This is not to say that these brands don't have good products... But they just do not have TRUE base tans. It's a bit like saying Hungry Jacks burgers, McDonalds burgers and homemade burgers are all the same thing! (Which we know they're definitely not!)

Simply put TRUE base tans in terms of technology cannot be copied and is unique to Solaire®. The Solaire Colourfuze Complex® assures you that you are getting a base tan that is ACTUALLY manufactured differently.

How do you choose the right base tan for the right skin tone?

Let's look at the colour wheel. The colour wheel for spray tanning is very different than that of makeup or hair colour. We don't look at warm, cool or neutral tones (Which the makeup industry uses) as the makeup simply sits on top of the skin. The hair industry looks at hair colour in terms of toner and the colour of the toner we would use to remove brassiness from bleached hair. Spray tan actually works on the skin to produce a colour result. It is for this reason any reference to make up terminology or hair terminology will alert you to an uneducated lecturer. The colour wheel is used as an education tool to assist technicians in selecting the correct base spray tan colour for the appropriate skin tone. Essentially - how can we get the best end result for each skin tone?

Violet

Violet - VBS® - violet base solution™ is suitable for people with a yellow undertone to their skin.

In this example Natalie has an obvious yellow undertone. Ideally a COLOURFUZE COMPLEX® Violet - VBS® spray tan solution™ would work best on her. That is not to say a green or red will not work (they will - they will just produce a different result) However, she is less likely to throw an orange colour with a COLOURFUZE COMPLEX® Violet - VBS® spray tan solution™. There is some degree of counteraction with the base and the chemical reaction during the processing of the tan.

Green

Green- GBS®- green base solution™ is suitable for people with a rosy/pink undertone to their skin.

In this example Anne has an obvious rosy undertone. Ideally a COLOURFUZE COMPLEX® Green- GBS® spray tan solution™ would work best on her. That is not to say a violet or red will not work (they will - they will just produce a different result) However, she is less likely to throw an orange colour with a COLOURFUZE COMPLEX® Green- GBS® spray tan solution™. There is some degree of counteraction with the base and the chemical reaction during the processing of the tan.

Red

Red - RBS® red base solution™ is suitable for all skin tones.

True Red - RBS® red base solution™ counteracts any orange/brassy undertones to produce a deep bronzed look. (Think rose gold). Red counteracts orange directly on the same side of the colour wheel to create a beautiful rose gold result.

At Solaire® we’re often asked “Who can wear a red based tan?”

And our answer is: Everyone can wear a red based tan!

In the below photos Solaire® Team Member Teish is wearing the Solaire® - Scarlet - 2 HR DARK - COLOURFUZE COMPLEX® Red - RBS® Spray Tan Solution. As you can see the colour is absolutely gorgeous and truly looks like a natural tan on her pale skin. Teish is a skin type 1 (pale) and has an obvious pink tone to her skin. As you can see the Red - RBS® red base solution™ works really well at producing a great dark tan!

People are often a bit wary of change or trying new products, which is why we have samples sized bottles of our ColourFuze Complex® Spray Tan Solutions available online. 

If you have any questions about colour bases please feel free to contact 0352458367.