Spray tan for Flatbush, Kensington and Ditmas Park

Half the people who live in Midwood tell you they live in Flatbush, and half the people in Flatbush shop on Avenue J anyway. So if you searched for a spray tan in Flatbush, the good news is that Rosie’s studio is right at the southern edge of it.

This page covers the stretch north of the studio: the Victorian blocks of Ditmas Park, the apartment buildings along Ocean Avenue and Flatbush Avenue, Kensington between Ocean Parkway and McDonald Avenue, and the frum blocks between Avenue H and Avenue J, which most locals just call Flatbush. They’re different neighborhoods, but they share a route to the studio, and that route is short.

Getting down to Midwood

By subway

The Brighton line is the spine of this whole area. The Q stops at Church Avenue, Beverley Road, Cortelyou Road, Newkirk Plaza and Avenue H before it reaches Avenue J, Avenue M and Kings Highway. On weekdays the B runs express along the same track. Depending on where you board, you’re three to six stops from the studio, which makes a lunch-hour tan realistic.

Kensington is the exception. If you live closer to McDonald Avenue than to Coney Island Avenue, the F is your train: board at Church Avenue, Ditmas Avenue or 18th Avenue and get off at Kings Highway.

By car

Coney Island Avenue runs straight from the edge of Prospect Park to the studio’s part of Brooklyn with no turns, and it’s usually faster than Flatbush Avenue. Ocean Parkway works too if you’re on the Kensington side, though the service roads slow down near the Avenue I and Avenue J lights.

Who comes in from Flatbush

The northern neighborhoods send a different mix of clients than the blocks right around the studio, and the requests follow.

• Brides planning ahead. Ditmas Park and Kensington brides often marry outside Brooklyn, at a Hudson Valley barn or a Manhattan loft, and they want a tan that photographs well in daylight. That usually means a slightly softer shade than a ballroom wedding needs. The trial is where you find it.
• Frum Flatbush simchas. Between Avenue H and Avenue K the calendar is full of vorts, sheva brachos and bar mitzvahs, and guests want color that looks natural against long sleeves and dark fabrics. A face-only tan for $50 is a good fit when only your face, neck and hands will show.
• Summer and travel. Before Pesach programs, before a family trip or before the first warm weekend at Brighton Beach, a base tan saves you from that first-day sunburn look in photos. A spray tan isn’t sun protection, though; you still need SPF.
• Brooklyn College and Midwood High. Formals, proms and graduations bring in younger clients in May and June, so book those weeks early.

Ditmas Park light, ballroom light

One thing worth saying for this part of Brooklyn: a lot of photos here are taken outdoors, on porches, in Prospect Park, on the Parade Grounds before a prom. Natural daylight is far less forgiving of a too-dark tan than reception lighting is. When Rosie knows your photos will be outside, she leans toward a lighter, more golden blend. If you’ll be in a hall with warm uplighting all night, she can go a little deeper. Tell her where you’ll be when you book.

Timing matters more than shade, though. A tan looks most natural on Day 2, the day after it’s fully developed and rinsed. If the event is Sunday afternoon, come on Friday morning. For Thursday, come Tuesday. The Day 2 article explains why.

When the studio isn’t the answer

Some Flatbush homes are better than any studio for a group: a Ditmas Park Victorian with a big front room, a Kensington apartment where the whole bridal party is getting ready anyway. When there are five or more of you, Rosie can bring the setup to you. See mobile spray tans for how group bookings work. Mobile is quoted per booking, because travel, timing and headcount vary so much.

For one to four people, the studio is almost always easier. Nobody has to clear the dining room table, and it’s fifteen minutes away.

Three Flatbush weeks, planned backward

It’s easier to see how timing works with real calendars. Here are three common Flatbush scenarios and when each one would come in.

• A Sunday-night vort on East 22nd. Tan Friday morning. The studio closes an hour before sunset, so in winter, the earlier the better.
• A Thursday graduation at Brooklyn College. Tan Tuesday after class. Ride the Q down from Avenue H and back up the same afternoon.
• A Ditmas Park backyard wedding in June. Trial in early May, a lighter blend for daylight, then the wedding tan two days before.

Practical notes

Wear the loosest, darkest clothes you own for the ride home; skinny jeans and bra straps leave lines. If it’s raining, bring an umbrella for the walk from the train; raindrops on fresh color leave spots, and they’re entirely avoidable. Rinse after about 8 hours, lukewarm, no soap.

Prices are on the services page. Planning a wedding? Start with the bridal hub. Closer to the Borough Park side of Kensington? The Borough Park page covers that route.