Spray tan in Marine Park, five minutes up Avenue U

Marine Park is a driving neighborhood. Single-family houses, a driveway or a curb cut on most blocks, and no train within walking distance for many of you. That actually makes Rosie’s studio one of the easiest appointments on your calendar: across Nostrand, a few more lights, park, tan, go home.

This page is for 11234 west of Flatbush Avenue: the blocks around the park itself, the Avenue U shopping strip, Fillmore and Avenue S, and Gerritsen Beach down at the end of Gerritsen Avenue. Mill Basin and Bergen Beach have their own page, because the houses and the parties out there are a little different.

The route from Marine Park to the studio

Avenue U and Kings Highway both run west toward Midwood, and either one takes you most of the way. Avenue U is usually the calmer drive outside rush hour; Kings Highway is quicker if you’re coming from the north side of the park. Rosie texts the studio address when your booking is confirmed, and from there it’s a matter of which avenue is closer to your block.

No car? The B3 runs along Avenue U and meets the Q at Avenue U station. The B44 runs along Nostrand Avenue. Both work, but if it’s hot or raining, a car service is kinder to fresh color than a bus stop.

Gerritsen Beach and the far blocks

Gerritsen Beach, at the bottom of Gerritsen Avenue, is about as far from a train as you can get in Brooklyn. If you live down there, plan on driving: up Gerritsen Avenue to Avenue U, then west. The same goes for the blocks east of the park toward Flatbush Avenue. It’s still a short trip, but give yourself time for Avenue U at rush hour.

Prep before you leave the house

Because you’re coming by car, you can do your prep right before you leave: a shower that morning with no lotion afterward, no deodorant, hair tied up. Put a dark towel on the passenger seat for the ride home. Shave or wax the day before, not the morning of, so your pores have settled.

What Marine Park books

The neighborhood has its own rhythm of celebrations, and Rosie sees them all come through the studio door:

• Communions, confirmations and christenings. Spring is busy with family church events, and moms and aunts book a light, natural tan for the photos. The Face Only option ($50) is popular when the dress has sleeves.
• Proms and graduations. Late May and June bring in high school seniors. A tan two days before prom looks better than one the night before, so plan backward from the date.
• Weddings and showers. Brides from the neighborhood often get ready at home, and the bridal party wants to match. If there are five or more of you, the mobile service means nobody has to drive anywhere the week of the wedding.
• Beach season. Marine Park sits right by the water, and a base tan before the first weekend at the beach takes the edge off that pale first day. It’s cosmetic color, not sun protection, so keep the sunscreen on.

Studio or house call?

Here’s the simple rule. For one to four people, come to the studio. It’s close, the light is set up for spraying, and you’re in and out in about twenty minutes each. For five or more, Rosie can come to you, and Marine Park houses are well suited to it: a finished basement, a sunroom or an empty bedroom with a hard floor all work.

When you call about a house visit, have the headcount, the address and the date ready, plus a rough idea of which room you’d use. Rosie will tell you what she needs set up. Mobile visits are quoted for each booking, since a Sunday morning bridal party and a weeknight prom group are different jobs.

Timing for weekend parties

Most Marine Park parties are on Saturday. Rosie is shomer Shabbat, so the studio is closed Saturdays and closes an hour before sunset on Fridays. The good news is that this lines up with how a tan works: color looks most natural on Day 2, so a Thursday tan is right for a Saturday party. A Friday morning tan suits a Sunday event.

Prices are the same for every neighborhood: $100 for a Spray Tan, $150 for the Spray Tan + with a take-home kit, $50 for Face Only. Bridal trials are $120 and bridal party tans are $120 per person. Everything is listed on the services page, and the bridal page explains how wedding timing works.

If you’re on the Sheepshead Bay side of Avenue U, the Sheepshead Bay page may be a closer match for your route.