Faux Glow

NEVER use this place. Not only is it impossible to make an appointment as they never answer their phone, emails, or have an online scheduling system, but the person/​people who work there are VERY RUDE! I purchased a Groupon only to request a refund because it was impossible to schedule and appointment. After my refund went through from Groupon, the business contacted me. I explained to her (Jeanie I think) that I couldn’t schedule my service and my friend and I both got Groupon refunds. After that conversation, she left me a very nasty voicemail as well as a text message! What kind of customer service is that? This place is terrible and doesn’t know how to treat people, let alone clients. Never do business with them.

Is this a business? Could have fooled me!
I purchased this off groupon and did not realize this «business» is actually run out of a sketchy apartment by a very rude and unprofessional woman.
I arrived 15 minutes early and was greeted at the door by an annoyed and flustered Jeani, who said that I was too early so go wait in the lobby of the apartment building… Ok. I asked if I was in the right place since it seemed a little off. Whoa. Wrong question— Jeani immediately became defensive and said to me «you know, a lot of people run businesses out of their houses! This is my studio! If you don’t feel comfortable you can leave! Some people aren’t comfortable but it’s not like I’m going to take you to the basement to skin you. I just didn’t want to pay all this money in rent to have my business elsewhere.» Again, very unprofessional. I just «okay’ed» her until she shooed me to the lobby once again. I spoke with the doorman while I waited and he told me he knew nothing about a business being run out of this woman’s apartment.
After the experience upstairs I decided that after that kind of attitude, treatment, and defensiveness, I no longer cared about staying for the tan. I cared more about my safety and did not know what this person (who is clearly a loose cannon) could do. I quietly left the apartment building.
Soon after, I received a phone call, voicemail, and text from her asking where I was and telling me I would lose my Groupon if I did not come upstairs. I responded to her via text telling her of my discomfort due to her attitude and unprofessionalism in the doorway of her apartment. She proceeded to deny making me feel uncomfortable and told me I had made up this experience and accused me of lying. Again, very unprofessional! I couldn’t believe she was denying the incident and name calling her potential client. Makes me very happy I made the right decision not to stay.
The incident was unfortunate as I actually wanted the tan as I have an event to go to tomorrow and it was already purchased.
Tip for those wanting a spray tan: stick with an actual business where they know a thing or two about customer service and won’t try to pick a petty cat fight via text.

Completely unreasonable cancellation policy & no one ever picks up the phone. They just charge your card automatically for over $ 90. How do you
Expect me To cancel or change an app if I can not reach anyone to speak with on the telephone?
Keep my $ 93 & you lost a client. Never again.

This is the third review I’ve ever written on Unilocal.I typically wouldn’t do one unless the place of business was stellar or completely terrible. I have been to 6 different spray tanning salons throughout New York, and 1 in LA, most of them very well ranked and awarded. Personally, and quite simply, I think Jeani has done THE BEST job out of all of them. She’s extremely thorough, polite, and professional. It is made quite clear during your session that she REALLY cares about making sure you’re getting the best possible tan, and that you leave fresh and happy. My tans have been blotch-​free, streak-​free, and evenly glowing for up to 7 days each time I’ve gone. Recently, I was away for a couple of weeks on a business trip and getting a quick touch up with a different spray tan technician, who specifically told me, «whoever did your tan before me did an EXCELLENT job!” — I think that says a lot about the quality of Jeani’s work!
Side note: Jeani leaves sufficient time for each client to ensure giving everyone the best possible tan. You never feel rushed– like other places that have you in and out in 15 minutes. Clearly, I highly recommend her.
Thanks for being awesome Jeani!

I carefully read all of the reviews some good some bad and decided to give it a go. i dont mind that it was in an apartment, Jeannie was very nice. I did mind that there was a sign telling me what to tip, I didnt believe it until I saw it for myself– unprofessional and in poor taste. the tan looked nice but only lasts for 4 days even after being very careful. probably would NOT be back

Jeanie by far has the best, most natural color. She takes time to contour the face and allows ample time for drying in the winter so you do not have sock lines. I always get complimented on my color or people just say I look well rested. Ah! So good to have a little natural glow in the winter and especially at such an affordable price!
I am not sure why people are complaining about the fake tan smell… Hello? You are going to get a fake tan, right?!
I highly recommend the results!

I always have a great experience when I come to faux Glow. I have been getting weekly spray tans for about 10 years and try all different salons, so far this is the best place. The tan always lasts for a long time, and Liz who I go to always gets the application perfect. Whenever I have somewhere special to go, I splurge on the faux glow spray tan.
I am a makeup artist and refer all of my brides to go there if they want to get a tan before the wedding. Every one who goes says the same thing. Highly recommend it!

Eff this place!!! I recently bought a lifebooker voucher and tried to make an appointment, and it was freakin impossible. I was so excited to try this place. I saw it on lifebooker and clicked their website and it was pretty boastful. it was going to be my first spray tan of the summer, and i saw that they were open on saturday, and even tho I read online that they never answer the phone, I called anyway. Got a voicemail, wasn’t surprised, and left a message that I had just seen their loot and I was intrigued and bought it, and I was very anxious to try them out. A few hours later I got a text from a number I didn’t know. The text said they were fully booked, sorry, and they would contact me when something opened up… ummm, ur going to contact me??? How bout I just call u back during Monday hours. Are u so exclusive that ull call me instead?
Whatever. I got a phone call then on Monday and the voicemail gave me an option of two different impossible times. 7pm on a Saturday (a full week after I originally wanted to get it done) or the next day, Tuesday at like 11:15 am. And that’s ALL THE OPTIONS THEY HAD. that’s it. Out of the ENTIRE WEEK. for a NEW CUSTOMER just two shitty times.
Ok, I texted her back immediately after the voicemail and said ill take Saturday at 7. A few hours later I get another text from the number saying it was actually booked.
Impossible.
I know the owner or someone affiliated with that hole in the wall likes to answer back unsatisfied customers on here so let me just say this: u are AIRBRUSH TANNERS. Ur hole in the wall is not some exclusive club or restaurant that every manhattanite wants to be seen in. U SPRAY FAKE TANS. IDIOTS. Make time for customers. Especially NEW customers. That’s the first rule of business. New customers are the future of ur crap hole.
I’m glad I didn’t go anyway. I ended up returning the loot to lifebooker and getting a credit to buy the voucher for pink sands. Which did an amazing job:). And I’ll be returning to pink sands once a week for the rest of the summer.

Jeani is a genius! Professional, kind and friendly service. Got so many compliments on my tan, worth every dollar! Can’t wait to go back!

They do a great job with the tanning and the results look real real good. I’ve opted for a light fair/​medium tan and it looks like I was on the beach for the weekend– its quite subtle and an overall great glow for my entire body. I would recommend booking with the owner– she does a great job at delivering the results every time.

This was one of the most uneven spray tans I have ever got. Thank god I only paid $ 25 for it via a Lifebooker deal. The girl who spray tanned me was as unprofessional as they come– she was on her cell phone while I was standing there nude waiting for her to spray me. The spray was completely uneven, there were streaks on my wrists, feet, and neck that looked absolutely horrible. After she finished, the girl asked me to tip 20% on the original price of the tan which I thought was really rude. I would NEVER go back here and would certainly never pay $ 90 for a crappy spray tan that I could have gotten at Beach Bum for a quarter of the price. This place is a joke.

I seldom write down the review. If I write it down, it would be probably either great or horrible. It was the worst experience ever!
I made a reservation for the massage with the deal I bought. I was running late for the appointment and I called them to make sure but they never answered. I went there anyway and was 15mins late. When I got there it was open but nobody was there.
After waiting 5mins, a lady came out and told me that she was working by herself and she was waxing another customer so she couldn’t give me the massage that day. Also, told me that the reservation for next week is fully booked. What an attitude! She told me that she doesn’t answer the phone when she works.(I heard this place is infamous for not picking up the phone! Hello??) She didn’t even call me to check if I could make it or not and took care of another customer instead of reserved customer!
I go the the spa to relax not to get stressed out. C’mon. There are a lot of nice places with great service in NYC.

I’ve been a client of Faux Glow for at least 3 years, and have have my airbrush tan by many employees there. Liz has done my spray tan many many times. I am the type of person who doesn’t sit it in the sun, but loves looking tan! The tan I get at Faux Glow is even and lasts longer than if I go anywhere else. They offer amazing deals, which always excited me! The level of work they do is so worth every penny I spend here. You leave feeling healthy and skinny. The location is awesome, right by madison avenue (so easy to get to). I find the waiting area comfortable, and LOVE the candy in the jars-​definitely a cute touch. I am not understanding the bad reviews, as I have been to this business at least 20 times and never once had a bad experience. This business is well run, and I am client for life!

I bought a deal through Lifebooker, $ 25 for a full body organic spray tan. Priced at $ 90 on their site. Yes the office is in an apartment building and yes the waiting room is cramped and awkward. Technicians sat in the waiting room, chewing gum and texting. The technician whipped out a book of celebrities that were cut from magazines and pasted into a binder, then asked me what color I wanted. I’m quite fair and explained to her that I wanted not quite the lightest shade but not the next darker. Usually in my case, they’d mix up something in between (this would be my 4^th spray tan so I am familiar). She assured me that she would do the lightest then we could go darker once I reviewed it. After she was done spraying, the color wasn’t as dark as I wanted so I asked her to make it darker. She replied ‘I used the middle one on you.” UHM OK, that’s not what we agreed to. The materials provided were oddly off-​brand, like Target baby wipes and Walgreens body lotion. Not that I need high-​end but usually they are tanning supplies, not cheap substitutes.
Regarding the tan itself, it was a rainy and humid night but the tan did not streak and deepened nicely overnight. I received no less than 75 compliments the next day and here I am almost a week later and my tan is going strong. Regarding the experience, considering the location, the products, and the general quality of service, it all feels very «low budget.» I am flabbergasted at how they could charge $ 90, as most high-​end spas rarely charge more than $ 70 and they have proper rooms, equipment, and staff.

Bottom line: while the facial was fine, it was worth only $ 35 (certainly not the full price of $ 90) and the sketchiness in scheduling and business practices of Faux Glow make me strongly encourage you to go elsewhere.
My friend and I each purchased a discounted facial at Faux Glow through Lifebooker Loot so we could get facials together while I was visiting her in New York this past weekend. It probably should have been a sign that this wasn’t going to go well when it took me nearly two hours (calling every fifteen minutes or so) to get through to make an appointment. (At least while we were there, there is no receptionist so essentially if someone else is there for an appointment no one will be answering your call.) When I finally did get someone to pick up the phone, I made two appointments both for 12pm. Because I knew this would be easy to get messed up, I clarified before ending the call that I was confirmed for appointments for my friend and I EACH to get a facial, BOTH at 12pm. I was assured this was correct. The day of the appointment, my friend and I arrived at Faux Glow right at 12pm. The door was locked and there was another girl already waiting in front of it, trying to call Faux Glow (we could hear the phone ringing inside and of course no one answered). She also had an appointment for 12. She gave up and left about five minutes after we arrived, at which point I noticed I had a voicemail. Lisa from Faux Glow had called me at 11:53, saying she was running late. She eventually showed up at about 12:15 and apologized, saying she had needed to stop to get towels for my body scrub. Body scrub? (We also didn’t notice any towels in her hands.) I explained that I had made two facial appointments and had no knowledge of a body scrub. Lisa said that I had been booked for a facial and body scrub, but she could do two facials instead — back to back. So instead of both of us getting facials at the same time and then being able to go on with our day, we were each going to be spending some quality time in the cramped (one chair) waiting area. Great.
The facial itself was fine — certainly not the best I’ve ever had but also not the worst. I was a little troubled by some of the things Lisa said: «This lotion protects your skin from the air and sun, but it doesn’t have SPF» (um, then it’s not protecting me from the sun) and «What’s a Clarisonic?» (really!!!). While my friend’s facial was happening, a girl came in who was pretty positive she had an appointment at 1pm, but Lisa told her it had actually been scheduled for 4. When my friend and I told Lisa about the girl who had been waiting at the door when we got there, Lisa said she didn’t have an appointment. This all indicated that Faux Glow probably has some serious problems with their scheduling system.
When my friend and I were both finally done, Lisa said we each owed $ 2 for «tax.» What??! This has never happened to me with any Groupon or Living Social deal I have purchased, and my friend who has used Lifebooker in the past was also shocked. Further, the price of the Lifebooker Loot deal was $ 35 and the alleged full price of this facial was $ 90. NYC sales tax on beauty services is 4.5% and there is no state tax (
) so if we really owed for tax (which I doubt) the cost would have been either $ 1.58 on the deal price or $ 4.05 on the full price. NOT $ 2. If they just «rounded up,» they still stole $ 0.42, which I’m sure adds up if they’re doing this to every person who comes in. Weird and definitely sketchy. I would never go back here and I hope you don’t, either.

I went to this place off a purchased Loot. I bought a 45-​minute exfoliant. First thing is, it wasn’t what it was advertised as. I’ve had an exfoliate many times before and being shellacked with some cold sticky substance before then having towels placed over me, only to be wiped down with the now lukewarm towels is NOT an exfoliant. The woman (Danielle) was out of the room more than she was in it and she didn’t even touch my feet and hands! And that’s just the internal service.
The place itself is clean but tiny. Looks like someone’s old apartment. And it’s cluttered with candy, slippers, body treatments. The waiting room is practically in reception’s lap. I wasn’t feeling well that day and attempted to reschedule but was told I would lose my Loot because it was under the 24 hour cut off. Oddly enough, I get a voice message from the company, as I’m walking to the business, saying I can reschedule. Well, too late now.
And seriously, if I could be as angry as I actually felt, I wouldn’t have tipped the girl. But that’s not very nice so here I am sharing my grief. There’s a reason it’s called «Faux.» Lesson learned!

I booked an appointment online a few weeks ago for a spray tan. I had to cancel at last minute because of a nasty stomach virus. I was a first time customer and called to inquire what my options were. I knew they might charge me for the service but I was hoping I could work something out with them, perhaps a discount on another spray tan session if I were to be charged 100% for that day’s missed appointment. I definitely did want to reschedule with them after hearing some great things about them by word of mouth.
This place has horrible customer service. The woman who picked up the phone sounded like she had just downed a few sleeping pills. She was impatient and sounded irritated. She asked me to call back later that day as she was about to work on another customer. After several calls that same day and no answer, I emailed them instead. I never recieved a return phone call or email and a charge showed up on my credit card statement. No courtesy follow up on their end. I was so disappointed with their vibe that I would likely never attempt to book with them in the future.

I purchased Groupon coupon for Faux Glow back in February and I finally got around to using it in anticipation of a wedding I was in. This was my first time receiving a spray tan. I was extremely wary.
To that end, Faux Glow did a wonderful job. After consulting with Liz (during which she asked me why I was getting sprayed, what sort of look I was going for, the cut of my dress… etc.), I opted for Light-​Medium on her recommendation with a little extra on mylegs.
While the place itself is a bit of a «hot mess» and posh in any way, I didn’t really mind. The room where Liz did her work was comfortable and clean. She showed me how to prep and was a completely professional during the spray tan process, talking me through the whole thing. The results were instantaneous! I left feeling bronzed and beautiful. The tan was so natural looking and lasted for about 6 days. The very few discolorations or streaks were entirely my own fault (rain drops, no umbrella; sports bra, I worked out a little too early).
The price is very steep and the handwritten message basically demanding tips is a bit tacky, but I would go back for an important, last minute event as the results were wonderful and their employees were great.

I think the only reason this place is getting bad reviews is because it IS more costly than a lot of other airbrush tan places, but the results are SO much better. I’ve been spray tanned at Beach Bum and have come out looking like like a piece of teak furniture– I’d had to scrub off at home after having been laughed at by my friends. Sure, faux tan doesn’t have a super nice spa-​like appearance (it’s sort of oddly located in an office building), but they make that up in service. The girl who airbrushed me made sure I had the color I wanted, gave me pre-​exfloiating wipes just in case I hadn’t done a great job doing it myself at home, and was patient with me when I wanted to wait for a while to dry off. I didn’t get the tanner on my fingers, knuckles or heels because she made sure I was properly prepped for those areas. i wish I could say the same of some other places I’ve been to.
I guess I’m biased a bit because I did pay less because I had a Lifebooker coupon, but I think this place is great. With that being said though, the tan didn’t last as long as I thought it should have, but was nice for a few days.

Faux Glow… more like Faux Pas.
I’ve never had the urge to really write a review before since I’m more of a reader — but my experience here was really below average. I’m also not the one to spray tan, but I was on vacation recently and I had extremely bad tan lines and I wanted to wear a tube dress for my graduation the next day so I was looking to get my tan lines evened out a little.
It’s possible that I had high expectations (rightfully so since it has been voted #1 by Allure magazine), but Faux Glow was not what I expected it to be at all. It’s location is in this building that doesn’t even list Faux Glow in the directory. When I arrived at suite 607, the door looked like there used to be business in the room behind, but it was abandoned and the sign had been ripped off. Before entering, I actually called a friend to make sure I was in the right place, and even after she confirmed it, I decided to go back downstairs to ensure I was in the right building and to check the directory again. While I was re-​entering the building, a man followed me in (security guard???) and asked me where I was going, and then directed me towards the same suite 607.
I decided to finally enter suite 607, and the place itself is pretty small, and the entry is cramped by a couch and a some shelves with merchandise on it. The service itself wasn’t too bad — the girl was reasonably nice and professional… though there was some man in the place as well. I thought he was a client, but after my session, he was just sitting on the couch reading a magazine, which I thought was a little weird.
The spray tan session itself was alright. I was a little disappointed to find out that their «five colours» is really just one colour, layered multiple times. To dry yourself, you have to stand in front of a small fan and spin around (standard of a spray tanning place?). I had a small mark on my chest which wasn’t sprayed properly, and when I pointed it out, I was told after I showered it would disappear (…it did not). The tan looked pretty good… until I stepped out in to natural lighting. In sunlight, I looked like what my sister referred to as an oompa-​loompa (for those who aren’t Charlie and the Chocolate Factory fans… they are small orange men — google it because it’s what my skin looked like). I read somewhere that people turn orange based on the reaction of chemicals, so perhaps this is not Faux Glow’s fault, but it definitely did not add to the experience.
I’m pretty lucky in the sense that I found out one of my friends is an expert in spray tanning, and she advised me to go shower fast enough so I was to wash majority of my orange off. After a milk bath, I was back to my normal colour, though $ 50 poorer. I would definitely advise you to find a different location if you want a customized spray tan, or I would advise you to just spray tan at a booth, since the service and result will be exactly the same.