Rackage: Sun Lounge Eco-Tanning Salon

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Rackage is a look inside recently-opened stores around town. Today, let's look inside Sun Lounge in the Hollywood Hills.

So what the heck is eco about a tanning salon? Anyone is right to be skeptical about the idea, and right to be concerned about the long-term effects of any sort of fake-baking. Basically, Sun Lounge is mostly powered by solar energy. That, and it sells eco-friendly tanning-related beauty products—which, by the way, are pretty pricey. They've also appointed the salon with green materials. In terms of the tanning beds themselves, there's nothing particularly eco about them. They are top-of-the-line German beds though, according to Sun Lounge. We haven't laid on many tanning beds, but the most expensive model there, the Open Sun 1050, is pretty comfortable and allows tanners to have control over the music and the fan, so you don't overheat.

We acknowledge our tanning salon experience is limited, but as far as we can tell, this one is nice and incredibly clean compared to others. There is a real irony in having the sun power equipment to give you a fake tan, but if you're going to do it, this seems like a pretty good option, especially since the staff seems knowledgeable about the equipment and products. A single session ranges from $15-$75, with sunless tanning priced at $35. Packages make a lot more sense if you do this on the regular.
· Sun Lounge [sunloungestudios.com]