Golden Globes beauty

How the celebs get golden!

By Allure Magazine Jan 10, 2013 8:39PM

By Catherine Q. O'Neill, Allure magazine

For an actress, getting ready for the Golden Globes is more than just slipping on a fancy dress. There's the makeup, hair, manicure, pedicure, and juice cleanse. But before all that, there's one appointment they can't miss: the spray tan. "My regulars know they're going to get an appointment, so I get most of my calls today and tomorrow. I just confirmed Kelly Osbourne an hour ago," says St. Tropez skin-finishing expert Fiona Locke.

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Once Locke has a celebrity confirmed, she coordinates with her stylist to find out what the star will be wearing. "If they're wearing a very light color, like salmon, you don't want it to be that dramatic of a contrast," says Locke. For those gowns, she'll suggest making the appointment three to four days prior to give the color a chance to fade slightly. She also connects with the client's manicurist. If the manicure can't be done before the spray tan, Locke instructs the manicurist not to soak, scrub, or use any oils which can create unusual splotches on the hands and feet.

Now on to the actual tan. Yes, the actresses strip down (in the comfort of their own home). And yes, they get contoured. "Things look more toned with a tan, there's no question about it," says Locke. She asks them to do a bicep curl and subtly applies more tanner to the shadowed areas. She also asks them to make a fist so she can contour the triceps. And if it's a short dress, she sprays the legs a bit darker and asks them to stand on their toes to contour under their calves. "It makes the legs more fit by reducing unevenness or veins," she says. She leaves St. Tropez Skin Illuminator (a shimmery body highlighter) with the makeup artist and advises applying it to the collarbones, shoulders, and legs before the celeb hits the red carpet. After that, it's up to the actress. "They know how to stand to make everything look better," Locke says.

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Some of Locke's clients like a deeper tan than others (both Giuliana Rancic and Carrie Ann Inaba are "not afraid to be tan," she says). And Locke can honestly say she's never received any panicked calls the day of an award show. But if a celebrity wanted to take down the color, the best way is to soak the skin with baby oil and exfoliate to remove the color, she says.

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"It's an intimate business, and you really get to know people," she says. "One of my favorite moments was tanning the late Farrah Fawcett before an awards show. Her jeweler showed up while she was getting tanned and started handing her the most spectacular diamonds I've ever seen. She asked me to put them on so she could see them. It was a sweet moment."

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Photo: Steve Granitz/WireImage

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