Welcome back to the Pop 5, featuring Chicago's best places to do anything and everything. Last week, we told you about the best parks in the city. This week, we're switching gears to Summer beauty. While many of you love to bake in the sun, our increased knowledge of its negative side effects gives faux glows an opportunity to shine. Spray or manual temporary tans have come a long way from the yam look of the past (thank goodness!)

  1. Ortanic (available at Gold Coast, Lincoln Park, and Halsted Street Fitness Formula Clubs) is a custom-blended spray-tanning experience that is applied by a highly trained technician instead of a machine. Ortanic only hires licensed estheticians with extensive makeup backgrounds who have both an understanding of the skin and an eye for color. There's no need to worry about looking like a streaky mess either. Ortanic uses the latest airbrush technology, which atomizes the solutions into a very fine mist, creating an even application every time.
  2. Think Benefit is just known for having amaze makeup, face, and body products with super-cute names? Similar to Ortanic, the Benefit boutiques (multiple locations) offer body, half-body, and face and decollete spray tanning (with an aloe-based Brazilian formula) that is administered by a licensed esthetician who will customize the tanning blend to your skin tone and desired level of darkness. Since you have to come in sans makeup, stick around to have one of the Benefit gals provide you with a quickie app to enhance your glow.
  3. The St. Tropez tanning treatment at Mario Tricoci (900 N. Michigan Ave., 874-202-1900) is applied to your face and bod by an expertly trained esthetician after a thorough exfoliation. Thanks to the cozy spa environs and massage-like application technique, this faux gow feels more like a pampering spa service versus a maintenance treatment  — no complaints here.
  4. Celeb TV's Kelli Zink is dedicated to Golden Girl Tanning (1940 N. Lincoln Ave., 813-784-4906), and apparently, you are too! Considering cofounder Jenn Dias comes to your casa armed with a mobile airbursh sprayer (loaded with an organic Austrailian sunless tanning formula), tent, and all the pre- and post-prods, what's not to like?  
  5.  There's another gal in the house of glow. Glamour Girl Tanning (355 E. Grand Ave., 2nd Fl., 312-527-867) offers full/half body, face/neck, but it's the "double dip" that keeps even the palest of complexions glowing. You'll get two coats (as with all tanning services) on your initial visit, followed by two more the next day, resulting in a tan that lasts longer than your vaycay.