(This was in Draft from early summer so I thought I'd clean it up and post it anyway)
It's getting warmer outside and we all want to spend more time in the sun. I remember the good old days when my sister and I would oil up and lay by our pool for hours on the weekends. That was about 35 years ago and people didn't really know that skin cancer was such a threat from sun exposure. I'm a fair little Irish girl and I burn easily. My sister being from a Scandinavian background (we're adopted), was blonde and could get a tan by looking at a picture of the sun. So, I slathered on the Sea & Ski tanning lotion and turn a wonderful shade of red, mostly burning my Lilly white skin, which would later tan down to a normal healthy color. My sister would mix a bottle of baby oil and iodine and use that to tan with. She'd get a deep golden brown tan, her hair would bleach out naturally and she'd look great. I looked like an Irish girl that wasn't used to the sunny days in the U.S., red, flaky skin and much redder hair then normal. After a couple summers, I gave up. Besides, I can't lay still that long. I'm like a hummingbird on crack most of the time anyway.
Today we know how much damage that the sun can do to our skin and my sister is living proof. While she's never had skin cancer yet, her skin has a thickened look that has caused premature wrinkling. She looks at least 3 years older than me and she's actually 4 years younger. She still lays out in the summer, especially since she and her husband bought a beach house that she stays at all summer long. I, on the other hand, live in the Southwest desert, which is even more sun damaging then her east coast home. I wear sun screen daily, a big floppy hat when I go outside, Capri pants so my legs don't burn, and everything that touches my skin has an SPF factor of at least 50. My arms are an ugly shade of brown with spots on them because they see the sun the most. I use a bleaching cream to try and keep the ugly factor down.
I got brave a few years ago and decided to try the new self tanners, which have improved greatly over the past few years. I thank the Gods daily for self tanner because now people no longer need to be deathly white anymoreif they want a tan. This also means that I have tried a few self tanners myself just to see which ones work the best. I grade them on ease of application, developed color tone and natural look.
There is a difference between self tanners and bronzers. Bronzer just gives you a bronzed color and then washes off while a self tanner develops with the skin's amino acids over a matter of hours giving you a tanned look that lasts for a few days. Some self tanners have both so the bronzer gives you color now while the self tanner develops over a few hours.
Here is a list of my favorites and why:
Bare Escentuals Faux Tan: This is a really odd self tanner. It's almost a black -green when it comes out of the bottle but that's so you can see where you are putting it and how even it is being applied. It gives the most natural tan that I have ever seen! You can layer it on, applying it every other day for a few days and get the deepest most natural tan ever. It may be considered too dark for fair skinned people but I like the versatility of how dark you can go with it. It doesn't smell too bad either and has mostly natural ingredients. No SPF. Kind of pricey unless you can get it during a Bare Minerals sale at QVC.
Bare Escentuals Faux Tan Daily Moisturizer: They came out with this a couple years ago and it was perfect for me color-wise. It's a daily use version of the original Faux Tan with moisturizers and isn't as dark as the original. Even after one use, you'll have a nice golden tan started. I sometimes mix it with a dollop of the original stuff and mix it together to kick start my tan when I first apply it. It gives it a bit more color but not too heavy. No SPF. About $18.00 a tube, one tube lasts me all summer. Bare Minerals also makes a Faux Tan mineral powder for the face, in case you'd rather not do your face but still have some color.
L'Oreal Sublime Bronze: This comes in a variety of types, gel, lotion, pre-moistened towels, bronzer-tanner and face tanner. It comes in formulas for fair to medium skin and medium to dark skin so you'll get a more natural looking tan. One note, if you have fair skin and try using the medium to dark just to get a darker looking tan it's going to look BAD!! I learned this the hard way. I tried the towlettes on my legs and they looked really streaky and blotchy because I couldn't see where it was being applied and where I missed. For an mass market brand, though, this brand does an excellent job and a reasonable price.
Too Faced Tanning Bed in a Tube for the Face: Didn't really like this one. It smells funny and the color comes out a bit dark on me. It also has a bronzer built in for the look right now which gave me a kind of muddy faced look instead of a lightly bronzed look. It may work well for women who have some color already.
upward strokes. Using a self tanner that has a color to it helps you make sure that you haven't missed any spots. Do your legs, move up to your torso and upper body, then arms. Wash and dry your hands when you are finished. Apply a small dollop to the back of one hand and rub the backs of your hands together making sure to cover from wrists to finger nails. Don't wash your hands again for a few hours, that gives time for the backs of your hands to develop some color, too.
Make sure to apply moisturizer every day to keep your tan looking good. You may want to re-apply tanner every few days as well in order to keep that tan look. Read the directions for the product that you pick to see if it can be used on the face if you also want to do your face. Some tanners are not made to be used on the face and you'll have to look for a tanner made specifically for this purpose.
What ever product that you choose or what ever way that you get your tan, always remember that if you are going to be out in the sun wear a sun screen, the stronger, the better! Protect your skin and it will keep you
looking good for years to come!
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