I’m really disappointed that Monday is happening again this week. I think weekends get shorter every time!
After I delivered the wedding cake I spent the rest of the day lounging around and, honestly, eating. Our neighbors had a graduation party for their daughter and served traditional Ethiopian food. I love Ethiopian so I was a very happy girl! I got to eat it two days in a row because there were leftovers.
Friday night I decided it was time to test out the tanning towels that came in my Birchbox this month.
I made sure to exfoliate within an inch of my life during my post-workout shower and then enlisted my mother to help me reach everywhere.
From reading the reviews on Amazon I knew it would take both towels to cover my whole body – but I was skeptical that even the two would be enough because I am definitely “above average” size. And I wasn’t wrong about that! So I knew going in that coverage would be an issue.
Three hours later I couldn’t see a difference in my skin color. But by the next morning it was obvious – and so were my coverage problems. My right leg was MUCH darker than my left leg. Some areas picked up the color really well (like my foot!) and others just did not.
And then because I am an amateur there were the obvious newbie mistakes. I have random patches of totally white skin that I completely missed during the application stage. I knew that would happen and fortunately they’re not in highly visible areas.
The good news is that it did not turn me bright orange like I was afraid of. It also did not smell awful and the odor did fade really quickly.
But after this experience I have eliminated self-tanning as an option for me. I’m sure that I could learn to apply a self-tanner really well and have a better outcome but I am too lazy and legitimately don’t have time to mess around with learning how to do it.
You see, I was told back in January that I needed to start tanning for this wedding. I decided then that I was going to be high and mighty and refuse to go back to the tanning bed. Yes, I’ll be wearing a black dress for the wedding and yes I will be wearing gold jewelry but I think the pale skin is probably more my style. And time (as well as a family history of skin cancer) is not on my side to run out and hit a tanning bed!
But in case you’re curious here’s a comparison:
Tan in 2008 – I miss that length of hair!
Pale in 2009 (it was also December!)
I like the way I look in both pictures. The tan is not too dark, and my pale skin is really pretty. Since we’re down to the week before the wedding my only real option would be to spray tan and I have never been happy with the way my spray tans have come out in the past. It seems like a waste of money to me since I don’t think I will look that much better.
But part of me doesn’t want to be the only pale girl there – and I am wearing a short dress to the rehearsal dinner that might look better with a tan. So I’m a little torn. I’m wondering if I won’t feel more confident with a little color. But I don’t want to risk looking ridiculous for the pictures either.
What do you think? Do you tan? Have you got any awesome self-tanning products that you think will change my mind about the whole thing? Or do you have an idea for how to style my rehearsal dinner “look” so the tan is unnecessary?
(p.s. I’m linking up with Molly for #YOLOMONDAY – you should too! There are no prompts, just link up a new post!)
My name is Kate. I'm a makeup and coffee addict (and total Jesus freak) fighting to lose over 100 pounds. But there's more to life than losing weight. This is where I try to balance it all - and hilarity ensues.
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Obviously, as a ginger, I don’t tan. Never even spray tanned. I will say that I think the Jergens natural glow lotion works really well, just make sure you wash your hands after using it. It’s gradual enough that it doesn’t make you orange or streaky and I think if you started today you could be a little tanner by this weekend. But again I of course think pale is perfect too!
You know, I have used that in the past and it seemed to make me kind of yellow. But I am giving it some serious thought because I have until July 6 so that is plenty of time to see progress. I’m sure they have tweaked their formula since I used it 4 years ago, right?
yay! thanks for linking up, girl!! i would opt not to tan. i tried a spray tan a month before my wedding and it was HORRIBLE – it faded everywhere in awkward places and rubbed off on my clothes. i hated hated hated it. so i just went pale for my wedding but honestly i felt like ME.
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Yeah, I’ve never had a good experience with a spray tan. But I know it’s fast and far safer than actually tanning so maybe it will come to that. I will see what my future sister in law says – she may just put her foot down and insist!
Ditto Jergens natural glow!! i love that they have pale, medium, and dark versions so you don’t get all orangey and gross looking. Neutrogena micro mist is good too but is annoyingly pricy and i think doesn’t work as well if you don’t already have a base tan. But pale is pretty too!! You are very pretty pale because you have lots of pretty color in your hair and eyes and your skin is pinky-pale not sad-ashy/grey/sallow-pale.
You’re right, Andrea. I’m lucky to have good coloring and maybe I just really need to embrace that!
Jergens natural glow also comes in “firming”, which I use. Not sure if it actually helps.. but who cares. I’ll try anything.
Haha, I love that. I feel like it won’t actually “firm” anything but it sure can’t hurt, can it?
I think that society needs to stop thinking of tan as beautiful. Tanning is clearly unhealthy and dangerous and I hope my daughter will see my pasty whiteness and realize that she is beautiful with her pale skin. And you are beautiful without a tan too!
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It was actually looking up pictures of celebrities like Nicole Kidman and Anne Hathaway who are notoriously “pale” that made me think I could stop the pursuit of tan for this wedding. Ultimately I’m just really self conscious about the spider veins in my legs and they’re less visible when I’m tan and those are honestly the only reason I have been thinking it over because the day of the wedding you won’t be able to see them but you can definitely see them in my rehearsal dress. I definitely won’t be getting into a tanning bed though because you’re right – it’s not safe and not worth my health!
Honestly I think your natural peaches-and-cream complexion is BEAUTIFUL =) I also tend towards the pale side and I SUCK at fake tanning…and I’m not going to risk tanning in a bed or at the beach. Not worth the risk!!
Thank you, Sable! You’re right, it’s not worth the money or the risk to get a “real” tan. I wish self-tanning were a bit easier but at this point I’ve decided to stay pale for the wedding. It’s just more “me!”
I have mixed feelings about tanning.
I just don’t see how our society (in general) is okay with tanning but not okay with skin bleaching (not that I’m okay with it either).
But there are numerous talk shows, books, and research about how people who lighten their skin tone are suffering from some form of self hatred. But people who are regular tanners aren’t? Especially the ones who tan in the dead of winter?
Isn’t the idea (one where the person isn’t happy with their skin tone) the same in both cases? And aren’t the methods of doing both (tanning and lightening) equally damaging ? Tanning beds, creams (to darken and lighten), crazy rituals, and sometimes physical discomfort/pain.
So why is one associated with hot beach bodies and the other with self hate and shame? I could go on and on about the racism in the ideas I discussed but I wont.
In short: I think your skin tone, how it naturally is, is great.
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Meg you’re absolutely right – in both cases people are using potentially risky methods to change their natural features. I would guess that bleaching is so “horrifying” to us white folks because we’ve gotten this idea that tan is beautiful and so how awful is it that some people are naturally dark and want to be lighter?
Thank you for speaking up.