To tan or not to tan, that is the question

2

Replies

  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
    You should tan, because this is f*ckin' hot!

    8645501_600x338.jpg

    THIS!!

    Not this! It is ridiculous to compare this freakish woman with anybody who tans - be it in the sun or in the salon....I was always tanned without ever spending time lying in the sun for extended periods before I moved to Canada...
    So is most South Africans, Aussies etc.... If you live in a sunny climate (or use a tanning bed now and then) and look after your skin, there is no need to look like this....
    And personally, I prefer a little color to my skin, otherwise I look sick and pale....
    And no, I am 44 and don't have leathery skin - exept maybe a little tough skin on the soles of my feet, and that's from running, not tanning....:flowerforyou:
  • BeachyBecky
    BeachyBecky Posts: 74 Member
    I've been wanting to try St. Tropez mousse. Has anyone tried that? I use to tan all the time but it ages you so I stopped and at 31, I want to try and look youthful forever. ;-)
    Also, they say eating carrots help give you a glow. I've been eating more of those lately too.
  • PapaverSomniferum
    PapaverSomniferum Posts: 2,670 Member
    Usually I am fine with my fair skin and red hair. But, I was made fun of a lot in high school and really even a lot to this day. Now I have a very negative attitude based off of what others have said to me. My friends love to tell jokes from the south park episode (that will haunt me the rest of my life) the stupid ginger, day-walker, no soul jokes. And a co-worker just this week told me it was a good thing I was outside for a walk since I needed the sun... WTF? I should have told her it was a good thing she was out for a walk with me since she needs to lose weight?!

    i feel your pain.
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    and on another note

    562525_309371335799520_136531246416864_739978_1908785102_n.jpg
  • Jomalone2
    Jomalone2 Posts: 129 Member
    I suffer from seasonal depression and the sun (and tan) make me feel better. I don't consider myself extreme. Fortunately, I tan easily. And I've always felt like I look 20 pounds lighter with a tan. So if you are looking for me in the summer, I will be pool-side!
  • mellabyte
    mellabyte Posts: 193 Member
    I find pale, porcelain complexions to be really attractive. Well, scratch that, I feel just really healthy skin in general (no matter the color) is sexy. ^_^ You know the kind, naturally glowing, not dry, screams "healthy!" :D

    I vote no tan, not worth the damage to your skin and it can prematurely age you.

    (I know, unfair because I'm not pale. >_< But I turn my own scary shade of pale in the winter. :P)
  • cds2001
    cds2001 Posts: 732 Member
    I'm fair skinned as well and could care less about getting a tan. I used a tanning bed a few times in like 12th grade and got burned almost every time and that was staying in less than 5 minutes. My grandfather had skin cancer twice that I can remember. Once on his arm and once on his face. Treatment for that was not pleasant. Had to get radiation treatment every day for like 2 months. Had to drive 2.5 hrs. round trip to get him to his appointment each day. I think it's more important to be healthy than look a certain way. Besides, most people that do the tanning thing these days look orange and just not normal. And those women who are chronic users of tanning beds -- their skin pretty much looks like leather.
  • PlunderBunneh
    PlunderBunneh Posts: 1,705 Member
    I think any color of skin is perfect, how it was naturally meant. I don't like most tans, because it's usually obvious when it isn't natural.
    I don't get how tanning manages to slide under the rope of things that we should avoid because they have been shown to cause cancer.
  • MikeM53082
    MikeM53082 Posts: 1,199 Member
    A slight tan is the most attractive. But don't overdue it. (like that girl from NJ)

    I try to get about 1-2 hour of sun a week to maintain a little tan. It works for me.
  • TheRoadDog
    TheRoadDog Posts: 11,788 Member
    I tan every spring. I'm Irish and Dutch and if I don't I will burn during the summer on my Motorcycle.
  • Runnermadre
    Runnermadre Posts: 267 Member
    I am fair skinned with freckles, and I don't tan well. I used to try to tan in a tanning booth, but then my cousin died from melanoma, leaving behind his wife and two very little kids (4 and 6 I think). :-( They said he had about 2 years to live by the time he found it. I go in for a yearly check up now at the dermatoligist, and I've already had an irregular mole removed which they told me after the biopsy was a type of mole that makes me high risk for melanoma. It's just not worth the risk to me. If you want a little color, the Jergen's Natural Glow is a great self tanner that looks pretty natural. I use it sometimes when I just want a little something extra. :-)
  • Sockimobi
    Sockimobi Posts: 541
    I am very fair with blue / green eyes and naturally dark hair (dyed blonde though). I am so pale you can see my veins, so I'm regularly rocking the zombie look with my blue and green tinge... braaaains! :ohwell:
  • michele_lynn
    michele_lynn Posts: 66 Member
    What about sunless tanning lotions? I used one by Coppertone and it looks pretty much like a real tan. I apply before bed every other night or so. Keeps me sunkissed without being sunkissed!
  • jennstar81
    jennstar81 Posts: 5
    I used to be so embarrassed about my pale skin when I was younger. Especially when everyone was laying in tanning beds. I'm very active outdoors, very fair complected, and have been sun burned way too much. I'm making an appointment with a dermatologist because not only does over sun exposure age your skin, it can also kill you. I've learned to appreciate my pale skin, and many gorgeous Hollywood actresses are showing off their natural porcelain skin too. I love the sun, and I try to get a little bit of it everyday for the vitamin E but I don't over-do it any more. A tan is a sign of skin damage, so I say forgo the tan and dress to show off the natural beauty of your skin. :smile:
  • taylmarie
    taylmarie Posts: 161
    I am fair skinned as well and when I was a teenager I always wanted to be tan. I never did become a tanner and now that I am 30 I am SO glad I didn't. Do I think tan skin looks nice? Absolutely. But do I prefer fair, lovely 30-40 year old skin to tan, prematurely aged 30-40 year old skin? You betcha! I wear sunblock daily and I know in the future I will be very happy with my decision. My old boss is about 50 and naturally fair skinned but she tanned often like to boat. Her skin looks tan but awful! Leathery and lots of spots. She regrets it but has caused so much aging she prefers to just stay tan now so she keeps doing it.

    :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: NOTE TO ALL FAIR BEAUTIES: I used to live in Hawaii and after living there for awhile I built a nice tan even though I wore sunblock. My friend gave me some Maui Babe Browning Lotion and I got super tan while wearing SPF 30. The stuff is AMAZING. It has coffee, aloe and natural oils. It is not a self tanner (trust me, I have tried a few self tanners and hate them all!). When my family came to visit they were shocked at my tan! Try it for your next vacation, sunblock first, let it absorb, then the browning lotion. Since it has coffee in it, I would wear a dark bathing suit. I did get it on my light suit before and it came right out but you don't want anything on your suit while your out. Google it and read the reviews....you will want to buy it!
  • jodycoady
    jodycoady Posts: 598 Member
    I'm a redhead, and I have the freckles too...I'd suggest a few 15-min sessions in the lie-down, or a few 8-minute in the stand-up. That's enough. those tanning beds wrinkle you! (A little is not bad though) I also like the gradual tanners, the Jergens one smells so nice and it's half the price of all the others.

    8 minutes in a lie-down tanning bed (half of what you're recommending) BURNED ME TO A CRISP in highschool. (several times, b/c I was stupid enough to keep trying thinking it would get better) That's 2 minutes on my back, 2 on my front, and 2 on each side. I had to sleep naked wrapped in sheets that I literally soaked in aloe vera gel to attempt to get some kind of relief. Telling people they should try something like this just b/c it 'works' for you is dangerous, you don't know how sensitive someone else's skin might be compared to yours.

    Goodness only knows how much damage I accumulated with those crazy attempts at fitting in.

    wow! I'm really sorry you went through that. I would assume there was something wrong with the bed lights because over the years I've been in a few different stand-up beds and never had any trouble. That is, of course for the 8 mins.
  • TubbsMcGee
    TubbsMcGee Posts: 1,058 Member
    7kFLg.gif
  • KemaVA
    KemaVA Posts: 81 Member
    Obviously I do not tan but I was wondering isnt there a lotion (ex Nivea Sun-Kissed Beautiful Legs Gradual Tan Moisturizer) that will give you the hint of color you want? Forget about being pale, its sun damage thats unattractive and not healthy.
  • bill99jones
    bill99jones Posts: 8
    Don't worry about it you look lovely! But if you're really concerned, opt for a spray tan.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    I too am very pale skinned. I choose to tan (in the sun, no beds) because I look like a freak if I don't. Years of being an "horsey girl" have left me with very heavily freckled arms and shoulders with very white legs. My daily barn attire was jeans and a tank top. Living in Florida, the sun is unavoidable and I still live in tank tops pretty much year round. I lay out a bit in to try to even things out a bit, but my shoulders are still several shades darker than the rest of me.
  • Jersey_Devil
    Jersey_Devil Posts: 4,142 Member
    7kFLg.gif

    bwahahahahaha loved the blinking!
  • jennstar81
    jennstar81 Posts: 5
    7kFLg.gif
    This image will haunt me forever.
    So disturbing. :sad:
  • hiker282
    hiker282 Posts: 983 Member
    I love natural skin. If you look like a carrot or a piece of leather, not so hot!
  • Chrystibel
    Chrystibel Posts: 116 Member
    Spray tans scare me more than the sun, they haven't been around very long and I don't really want a chemical spray down, oh and freckles are cute, why does everyone hate them?
  • doughnutwretch
    doughnutwretch Posts: 498 Member
    There are healthy alternatives to tanning beds. Versa Spa is a sunless tanning bed that, if done correctly, gives nice color to those who don't want to use beds or don't tan and it's safe on your skin.

    I'm a natural blonde with a slight pick tint and though I tan, it's not like that of an olive skinned person. I don't think there is anything wrong with a person choosing to rock their pale skin over getting a tan. Do you, and don't worry what other people may or may not think.
  • EnthusedMeerkat
    EnthusedMeerkat Posts: 23 Member
    I personally prefer being tan over not, but I realize there are risks involved. For me, its my 'reward' after going to the gym. If I go to the gym, I allow myself to tan...any day I don't go to the gym, I don't get to tan.
  • Pocket_Pixi
    Pocket_Pixi Posts: 1,167 Member
    I would rather be pale the dead because of skin cancer.
  • GURLEY_GIRL3
    GURLEY_GIRL3 Posts: 347 Member
    You should tan, because this is f*ckin' hot!

    8645501_600x338.jpg

    LOL i just thought of her when I saw this question
  • Miss_Chievous_wechange
    Miss_Chievous_wechange Posts: 1,230 Member
    As you can see, I'm fair skinned. I would never try to tan. I love everything about me, including my skin color.
  • iLikepistachios
    iLikepistachios Posts: 18
    haha glad you posted that picture of that woman, if not i would have. lolololol sooo attractive..
  • hikeout470
    hikeout470 Posts: 628 Member
    I tan very easily, but avoid the sun anyway. I find a good quality self tanner helps even out the bod, use less makeup. Love it!
This discussion has been closed.

Categories