Something You Don't Know About glimmer

Part 4 - She loves to tan!

As summer is coming to a close, I'd like to tell everyone that I am a tan-skin fanatic. Call me shallow, pretentious, fashion-crazy or whatever you'd like - I think that tan skin is simply beautiful! I've been told that a lot of girls want what they don't have (for example, I want curly hair instead of straight), but what is great about tan skin is that it is temporary (remember my love for temporary tattoos? Ha ha). I've been to the tanning salon and outside to tan, so I will tell you about my experiences with both the fake and real sun.

The best tan for me personally comes from the tanning salon. I have one located close to me which is nice, because after I get a tan I feel super sticky and all I want to do is drive home as fast as I can to lay naked on my bed surrounded by towels. Before you even think it - NO, I do NOT use the tanning bed. I have a history of skin cancer in my family, so I was definitely not going to take that risk. I always do what is healthy for me and I'm always looking up as much information as I can on a subject before diving into it (including reading about how my dinosaur egg oatmeal sitting in my cabinet could cause cancer on CNN, so I threw that sucker out!). Actually, I go for a spray tan, which is a super fun experience. I've been twice now so let me tell you what I know about it.

Getting a tan at a tanning salon does come with some downfalls. If you are lucky like me, you won't be pressured into buying a tanning membership, but it still is VERY pricey. My tan was $60, not including the 40 for the tanning lotion and 60 for the bronzing spray. Still, these items do greatly increase the lifespan of the tan. If you do get a membership, it's 15 dollars a month, plus whatever fees there are for the tan (to be honest, I don't know, I wouldn't say I'd go enough to make it worth while). So, after you pay your fee, you are asked what kind of tan you want (like the color, how dark do you want it?). Everyone who works there is pretty experienced, but I have only gone with the same color (with a purple undertone, whatever that means) because I've liked the color so far.

After given your instructions, you can pop on a shower cap, little eye goggles, earplugs, and wipe your areas with a bright white lotion where you don't want tan (hands, toes, bottom of feet). Then from there, you step inside this machine that resembles an old-fashioned 90's photo booth and it talks you through it like a Disney ride. It's very simple, but the aftercare is the hard part. The last time I got a spray tan, I on accident hit my shoulder and I had brown dust running down my arm. A quick pat of my $40 lotion fixed it right up, however. Another caution you must take is wearing baggy clothes and being extremely careful about what you touch or how you sweat. I won't go into details on my last tan, but let's just say it was very hot that day and I wasn't wearing a bra (mistakes were MADE).

Let's move on to sun tanning, how most, NORMAL, people tan. As I said before, I do both methods to get my skin tan, but like everything in the world, paying for a tan just makes it SO much better. With sun tanning, you can burn (like me), it can take forever (oh, yes it does with my naturally ghost-white skin), and you have to expose yourself to your entire community (a bathing suit is basically your underwear - for both men and women)! I know I may seem like I'm bashing on the hobby, but I still really enjoy to relax by the poolside or beach-side to get my tan on. There is nothing like the pool or beach that can beat those amazing smells (chlorine and...salty fish?). Sun tanning also leaves marks on your skin depending on the swimsuit you are wearing, but there is something I really like about the tan lines. As long as it isn't a farmer's tan - it can look sexy!

I think I bored you all enough with my tan-talk. I mostly just tan in the summer, but I unfortunately didn't get to make it to the beach this summer and the dreary rainy weather has kept me from visiting my community pool too much. I got my first spray tan at the beginning of this summer and my newest one at the last. Coincidence? I blame my bad luck!

Love,

glimmer