Mrs. Hydrangea, Dallas
Age and Occupation: 26, Administrative Assistant
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, Network Analyst
Engagement Date: June 2007
Wedding Date: September 2008
Blogging Since: January 14, 2008
Venue: Catholic Church and Reception at The W Hotel
About Me: Mr. H and I come from very different cultures and backgrounds so I'm excited to plan our wedding with a balance of both traditions. My mom has always been a DIY queen, and I'm just now starting to get into it with a new house and a wedding to plan!
Summer Sun
March 9th, 2008 @ 4:38 pm by Mrs. Hydrangea
As summer is approaching, and my desire for the warm weather is increasing daily, one thought crossed my mind…TAN LINES.
(image found here)
What in the world am I going to do about tan lines? I’d love to get a little summer glow, but in September I will have to put on my wedding dress and the last thing I want are tan lines that take attention away from the awesome structure and details of the dress.
I used to do the “fake ’n bake,” aka sunless tanning, all the time, but in the past couple of years I’ve moved to a lighter shade of pale to avoid skin cancer. While I’m not opposed to a little sunless tanning to get some color before the wedding, I also don’t want to become bright orange or have the streakiness that is sometimes associated with tanning lotions and spray-on tanning beds.
Are any of you planning to tan before your wedding, and what is your game plan? For those if you with tanlines, how are you planning on disguising or getting rid of them?
22 Responses to “Summer Sun”
I think I will tan before the wedding. I’m so white and pasty - a little bit of color would do me some good. And I’m with you - I don’t want tan lines so I think I’ll go a few times before the wedding - maybe once a week in order to get rid of any tan lines.
Eeeeek no, I would never, EVER go tanning. All my friends have said that I’ll change my mind as I get closer to the wedding, but I would never let my vanity get in the way — I have no problems with being pasty. I’ve already had cancer and I will take being pasty over going through chemotherapy ANY day of the week.
I’m lucky in that my wedding is in early summer so I won’t have many opportunities to be outside. My plan in the meantime if I am outside (gardening, etc) is just to always wear a tube top for everything I do or just suck it up and wear a lightweight long sleeved shirt.
If you are planning on getting a tan with the summer sun (just say NO to tanning beds!), then just buy a strapless bikini. JCrew, Victoria’s Secret, and Target all have a few that are really cute and still not crazy expensive. I do wear sunscreen when I’m outside by the lake, but I’m planning on using a strapless swimsuit all summer so that I don’t end up with a weird halter line in my dress. I also love the Banana Boat spray on tan. I think it works really well and doesn’t come out orange on me at all. It also smells better than most others I have tried.
I’m planning on laying out by the pool this summer like always so I bought a new strapless bikini to wear. It’s not as cute as some of the other bikinis I was looking at, but at least I wont have an ugly tan line to try to cover come September!! 
I probably won’t tan before my wedding… I’m pretty pale, and I mostly burn anyways. I think pale is beautiful, and I want to remain as natural as possible on my wedding day. My FI likes me that way. :]
I had skin cancer at 25, so no, I won’t be fake-baking. I still get a little bit of color with spf 30 on constantly and with an August wedding, I’m sure I’ll get some. Jergens Natural Glow also works very well for me.
I have a year-round sports bra tan line that only gets worse in the summer (I run a lot). Not sure what I’m going to do about it yet, if anything, though.
I’d definitely recommend against tanning beds or sitting out in the sun to tan though. Surgery to remove melanoma can be devastating, esp if it’s on your face. I know everyone knows that, but still. Cancer and wrinkles in exchange for browner skin that the media tells us is more attractive?
I swear by tanning lotions like Johnson’s Holiday Skin. Because they only have a small amount of coloring in them (you use it like a regular lotion, and it gradually builds up over time), you don’t get streaky, orange, or uneven shading like you do with a lot of traditional fake tan sprays and lotions. You won’t get a dramatic tanned look, but just a gentle sunkissed one.
I did a healthy combo (okay, tanning is never healthy) of high pressure (less damaging) tanning at a salon, and was VERY careful at all times in the natural sun about lines.
The safest way is a combo of self tanners (I hear Jergens is great) and/or spray tanning, which I personally did not like. I would do a trial or two of the spray tanning if you consider it. Some people love it but I found (even with the blocking cream) the tanner just finds places to…be (nail beds, creases, eyebrows, etc.)…and I felt it made me look dingy instead of glowy!?!
I ws very happy with my results of tanning very carefully for a couple months in a bed, and never having straps in the sun (even the day before the wedding when we went out in a boat and I found a way to sit, strapless!).
In going the strapless bikini route, remember to think how low the back of your dress is - Most that I tried on were down there, way below where a bikini back would hit.
My main problem is bicycling - and I end up with the sleeveless jersey tan. I am going to stock up on 36 SFP, and wear sleeves more. I still have a line from last year, so I was thinking of going to a dermatologist and seeing if a peel would help with that.
If that doesn’t work, I’m also going with the fake tanning. I have used the Benefit tanning lotion a few times, and was pretty happy with the result. It also just give you a little extra color, not an actually tanned look.
i’m pale, and i think it’s beautiful…not pasty. i plan to rock my paleness like Nicole Kidman or Anne Hathaway. Being tan would be so fake and not me.
It’s just not worth the wrinkles or the possibility of skin cancer (one burn is all it takes).
And don’t kid yourself…there is no way to tan “safely” or “very carefully” in a bed or outdoors…there are so many great lotions and spray tans now I just don’t see why people want to purposly damage their skin.
This has been a big personal debate for me. Towards the end of summer of ‘06 I vowed to stop ”tanning.” In summer ‘07 I stuck to my guns. I wore 50 SPF each and every day. Even so, after long days at the shore, I still got a cute sun-kissed look….but at least I knew I was somewhat safe. Now, with the wedding approaching, I don’t know what to do. I simply cannot stand the look of my skin tone against my gown. With little time to lay in the natural sun AND a gown that will absolutely not forgive any tan lines, I don’t know what to do. Any sun-kissed brown in a bottle ideas?
I have no problems with being pale, personally–but I understand the debate because you don’t necessarily want to have to hide from the sun until then!
I think that airbrush tanning could be a solution to fall back on. I’ve only done it a couple of rare times–but I really like it! It can be done really lightly and the artist could basically blend in your tan lines close to your wedding. Just try it a few times to make sure you like the process and can count on the artist.
I will ditto the air brush tanning…
Here in Florida, I have seen my fair share of tan brides- but in all honesty, a more natural bride- be she pale or dark…. seems to shine much better. I would suggest going about your normal sun-kissed routine up until about August… when you should tone it down a bit- get out in the sun here and there to maintain a healthy dose of Vitamin D- but load up on the sunscreen and let the lines fade on their own. Doing this will help your skin look its very best on your wedding day… and if it comes down to it, you can have an airbrush session to touch up for a lovely “glow”…
While I am not pasty white (Mexican olive skin over here) I don’t like sun tanning.
I worked in melanoma research for 5 years and trust me, anyone can get melanoma (certain people are more predisposed but still anyone can get it).
I try to not expose myself much to the midday sun, but unfortunately one gorgeous morning day of May, about 5 months before our wedding, I went to our garden wearing a tank top for about 30 mins in the morning.
I was lucky/unlucky to have this tan stick around all the way to December. I’m just glad I have long hair, it hid the tan lines somewhat…
Do the spray or the bottled kind, but please no tanning beds or excessive exposure to sun. It’s dangerous…and besides, everyone’s natural skin color is their best look. As long as you’re healthy you’ll look radiant.
Hi I had a spray tanning studio, and I spray tanned a lot of brides.
First of all, do not ever, never, ever, never, ever get anything but a light tan for your wedding. The idea of a spray tan for a wedding is to make you glow, so that your dress looks crisp, your eyes sparkle and your hair shines. Your guests should see you “glowing” not “spray tanned”. Nobody should even know that you have a spray tan on. To achieve this I would go to a place that has a spray tan booth, which uses a spray tan solution without any bronzer and ask for the very lightest tan.
Bronzer in the solution has tendency to get into your pores and when you sweat it will come out and can stain your dress. That is why booths are better, because the machine does not need to have bronzer in it’s solution to see where it has already spray tanned you. The airbrush technician does.
If you have tan lines, instead of spray tanning all your body, just fill in the white bits with a little brush dipped in a self tanning solution. I do hope that you will practice it before your wedding to see which solution will match your skin tone the best. That way you will have your “glow” without tan lines. You do not need to go any darker.
If you are thinking of a spray tan make sure that you have a trial run way before your wedding, and go TO THE SAME SALON 2 days before a wedding (if you were happy with their job the first time).
Extra day between spray tanning and your wedding will give the chance to the spray tan to fully develop, and also will give you a chance to scrub off any bits (like palms of your hands) that absorbed too much solution.
Make sure you take a tube of self tanner with you on your honeymoon (the kind that builds up the tan slowly) and moisturize with it every day. You will not only keep your tan longer, but also repair any damage that might occur.
I love my bandeau swim suit. My wedding is in June so I will probably be using some of Arbonne’s sunless tanner- No Sun Intended. It has a slight tint and glow that is awesome!
I was married last September and was lucky not to deal with tan lines since my makeup artist did spray-on foundation - she also sprayed any tan lines for my bridal party and me Look into that - you won’t regret it!
I was married this past September and did my best not to get strange tan lines over the summer. Summer is my really busy season at work so I’m in doors for much of it, but when I did go swimming I went late in the day so the sun was not strong at all.
A month before my wedding is my big summer jazz festival (aka outdoors ALL weekend) and was wearing a polo and TONS of 30+SPF sunblock. The one place I forgot to put sunblock on was my chest (the little “v” from the polo) because it was buttoned all the way and I NEVER thought that tiny place would get sun.
Anyway, I spent the next month in thin long sleeve t-shirts to avoid any further tan lines. I had the faintest “v” but was nervous to try a spray-on-tan (a la Ross on Friends) so I just said no. Good to know other girls had a positive experience — whatever you do, test it out before the wedding and make SURE it doesn’t come off on your clothes. The last thing you want is a slightly tan wedding gown.
My friend did the airbrush tanning before her wedding, and she looked perfect. Not orange at all, just bronzed, she didnt want to be too tan b/c her wedding was in December, but she didnt want to be pasty white either. I think she went twice before the wedding and it really looked great.
I, too, had a September wedding, and since I live at the beach I was also worried about tan lines. I solved it by buying a strapless bikini top and slathering on the sunscreen (which I do anyway). I also worked a ton this past summer and wasn’t able to be outside as often as usual, so that helped. I also just embraced my somewhat pale skin and decided it’s how I am 90% of the year anyway, so why change that?
I am really pale naturally, so this is a cause for thought for me too. I like Jergens Natural Glow. The idea of getting skin cancer scares the crap out of me, so I won’t be doing the tanning bed route.
