Mrs. Tiramisu, Annapolis, MD/Maine
Age and Occupation: 26, Eye Doctor
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Project Manager/Real Estate Management grad student
Engagement Date: May 15, 2007
Wedding Date: July, 2008
Blogging Since: March 4, 2008
Venue: Oceanfront lawn and tent
About Me: I was born and raised in Maine, now living in Annapolis, Maryland and planning a hometown wedding from afar. I’m nothing short of obsessed with wedding planning, and am loving the do-it-yourself madness that has now taken over my life! As for me, I’m a craft-loving, martini-drinking, girly-girl who loves traveling, photography, my schnauzer, and above all, spending time with Mr. Tiramisu.
The Perfect Shade of Melanin
April 11th, 2008 @ 12:10 pm by Mrs. Tiramisu
Am I the only one who wishes they didn’t know about the danger of tanning? The only one who remembers how awesome it was to coat themselves with baby oil, climb out their bedroom window and lay on the roof perfecting the perfect tan? In the wintertime in high school, my best friend Kate and I always bought package plans at the innocently-named “Sun Deck” and I loved my 12 minute sessions, spent rocking out to the personalized stereos inside the little sweat boxes that are stand-up tanning booths. Those were the days.
Now, sadly, we all know someone whose days of tanning caught up to them in a bad way, and every message board post asking about the best way to tan for one’s wedding day has at least one response warning the others with a personal story of skin cancer. If you wanted to hit up a tanning bed now, you’d have to sneak in and out the back door wearing dark sunglasses so no one would recognize you… and it’s taboo for good reason I know.
Fortunately, there are lots of good alternatives- many of which I’ve tried. My brother got married while I was in college, and finding myself at the time of the event a particulary unflattering shade of pale, I decided to go the fake tan route. It was my first time, so I thought it would be wise to leave it to a professional. I headed to a local spa and signed up for a “Buff and Bronze”. Seventy heavenly minutes later I had been exfoliated, evenly coated in self-tanner, and moisturized head to toe. The color was nicely bronze, as promised, and the effect lasted over a week. I would totally recommend the treatment, but the hefty price tag means it’s best saved for special occasions. I’ll probably be hitting this up a few days before my wedding- if there’s anything left in the budget by then that is!
The spray tan booth was my next attempt at self tanning- this would be the politically correct version of the traditional tanning bed. Not a bad experience overall, but I did have a few streaky spots on my wrists and hairline. If you try this out, take that lotion stuff they give you at the beginning very seriously! You need a heavy coat of it anywhere you don’t want to be tanned.
Ha! You couldn’t pay Mr. Tiramisu to do this.
I definitely had a fear of the tradional bottled up self-tanner. I’m sure it’s better than it used to be, but like Miss Dahlia, I was scared of the potential for orange (I googled it, but there’s no fancy word for fear of orange skin- but there should be). Luckily there exists a perfect product for people like me- and I should mention I’m also very afraid of my self-tanner application skills.
That’s why I was so excited when I discovered Jergens Natural Glow. This magical moisturizer gradually turns you into a tanner version of yourself over the course of a week or so. I’ve been using it off and on since I discovered it a couple of years ago.Problem is, I’m lazy. I’ll put it on one day, the forget it for the next five- and one application doesn’t really do anything. Next problem is, it’s smelly. I don’t want to be pale, but I don’t particularly want to be tan and smelly either.
Thank you Jergens, for solving my problems and coming out with this:
Behold: Natural Glow Express.
Hmm… “express gradual” self-tanner. So you mean, regular self tanner? It’s okay Jergens, your product works fabulously so I won’t complain about the obvious irony in your marketing. Plus you made it less smelly so I’m in a good mood.Any new beauty routines in your pre-wedding world these days?
12 Responses to “The Perfect Shade of Melanin”
Good timing of your post =) I’m a little concerned about my sports bra tan line with a strapless dress, so I’ve been thinking about using some sort of self-tanner to “fill in” the white since I really don’t need to be any browner all over 
i have heard that the victoria’s secret stuff doesn’t stink and is amazing
I confess I was also tempted into the stand up quick fix tan and my face has definitely paid for it. However, I also discovered the mositurizing creams that actually do give me a semi tanned colour! If anyone is going the self-tanner route, I’ve tried endless brands and have found the best to be Estee Lauder. It’s on the pricy side, but it gives you great colour, no streaks and no orange skin. TIP: use gloves when applying!
I also HATE the smell of self-tanner…i’ve tried Jergen’s and it’s still too smelly for me…others assure me they can’t smell it and I can’t really smell it on others who use it, but I can really smell it on myself and I can’t stand it…
When you do the spa treament, is there any smell afterwards?
I’d be interested in how well the spa treatment (and smell) worked also. For those of you who use your own self tanner - do you only apply it to certain parts? For example, what about your back?
I’m really picky about the smell of self-tanners as well. I’ve tried Aveeno which doesn’t smell too bad, but I’m also not too good with being consistent, so I couldn’t really vouch on whether or not it works well. 
I like the Jergens, too! I haven’t liked the spray tan booths because I end up splotchy no matter how much I exfoliate and follow the directions. I keep hearing that the spa versions look better.
I really wish they made tanning beds that don’t actually tan! I just love laying there, feeling the “sun” on my face when its cold and dark outside in Chicago.
Oooh oooh I use this too! I get the Firming one though. I swear it works! (Might be placebo effect, but it makes me happy!)
I swear I’m the only bride-to-be that is purposefully eschewing the sun at all costs. Not necessarily out of a few of teh ebil cancer, but because a tan does not look good with my (faux) red hair, lol. And red hair is much more important to me than skin color!
I’d like to try one of the self-tanners, but when I’ve used them in the past they rub off on my clothing. I don’t want that to happen to my wedding gown (or my fancy underthings, either). Are the new self tanners better or do they still rub off?
I like Netrogena’s Summer Glow (another gradual tanning moisturizer) plus it has SPF 20. It has a bit of a scnet but mostly just smells like sunscreen, not like Jergens which is too smelly for me.
The Nivea gradual tanner smells much better than most of the others imo, so I would recommend it for those that are smell sensitive like myself.
Also, to Emily, definately DO NOT use it on the day of your wedding, I think they all rub off on clothes a little, unless you’ve put it on hours before getting dressed. Don’t take the risk of having orange stains on your wedding dress.
