I will start with a caveat: I do not tan. After 34 years on this planet, I have finally learned, and accepted, this fact. It should have been obvious given my Irish & Danish heritage. But for years, I hoped against hope that this Summer would be it - the one where I became a golden bronze goddess like the women in those Bain de Soleil ads from the 1980s and early 1990s (see below). Instead, I would turn any varying shade of red - from slightly pink to full-on beet. Nice. These days, you will find my beach bag stuffed with spf 6000 or whatever the highest level it is that the kind folks over at the sunscreen company are currently putting out on the shelves. So, without further ado, the Dos Don'ts & Nevers of pre-wedding tanning.
DO: Plan ahead. Figure out if you want to be tan on your wedding day and plan accordingly. And if you do choose to have a summer glow, then please please please go the faux tan route. We have heard great things about those spray-booth tans. Try it a few months before the big day to see how it looks on your skin. If this isn't in your budget, consider an at-home formula. I have had great luck with the Jergens Daily Glow lotion (bonus - you can use coupons!), Clarins and Dior. The key is to test long before the wedding.
DON'T try something new right before your wedding. Remember Samantha Jones in the episode of Sex & the City when she made the "impulse decision" to get a chemical peel before Carrie's big book signing party {note: season 5, episode 71 "Plus One is the Loneliest Number ... have I mentioned how much I love this show}? You do not want the reaction that she got when she entered the room, especially if you are the bride. Test out your options months or weeks before the wedding day, and if you are doing it yourself, perfect your technique. That week before the wedding is stressful enough: you do not want to have to spend a few extra hours trying to de-orange your skin.
NEVER: this should go without saying, but really, never make your poor skin suffer through a session at the tanning booth or sit in the sun with hardly any spf and hope for a tan and not a burn. The last thing you want is a painful sunburn, whatever your role in the wedding. Query what is worse: being super pale on your wedding day or being super red.
What would you do? Do you embrace your skin tone or are you a fan of tan? And if it's the latter, how do you achieve it?
See you swoon,
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