Pale Oh So Pale!
Sunless Tanning Spray has not always been so popular.
Civilizations have been obsessed by their appearance since time began. From the striking faces of the ancient Egyptians to the dramatic white faces of the Japanese Geishas, the quest of beauty often affects the tone of ones skin. Elizabethan England is littered with pale faced royalty whose paleness set them apart from the commoner whose skin was darkened my hours of menial work in the sun. The frilly parasol, long sleeves and high necklines created to protect ones fair skin from the sun's darkening rays followed the colonists to the bustling fashion scene in the early American cities of Boston, Chicago and New York City.
A New Trend is Born
In 1923 legendary French fashion designer Coco Chanel returned from her sailing vacation on the French Riviera. As she strolled down the gangplank a trend was born. Her skin, bronzed by days on the deck of her suitor's yacht, became the new standard. Pale was out and golden brown was in. The privileged few began to vacation in tropical climates during the harsh winter months. Their deep tans pronounced to the world their position in society. Those less fortunate, spent hours "working on their tans" as they would bake in the sun through the hot summer months.
Bake Baby Bake!
The 1950's Louis Reard's invented the bikini. Soon the "All Over" tan became the style of choice. People flocked to the beaches to soak up the sun's rays with their baby oil and silver metallic reflectors. Tanning swept the culture. Coppertone debuted the worlds most recognized tanning advertisement - A young blond girl with a cocker spaniel tugging at her swimming suit showing a tan line. Headline "Don't be a Pale Face". However even with all the hype, nature's long winter months slowly faded the most golden brown skin back to its natural color.
Help Me I'm Orange!
Coppertone again answers the call when in the 1960's it introduced its answer to the winter fade. QT Lotion aka Quick Tanning Lotion was its first attempt at sunless tanning. It was applied with the promise of golden brown skin, but the results were disappointing. A whole generation can remember in horror the streaking, staining and overall orange effect caused by the dye in the lotion.
In the 1970's, German inventor Fredrick Wolff created the tanning bed which soon became an institution for decades in strip malls all over the country. People with busy schedules relished the idea of getting a tan in a few quick minutes under the specialized lights built into the tanning beds.
Too Much of a Good Thing?
By now the harmful effects of the sun's UV rays as well as the effects of the tanning booths were becoming evident. Skin cancer was prevalent in the group of people who spent the 50's & 60's in the sun. Reports about the dangers of the UV rays from the sun and the intensity of the UVA rays from the tanning booths caused many to search for other options. How do we get the golden brown tan without the terrifying risks?
Sunless Tanning Spray - A Refreshing New Option
DHA (An acronym for Dihydroxyacetone) was the answer. It's discovery was purely accidental. A scientist spilled some DHA on his skin and noticed his skin turned brown. With a little study and testing it was shown that this colorless sugar is considered very safe and provides the best result sunless tanning result. DHA is not a dye. Since DHS actually reacts with the skin cells in the upper levels of the skin and turns them brown, washing off the tan is not a worry. The tan will last up to 10 days and it will slowly fade as the skin cells slowly replace themselves.
The best sunless tanners are now widely available. There are sunless tanning sprays, gels and lotions. Each has its own unique benefits but they all have something in common -- DHA. Some of the products will also contain a bronzer. Bronzers are dyes added to the self tan sprays or other products to jump start the tanning process. They quickly provide the warm rich golden color while giving the DHA time to work.
If you don't want to do this yourself, you can go to a spa, salon or other tanning business and have it done for you. Because of the popularity of sunless tanning spray, commercial outlets are spring up all across the country. You can set an appointment have a professional tanning spray applied and be on your way. The only cost to you is a little time and a few dollars. Professional tanning will take three or four applications during the first month along with the use of a tanning extending lotion to acclimate your skin to the process. Once set, you'll only need to continue the use of the extending lotion and about two visits per month to keep your golden tan.
Kevin M. Powell I have set up website dedicated to information on Sunless Tanning Spray. Feel free to stop by for tips on how to apply Sunless Tanning Spray, Product Reviews, Videos and more. Have fun. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kevin_M_Powell |
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