How to obtain a healthy glow in the dead of winter

Next week I am headed to Playa del Carmen, Mexico for a few days of relaxing in the sun. In an effort to not be the whitest person on the beach and scare the other vacationers, I began to think about ways that I could work on a quick base tan. Ten years ago I would not have thought twice about heading straight to the nearest tanning salon and leaving fifteen minutes later looking like a lobster. Thankfully, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve also gotten a little smarter. I’m confident skin cancer will find me eventually, no need to rush the process.

Anyway, when I was at Target over the weekend I strolled into the skin care aisle and started looking at some self-tanning lotions. I remember when these products first came out and after lathering the lotion on, the user would then be a lovely shade of orange. For that reason I have actively avoided these products. It appears that self tanning lotion has actually come a long way. I picked up a bottle of Dove Energy Glow for Fair to Medium skin. It cost around $9 which to me was cheap enough that if I ended up pitching it after my first use, I wouldn’t feel like I’d had too much invested. I have to admit I am pleasantly surprised by the results. The color is very natural looking and not the pumpkin orange that it was when I was in college. In fact, I didn’t even realize that the lotion was really working until I caught a glimpse of my ankle in a mirror the other day. I have been lathering up my legs but not ankles and feet. I guess I need to start because there is a noticeable tan line at the bottom of my leg. Sweet! Thanks to Dove I won’t have the whitest, pastiest legs on the beach after all.