Embracing our Irish skin colour

IzzyWizzy

I'm extremely tanned naturally but if I weren't, I think I'd embrace the pale look. I love white skin and black hair, the whole Dita Von Teese look. Really stunning, IMO. I think fake tan looks silly on people who are naturally red haired/blonde/freckly. It makes them look dirty. I've only seen it look good on people who are naturally quite sallow.

Pythia

I have extra pale skin with red hair. I have applied fake tan every week for the last 10 years. I am so used to it now I don't look like myself unless it's on. I think it looks well (of course!) and, although not natural as red heads could never have that colour skin, doesn't look so out of place.

I generally just do tan to my bra area as no one (except the bf) sees any further down.

I get spray tans on holiday and then top them up myself.

I stay out of the sun though as it's just going to burn me and use a high factor when I do venture out.

Daisy03

I am extremely pale and I have never worn fake tan. First off I don't think it would suit me. But I also hate when you see people and the fake tan is patchy or fading particularly someone's hands. It looks like their hands are dirty!

I have gotten comments from some people about my lack of fake tan. But suprisingly mainly from the older generation.. Mainly from my Mums aunts who are in their 60's and 70's.. I don't know what they did in their day. But at family weddings, graduation etc they have mentioned that I should get a tan.

I hate this obsession that a tan looks healthy. Last summer a friend of mine got very badly sunburned. She would be naturally very pale as well. It looked so painful and uncomfortable. A couple of days later I was heading to Killarney for the day with her, her mum and aunt. All day long her aunt kept commenting on how healthy she looked. I had to stop myself from laughing as it looked horrific and far from healthy.

Neyite

Another paleface here.

The most I can get on holidays is a "healthy glow" type of colour. Its nowhere near a tan by ordinary non-gingers standards. But I also noticed the price I paid for that "glow" was that I gained a few wrinkles so dont bother much now.

I have had spray tans done for weddings and so on - its rare that they are perfect. I think one, once ever was flawless, and that was a trial run, the tan for the big event, the same beautician became very heavy handed and it was dodgy on the day, and I was stuck with it.

I have a wedding at the weekend. I'm going to put a bit of the palest gradual tanner on over the next couple of days to take the blue look off my skin, but I'll still be pale, and have tights for my legs.

I think that its good to take a break from continual self tan though - I have a cousin who is convinced her constant fake tan is natural looking. She has gradually gotten darker and darker over the years. And she has forgotton what natural looking really is. She looks like she was dipped in Ronseal, and she is convinced that other girls are orange oompa-loopas but not her. If she took a week to "reset" her tanometer she would be less comical looking. And the few people who have the courage to suggest it to her are "jealous" :rolleyes:

NeonCookies

NamelessPhil wrote: »

Do you want to share the brand of tights? It would be helpful given how many paleskins are posting on this thread.

Dunnes Stores would you believe! I can't remember exactly what the box looks like, but they're the ones you get 5 pairs for 5euro. The shade I get is 'jasmine' - not sure if this is the lightest one or not! They look sooo natural on.

I get a few wears out of them, although they rip eventually (like any brand of these tights I've tried ) I tend to get them a size larger than I need to avoid forcing them too much.

Posy

I've been avoiding fake tan lately because even the palest, extra pale pale (pale) tan makes me blotchy and brown.
I've been fooled too many times by the promise of 'a subtle hint of colour' only to be left brown and streaky.

Ilyana

I know this article is from the Daily Mail, but if it's true.....:eek:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2138197/New-Jersey-mother-Patricia-Krentcil-arrested-daughter-5-burned-tanning-booth.html

Dolbert

EmilyO wrote: »

I know this article is from the Daily Mail, but if it's true.....:eek:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2138197/New-Jersey-mother-Patricia-Krentcil-arrested-daughter-5-burned-tanning-booth.html

That poor girl Her mother should be doing her utmost to protect her from the sun, child endangerment is exactly what it is. She looks like one of the bog bodies.

noddyone2

Jenneke87 wrote: »

Pale&proud. Always been the palest person in the family(and often the palest person in the group where-ever I go) I've had the "milk bottle" and "have you never seen the sun before in your life" comments and I just give 'm a look and say:"yeah so?" and that stops any annoying comments. Never have worn fake tan and don't think I ever will.

Fair playto you! People can be so rude, others have the herd mentality, will follow any trend, whether it's nice on them or not. Anyway, pale is nice.

panda100

Dolorous wrote: »

She looks like one of the bog bodies.

I lol'ed

I think they banned the use of sunbeds for under 18's in the UK this week. Don't think we have any similar regulation over here.

Posy

How anyone could put a child under a sun-bed is beyond me. :eek:

Just to clarify, she has been charged but not convicted so it is currently an alleged offence

miss choc

She is so gross looking looks like a mummy does she honestly think that leather gravy coloured tan suits her. The poor child will be teased at school. Imagine a guy waking up next to that

cailinoBAC

God, she looks awful!

I hate fake tan. The only times I've worn it were when I was on stage. God, I hated having to go into work the first day after I'd had it done, I was so orange. I'm the usual Irish pale and freckly, but I can tan a little bit. I was in South America for almost 5 months so I gradually built up a nice tan. I went to a wedding the week after I came back and everybody was asking me where I'd got my tan done. I did enjoy having it, but I just hate everything about using fake tan, so wasn't tempted to try and keep it up.
I also hate the fact that it's the expected thing to have it done for weddings. I remember being at one wedding at later on in the night the bride's dress was getting stained, it looked horrible! As it happens, I am now living in Spain and getting married there in October. I don't have any tan at the moment, maybe I'll get some colour over the summer, I don't know. Either way, I don't plan on going fake, but I wouldn't even if I was in Ireland with no chance of a natural one.

_Moss_

Anybody showing off their legs today? I want to but can just imagine the comments about my milk bottle legs

I was in Galway for dinner yesterday evening and the amount of lobster people walking around was insane. It's nice to have a bit of sun but jeez they were scalded! :eek:

miss choc

it always happens we are so deprived of sunshine as a country that when we do get it we have to be out in it as long as possible cos it might only last 3 days hence the walking lobsters. I'll admit I went for a cycle for 30 mins yesterday morning and got pink on my arms that sun is stronger than we think.

Out Of The Night

I was thinking about this yesterday. I have some really nice dresses I want to wear in the sun But I am very fair skinned. My legs particularly. My face gets covered in freckles and I have some on my arms but dear god my poor milky legs:(. I don't like fake tan. I remember getting the spray tan done a few times for weddings. It was horrendous. I have dark hair and green eyes so overall my colouring works.

So feck it. Milk bottles they may be but they are my milk bottles!

_Moss_

I wish I wasn't so self conscious!

Yep me and my fake tan are showing our legs!
Factor 50 all the way. I've no interest in having a real tan.

evilmonkee

My legs have been out today and yesterday!
Yesterday wearing light pink (the ones that look white) tights and today with light blue (pushing white) tights!

I'm not trying to hide them (definitely chose the wrong colours if I was), I just didn't want them getting burned so its on with the factor 50, 5* uva and out to the garden. woo!!!!

Scarinae

I'm wearing a white skirt today and honestly I think it's the same colour as my legs!

NeonCookies

Here in Japan, a lot of the women carry around umbrellas to block the sun in an effort to stay as pale as possible. Always want what we can't have.

miss choc

Oh to have olive skin and not have to deal with this burning I always make sure I put on cream but it's always greasy and sticky and you can be sure I will have missed bits Damn Coco Chanel for making a tan fashionable

panda100

_Moss_ wrote: »

Anybody showing off their legs today? I want to but can just imagine the comments about my milk bottle legs

I had my pale legs out on full display yesterday. When I was out last night I kept on getting asked why I hadn't been out in the sun and got a tan!Some people are so thick and don't realise that a large percentage of the population doesn't tan!
I did put a bit of Dove gradual tanner on last night for today though. Still very pale but takes the white edge off.

valerie

I'm pale with dark hair. My legs have a blueish grey tinge to them but I hate fake tan. I have just about come to terms with moisturiser with a hint of self tan but I'm so pale, even that can come up streaky, so in general I'm sticking with blindingly white legs.

The Sweeper

I've given up worrying, plus I'm that bit too lazy to put fake tan on. (I tried it one day and it was horrendous. Then I got better at it until I could apply it perfect and streak-free. Used Piz Buin, the lightest one, foamy and smelled like marmalade.) I love how people post pictures of these porcelain skinned women and say 'look, pale is so much nicer'. Yes, yes it is if you're porcelain perfect.

These days it's all pale for me, but there is no way that's pale and perfect. My hands and arms are extremely freckly, right up to the t-shirt cut off point, where the freckles become more sparse. Then my shoulders are freckly again from a sunburn I got as a kid.

My neck is pale and white, whereas on my face my skin base is blue-red and I have freckles so my face has a different skin tone to my neck. (Makes choosing make-up fun I can tell ya.)

My legs are not freckly, but I dropped a 50kg pallet on my right leg about 18 months ago and, while I didn't break it, I had a massive haematoma on the bottom of my right shin and a purple bruise-sock that went from toes to knee. That's healed back to a grey discoloration about the size of the palm of my hand at the bottom of my right shin - looks like a healing bruise.

But where I live there's 320 days of sunshine a year, so regardless of freckly arms and residual zombie leg, it's bare legs with shorts, sleeveless tops and suncream. Nobody looks at me twice so hey, I just get on with it now.

Dudess

I'm happy with my paleness (my face can get a bit of a glow anyway - I'm not sick-looking :pac: but the rest of me is milk-white). I never wear fake tan and have no interest in sunbathing.

It does affect what I can wear - some clothes don't look good against pale skin, so I can look a bit "unsummery" in the summer... but meh, whatevs. It's me. :pac:

PrincessLola

Went into town in a skirt with bare legs today. Felt good about myself. Some 12 year old kid said "nice legs" to me, what a little playa :pac:

I refuse fake tan on principle, I mean this is the natural colour my legs are, I was born with this skin, and if anyone thinks I'm "too pale" I just direct them to the large bag of f*cks that I do not give.

Twee.

I've been out bare legs and bare arms I lived in NYC last summer and holy god that was hot, I just had to kind of get over the whole pale legs thing! Much more comfortable with it now and have really enjoyed the weather the past few days. Factor 50 was on hand also.

Princess Peach

NeonCookies wrote: »

Here in Japan, a lot of the women carry around umbrellas to block the sun in an effort to stay as pale as possible. Always want what we can't have.

I have a beautiful Japanes sun parasol, would just love to bring it out someday, probably get mad looks though!

I have wanted to break out my legs lately, but silly me had a fall last week and scraped up my left leg, so it looks awful and I can't really take a razor to it, which is badly needed after my celibate winter :pac: Sexy or wha?

I have been wearing factor 60 on my arms just walking places, such a fear of getting burned!

Don't really care too much about my super pale legs, as I have seen many girls here in Canada this week with pale legs too. If I was going on a night out I might get natural colour tights but not bothered when its warm during the day.