Dan's Papers - June 19, 2009

I am not sure if I have spent more money on products to protect my skin from getting tan or on products to make me look as though I have a glorious tan.

Since we are well into June, which started out soggy and cold, and I spent as much time indoors as I do in December, the costs are tipping in favor of sunless tanning products and procedures. All my research and dollars have led me to conclude that from now on my money is on Clarins Delicious Self Tanning Cream, which made its debut this March and retails for about $48. I can tell you it's worth every penny.

Before I made this discovery I made a journey to Bliss to have their Scrub and Glow body treatment, which cost $130, not including gratuity. Being scrubbed with an exfoliating product as I reclined on a massage table, rinsed in a warm water shower, and finally having a tanning cream rubbed carefully all over my body was a very relaxing 75 minutes. The results were lovely: an even, subtle glow. It lasted about 10 days, which could probably be extended if you shower less, or if you don't sweat during daily aerobic exercise. This is, however, an unrealistic way to keep the glow, since I can't really spend the money or the time on a regular basis.

For a faster, less expensive artificial tanning procedure, you could get your color airbrushed on at many different salons in the city and in the Hamptons. It's usually about half the price of Bliss (where they don't use any spray-on tanning products). I found the airbrush procedure a bit unpleasant. I stood there naked with my arms and legs spread, as if in a strip search (and I did not like inhaling the fumes from the airbrush,) and then I had to stand in front of a fan to help the product dry.

Fake Bake seems to be the fake tan of the moment. I do think the product gets the job done and usually with consistent results. Even though it did come off on my sheets, which thankfully washed out. The product is often sold with its own exfoliator and an after tan oil product. But truly any exfoliator will do the job, and the oil to be used after the tanning product just seemed too greasy.

Before discovering Clarins - or more accurately, rediscovering the company, since it made the first self-tanning product I used at least a decade ago and was the only product on the market that did not leave the skin stained orange - I tried many other self-tanners. Clarins was also one of the first companies to make effective anti-cellulite creams and lotions. This was long before any of these potions went mainstream and became available in drugstores.

There are many mainstream and drugstore self-tanners that work wonderfully and inexpensively. Jergens Natural Glow moisturizing gradual self-tanner available in formulas for light to dark skin tones has been a product I have used consistently and successfully, although I find the scent unpleasant. I also like Sephora's Self-Tanning Tinted Bronzing Mist. It's a bargain at $12 and great for those hard to reach areas like the upper back since it is a spray-on mist.

But really nothing compares to Clarins Delicious Self Tanning Cream, with ingredients that smell, feel and look good enough to eat. In fact, it looks like smooth caramel pudding, and really smells delicious because of ingredients like cocoa bean and cocoa butter. It also contains aloe vera, which helps the product glide on while it moisturizers.

It's the first self-tanner I actually look forward to using. When the sun finally starts shinning as if it's summer, I'll be looking as if I spent June in the Bahamas.