A Life Lesson From Me | Never Go Fake Tanning
As a sophomore in college, I made one of my biggest mistakes. I got lured into a 30 day, $30 tanning deal at my university's nearest tanning salon. After shedding my freshman 20, I was back at the gym and feeling good. Since it was earlier October, I got really into my Halloween costume and wanted to make sure that I looked good, so I milked the $30/30 day deal and went tanning every day after the gym. *cringes* Towards the end of my tanning marathon, I remember sitting next to my friend in class, and her saying that something smelled like it was burning. We quickly figured out that it was me, and that was the turning point for me. After that day I did a major reflection and took a break from tanning. That was my first and last experience at a tanning bed.
Photo's from my 30 day tanning leading up to Halloween.
I wish I could say that it was a happy ending after that. After graduating, I started to take better care of my self, went to the skin doctor, and became more conscious of my skin health. However, being precautions I had a few moles biopsied. One test came back indicating that one mole was pre-cancerous and I had to go back so that they could remove more of the area. If my having to face my fear of needles didn't drive the point home, my 1 inch scar definitely did. To this day it is a reminder of my mistake and how I need to be careful about my skin.
get 20% off at Aglow if you mention my name (Amy Friel).
If I took better care of my skin in college and was more aware of my options, I would've chose spray tanning. But, the orange stereotype held me back from going in to get one done. As you guys may have seen on Instagram I got my first spray tan at Aglow on Thursday (September 21st) and it was a such a different experience than I anticipated. It felt very intimate and tailored to me. The Aglow studio has individual rooms with all the goodies that you'll need before and after getting tanned. Unlike the typical salon with spray tan booths, there were individual rooms and a woman who came in and meticulously sprayed me. This put my OCD streak worries at ease. Not only did she explain how the process works, she was happy to answer all of my questions and reassured me that everything was going to be okay. It was a quick and painless process and I'm not gonna lie, I was feeling myself after. I looked like I came home from a week long vacation in Tulum. Even my boyfriend, who can be skeptical told me how natural it looked and if you know Jordan, you know that's major. In total, the tan lasted me a week and made me feel really good for those seven days. I don't know what it is about a tan, but it's quite the confidence booster.
These photos (above) were all taken the day after my spray tan with Aglow.
So, before you jump on the 30 day $30 bandwagon, think about your skin and the repercussions that tanning can have on it. If you're in the Boson area, I definitely recommending stopping into Aglow and MENTIONING MY NAME (Amy Friel) BECAUSE YOU WILL GET 20% OFF! Try them out yourself, you will look and feel better than any tanning bed will make you feel.
Photography | Danielle from A Chic Voyage
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