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I Tried A Self Tanner. Then It Was Years Before I Tried One Again. #JergensNaturalGlow {$250 VISA Gift Card Give Away}

I’m a very fair gal…very fair. I have been often asked if I feel ok because I just look so pale. I started to frequent tanning salons as a result, to get a little color, and loved hearing people tell me how healthy and great I looked. The problem? Tanning beds are not healthy, and wrinkles and skin damage do not look great, so I knew tanning beds were not the answer.

I started to look around for other options…foods that make you darker? Pills that make you look tanned? Somehow, I just didn’t want to ingest anything to make me tan from the “inside”.

So I bought a self tanner for deep tans (stop laughing). I thought it would be a great way to have a really great tan safely, and ignored common sense (and the guideline on the bottle) that said this wasn’t really appropriate for someone as light skinned as me. And I decided that my pale legs were what bothered me most, so I’d just apply it there. And a lot, so I’d have really great, tanned legs.

So there I was one day shopping, when I glimpsed myself in a mirror. A pale-faced gal with pale arms and dark, dark legs. And even darker knees. I looked ridiculous.

I went home and tried to wash the self tanner off. I couldn’t, so I used a mesh bath sponge and scrubbed and scrubbed, and finally I ended up with legs that looked somewhere between mottled and striped. I looked contagious. I decided to stay away from self tanners for the next few years.

Self tanners can be great, as long as you prep your skin first (exfoliate, then moisturize areas like the knees to help mute the strength of the self tanner), go slowly and subtly darker, and use the right one for your skin type! I’m now trying Jergens New Natural Glow Moisturizer, which is designed who help me slowly and more naturally achieve the level of healthy, tan color I am striving for without looking orange, blotchy, uneven or unnatural.

self tan naturally face and body

I will be updating over the next three months, so you can see my progress as I head toward the warmer months with a healthy looking glow. Have you tried a self tanner before? What has your experience been?

(and behold, the token scary before picture):

scary sleepy pale faced mom

NEW Jergens® Natural Glow Moisturizer provides the same great, natural-looking color but without the sunless tanner odor!

Share your embarrassing tanning story for your chance to win a $250 Visa gift card.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Jergens Skincare®. The opinions and text are all mine. Official Sweepstakes Rules.