Getting Ready for School!!

Gosh, it seems as if the summer flew by!  Now is the time to start getting organized, school supply shopping and clothes shopping.  For me, this year is bittersweet.  My little girl is going to be starting preschool, after being home with me since birth!  I’m excited, nervous and sad.  Also, my son is growing up too fast and I realized the other day, he only has 6 more years and his primary education days are over!!  Okay, okay, enough about me, lets get to organizing!!

Tips for back to school:

Plan/Redo Your Schedule – Summer is full of lazy days; waking up late, staying up late, etc.  Now is the time to get your kiddos back on track.  Start by setting a bedtime and each night, putting them to bed ten minutes early until you reach that *goal* bedtime.  Also, decide when lunches will be made, the night before or in the morning?  Plan this chore out because it will throw your schedule off if your scrambling in the morning! 

Create a “Central Command” – With school comes an influx of papers.  Create an area where you can easily see “Homework” and “Take Home Papers”.  Also located in “Central Command” should be a family calendar, preferably dry eraser, so that you can schedule all activities and projects here for the family.

Organize School Lunch – Plan a menu for your kids lunch that they will be taking to school.  Let them get involved with lunch planning!  I get alot of my lunch ideas from 100 Days of Real Food.

Adjust Your Evening – With earlier bedtimes comes earlier dinner, bath, etc!  Adjust your dinner time up by 30 minutes to an hour if possible.  So instead of a 6:30 dinner time, how about 6 or 5:30?  Click here for some easy and quick but healthy dinner ideas.

That’s it!  This is what helps me stay on track for the school year.  We all know kids need school supplies, checkups, etc. So I didn’t include that in my post 🙂  Have a great year!

Tanning for Prom? READ THIS FIRST!!

Young adults who use tanning beds increase their risk of developing skin cancer by 75%, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

I know, I know, how can this be? Tanning salons look so inviting, clean and sterile, almost like a medical spa. Salons state that the beds are a healthy dose of Vitamin D. They are not. Please don’t believe this. Tanning beds expose your skin to carcinogenic levels of radiation. You may look great now, but wait until your 35 and look 50. Wait until your Dermatologist takes an extra look at that suspicious mole or worse yet a biopsy of it or worst yet has to give you the news you have skin cancer. No one wants to get cancer.  SKIN CANCER is PREVENTABLE!

Did you know that tanning of the skin is the body’s way showing damage? Skin darkens from UV exposure because the body adds pigment in response to tissue injury. (Dr. David E. Fisher, Chairman, Harvard Medical School).

I have heard from young adults “well, if I get skin cancer, I’ll just have my dermatologist remove it”. Hmmm….okay. That process is includes scars is involved, long and painful. That is if you have Squamous and basal cell carcinomas. If diagnosed with Melanoma, the most dangerous/deadly form of Skin Cancer, your treatment plan will include scars, radiation & possibly death. In fact Melanoma rates have increased by nearly 50 percent in the last 30 years.

So if you do this…

You’ll look end up like this

So do this! & wear sunscreen…

and you’ll have younger looking skin like this! I can’t believe she’s almost 50!

Please refer to this article in Teen Vogue for more info on the dangers of tanning beds/suntanning.

Also, my apologies in advance if this article seems a little harsh, however, it pains me to see such young girls ignorant to the facts. I, as a mother, will make sure to educate my daughter (she’s only 3 now), when she gets to that age of wanting to tan. Hopefully she will make the right decision and choose THE SMART GIRL’S TAN!

7 Dangers of Sun Exposure:

1. Sunburn – when your skin is sun tanned, it’s damaged.
2. Premature Aging – Eeek! Dermatologist will tell you the #1 thing you can do to prevent aging is stay out of the sun.
3. Brown/Age Spots – this goes in the same category as premature aging
4. Actinic Keratoses – these are small rough or scaly spots usually appearing on the face, ears & back of hands
5. Moles – moles are usually round pink, tan or flesh color. Anything that looks irregular should be checked by a dermatologist – Mole Chart

6. Eye Damage – excessive sun exposure can cause burning of the cornea of your eyes.
7. Skin Cancer – most serious type of cancer is Melanoma. The American Cancer Society diagnoses over 60k people every year.

Lifesaving Skin Check!

Hope everyone enjoys this long weekend!  Remember to apply (and reapply every 2 hours) sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher.

Featured on The Martha Stewart Show!

Last month Martha Stewart had a segment on Sunless Tanning.  Check it out!  Don’t forget to book your appointment!

Sunless Video as seen on Martha Stewart

Tips for a Flawless Sunless Tan

• Shave & Exfoliate the night before your appointment.  While exfoliating pay more attention to ankles, knees, wrists and elbows as these areas tend to be drier and need more exfoliation.  If these areas are not properly exfoliated it could cause blotching and/or the tan could come out darker in these areas.

• The day of your appointment refrain from wearing moisturizers, perfumes, sprays, deodorant, makeup, etc.  Anything that could act as a barrier to the actual tanning solution should be avoided.  The goal here is to have fresh, clean skin, that way the solution will better adhere to your skin.

• Right before your tan, take off all jewelry and put hair up.  Insist that your tanning specialist use a PH Balancing spray before spraying you with tanning solution.  We always spray our clients with PH Balancing spray and never up charge for this because we feel this is necessary to get the best outcome.

• Some sort of barrier cream should be applied to your feet, ankles, knees, elbows and hands to avoid the solution collecting in those areas and creating a darker color.

• While the tanning specialist is spraying you with the tanning solution, make sure not to accidentally touch skin or move frequently as this can create blotches on the skin.

• After your tan is applied, make sure you are dry!  Ask your tanning specialist if there is any extra moisturizing product that can be sprayed to lock in your tan.  We provide this service to our clients at no extra charge because we feel it’s needed to get the best outcome of a sunless tan.

• Once you are ready to get dressed, make sure your dry!  Loose fitting dark clothing is best.  The last thing you want is your tan to rub off around your waist because of your jeans!  A loose black summer dress is best.

• Wait at least 6-8 hours to take a shower.  Once you do shower, you will notice some of the bronzer wash away, that’s ok.  Try not to use harsh commercial body wash.  In fact, try not to use any body wash in this shower.  Your main goal is to wash away the bronzer.  Your tan is still hard at work 🙂

• Once out of the shower, pat your skin dry as if you have a bad sunburn.  Try not to rub your skin with the towel, this acts as a light exfoliation.  Also, moisturize, moisturize, moisturize!  We recommend a natural body butter, something that will lock in the moisture.

• Now that all the technicalities are out of the way…..enjoy your tan!  You should continue to apply moisturizer twice a day.  We recommend a body butter in the morning and a tan extending moisturizer at night.  Also, utilizing a body wash engineered for spray tanning wouldn’t hurt either.  Avoid harsh body washes & bar soaps, please!

Proper Sunscreens

Sunless tanning is a safe & effective alternative to traditional UV tanning, no doubt about that.  However, a sunless tan DOES NOT protect you from UVA/UVB Rays.  So, what’s a girl to do?  Wear SUNSCREEN when you are out and about.  It doesn’t matter if you are spending a day at the beach or just running errands, protecting your skin from UV rays should be your number one priority.  After all, it’s the only one you get so take care of it!  

Now that we have established how important sunscreen is, the next step is to decipher between all the different sunscreens to know which ones are “spray tan friendly”.  

Here are a few tips when shopping for “spray tan friendly” sunscreen:

• Look for active ingredients such as Zinc, Titanium dioxide, Avobenzene or Mexoryl SX
• Look for the words “Broad Spectrum” this encompasses protection from UVA & UVB rays
• Look for SPF 30+ (but no higher as anything higher contains artificial oils that may soften the skin and create a blotchy effect).
• Look for a cream- this helps to moisturize your skin!
• Avoid sunscreens that have Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A), New government data show that tumors and lesions develop sooner on skin coated with vitamin A-laced creams. 
• Look for sunscreens with soybean oil which aids in cell repair and helps reverse signs of UV damage. 
• As always, look for Paraben & PABA free (two different ingredients)
• Always try to favor sunscreens with the most natural ingredients.

Here are some of my favorite sunscreens

DIY Under Eye Treatment

Skin Care Tip: Avoid harsh bags under the eyes by brewing two chamomile tea bags and sticking them in the fridge to cool.  Once cooled, place them under the eyes! Please remember to keep applying sunscreen all year long!

PreTan Prep!

Spray tanning DOs and DON’Ts.

DO exfoliate the day of your appointment and skip body lotions, oils and powders altogether.
DO wear loose fitting dark colored clothing to your treatment.
DON’T workout after a spray tan.
DO bring a towel to sit on if you have leather car seats.
DON’T sweat (if at all possible!).
DON’T shower for 6-10 hours after the treatment or better yet, sleep on it.
DON’T panic. The spray tan solution can rub off around waist bands, sleeves and toes, this is normal and should not affect the DHA that’s reacting with your skin to create your faux glow. The solutions have a bit of bronzer in them, which will wash off in the shower.
DO moisturize skin liberally (twice a day) after you shower to prolong the color. We have a supply of tan extenders for purchase.

Tips to Extend Your Tan

To maintain your tan, make sure that your skin is always moisturized, preferably twice a day. Your tan should last from 5 to 10 days.  Using the wrong products can fade your tan faster.

Below is a list of commonly used body care products that can have a detrimental effect on a spray tan. Not everyone will be effected by these products, this is only a guide.

Hormonal changes in women may affect the outcome of a spray tan. These hormonal changes include, but not limited to; ovulation,menstruation, pregnancy. The tan may become streaky, patchy, fade worse, or produce lighter or no color.

The following products can lighten or make a sunless tan blotchy: 

• AHA products (Alpha Hydroxy Acids)
• Glycolic, Lactic, Malic, Citric and Tartaric acids
• Anti-acne products that exfoliate, or dry the skin- Accutane, and Salicylic acid, can affect tan fading. Skin also peels, which can look unacceptable, especially with a tan. Antibiotics or other medications that affect your skin, can also affect your tan.
• Anti-aging products that “renew” “refresh” or otherwise exfoliate skin,
• Bar soaps, especially deodorant, or antibacterial varieties (Natural Handmade bar soaps are okay)
• BHA Products (Beta Hydroxy Acids-salicylic acid)
• Body hair bleach products will bleach the tan, non bleach skin lighteners are fine
• Bug spray, perfumes, body sprays when sprayed directly onto skin, can remove or fade the tan. Instead, spray clothing, or spray a “cloud” of spray that you can walk through, instead of directly onto skin.
• Dove soap, and Dove Shower gel, Curel lotions will fade a tan faster, on some people.
• Facial masks and exfoliating scrubs

**We have a selection of Tanning Extenders for your convenience**