hey girl, don't use the tanning bed in the summer, use the sunshine

I'm the type of girl who absolutely loves to be tan during the summer; scratch that, I love to be tan year-round. Even though it is super satisfying to have that beautiful tan during the cold, dreary, depressing winter months, nothing beats a perfect summer glow.

Luckily enough, I was born with skin that soaks up the sun easily and I get naturally tan very quickly when I'm exposed to even a little shred of sunlight. I remember lake days as a kid when I would take a dip off of the boat and then lay and bake in the sun for hours, not even having to be the slightest bit worried about getting burnt. As I got older, I still continued to have the perfect skin to develop a deep tan, but as everyone knows and has experienced, it was always super sad to see my summer tan fade when fall and winter came around.

I soon got a membership at my local tanning salon. To be clear, I have nothing against "fake baking" for the most part. I know that using a tanning bed is pretty bad for you and all but I don't really know the specifics of it enough to go in depth about them. All I'm going to say is that I became a faithful user of the tanning salon when the winter months rolled around, specifically when it came time to get ready for winter formal and other winter and spring dances. I wanted to optimize my skin color like so many other girls my age.

Because my skin gets tan so easily when the sun comes out, I really only went to the tanning salon around school dance times. Looking back on that, I am all for it. I'm glad I went to the tanning salons to get that little extra golden glow, but one thing my naturally tan skin has taught me is that I am truly against using tanning salons during the summer.

Yes, I understand that it doesn't come so easy for some people to get tan. Yes, I understand that tanning can help prevent burning on vacations to destinations like Mexico or simply just in general because they help you get that nice base tan to work off of. I do, however, believe that fake baking in the summer is stupid because you can literally get the same results, if not better ones, from just laying outside in the sun during the summer.

First of all, I know from experience that laying in the sun as opposed to fake baking feels so much better. You can feel the sun soaking into your skin and just let all of your stress float away with the cool breeze. Laying underneath a summer sun is my happy place. Second of all, you look like an Oompa Loompa when you fake bake a ton during the summer. With skin that orange-tinted, people can easily see that your tan isn't natural and they are quick to judge. Now, I'm not saying that judging is good, but it happens in the real world and people need to understand that. Finally, using tanning salons in the summer is just a waste of money. Why spend money on the knock-off brand when the real deal is free?

I firmly believe there are really only two reasons to "fake bake": before winter and spring dances to help you just feel a little bit more confident and in your element, and trying to make a nice base tan before you go on vacation or right at the beginning of the summer. Other than that, I see no valuable reason to go to a tanning salon during the summer because it really just makes you look like an orange.