After last week’s fake tan furor, I learned that while most of you don’t mind the idea of a fake tan, you really can’t stand the smell.
That would be DHA, the chemical that interacts with the skin’s proteins to make you brown, or orange. When the DHA reacts with your skin, the distinct, slightly nauseating odor increases in power as the tan develops.
But if you insist on acquiring a fake tan pre-summer, here's some good news for you: St. Tropez, a prestige self-tanning company, has revamped their line of self-tanners to include something called Aromaguard. The new technology neutralizes the smell caused by the DHA reaction by at least 70%, replacing it with a fruitier floral scent.
As a freckly Irish girl, I’ve embraced my paleness and managed to avoid the world of fake tanning. I had one ill-advised detour into it a few years ago, stained my sheets, dyed my palms orange, gagged at the smell and rocked streaky legs for two weeks before vowing to avoid all things orange forever. But in the name of research, I gave St. Tropez's Everyday Perfect Legs a whirl to see if it really delivered on its sweet-smelling promise.
It’s a dual pump deal - one side's gradual self-tanner, the other tinted bronzer. I applied a small amount of the tanner on my shins and smelled like flowers instead of chemicals. And my legs actually looked healthy and more gold than orange, which means it's a definite pass in my book.
Am I about to slather it over my whole body? No way - I'm not high maintenance enough - but if I ever can't stand my pasty legs, this is what I'll reach for.
--MEGAN MCINTYRE
