about pale skin?

[Thurlow]

I'm down south, so it's going to be baking today. I'm not wearing tights, which is perfectly acceptable in our office.

Now I'm as pale as they come, especially my legs. I just don't tan at all.

I have had TWO comments already today from people - "blimey, you're brave, getting your legs out when they are so white!" Both from colleagues who were wearing dresses with no tights themselves, so it wasn't even a subtle dig at that. One then started a conversation about whether or not I'd considered fake tan.

Why is pale skin seen as so bad? Why shouldn't pale people wear skirts and dresses the same? Why should we go through all the faff and cost of fake tanning?

First world problem, I know, but it's really irritated me not already grumpy with the heat and crappy air conditioning

I've got a dress on today, I normally live in trousers as I hate my legs (chubby, veins etc). However I agree with you re the whiteness. i am a celt, my legs have only been vaguely brown twice in my life, and both times also involved sunburn. They don't tan at all in a normal Summer, even if I'm in dresses all the time. I embrace my whiteness, it would look too strange to have brown legs with a white face. I do see the appeal of glossy golden limbs, but that just isn't my genetic make up, and I refuse to accept that certain skin colours are somehow ugly.

Agree that pale skin can look lovely. I think tans often look rather tacky and Marbella-tastic. Especially if you are naturally pale. I tend to try to make sure my legs are fuzz free and not actually scaly, but embrace my pallor! Quite apart from the fact that life is simply too short to be arsing around with fake tan in my view but some might think that is because I am an ancient old bat these days

It's this one Thurlow. It won't disguise scarring but it will give dull skin a nice lustre.

Thank you - I'm happy to be pale but still vain, so a bit of lustre certainly wouldn't go amiss

Another pale and soft person here!

I have a chronic health condition so see a lot of medical people, every single one of whom without exception says "you look very pale, lets get your bloods done again". So I guess I look ill, particularly as I don't wear make up either, but tbh I don't care.

I'm lucky in that, although pale and ill I don't have any lines or wrinkles yet and I have teenagers I always always wear sunscreen though and don't drink or smoke so maybe this helps.

I like pale skin, especially with dark hair. I actually think it is becoming "fashionable" again and soon (hopefully) that artificial orangey tan/heavy make up/fake eyelashes look will disappear. I seriously couldn't care less whether I look fashionable myself, I just think that generally, natural always looks better. Unless it comes to hair colour of course

actually like being pale and everyone else can either get over it or stop looking at my legs

Same here. As a fellow redhead I just think people can deal with my natural, pale colour. Anyone making negative remarks about it tends to get lectured on how unhealthy it is to try to tan when you've evolved to live in a northern climate and can metabolise all the vitamin D you need after 10 minutes in December sunshine. My untanned skin looks much younger than the skin on my hands and face which, despite my using sunscreen, just looks older and more damaged.

If I still feel grumpy and aggrieved they also get a lecture on how tanning relates to wealth and is only seen as a good thing when it's associated with the upper classes (as PP have mentioned, the switch from tans being unpopular because of the association with working outdoors, vs tans as status symbols because they indicated the time and money to take expensive foreign holidays). And then I quote Pride and Prejudice at them and the comment about Elizabeth looking tanned after she has been travelling.

People tend just to mention by paleness once, if at all

Pale and proud here. I live in China and they love pale skin here as evidenced by the amount of bleaching creams you find in the supermarket.

No need for fake tan, OP.

Just pause, raise one eyebrow, look them up and down ostentatiously, and say, "Am I." Notice no question mark on the end of that sentence.

I don't get comments like that anyoure.

Following on from the comment above - tanned skin is associated with working outside in China or coming from the countryside - both seen as negative.

I'm also very pale. I don't tan ever. Occasionally I've been known to go slightly pink which then fades back to snow white again. I was once kept in after an op because the nurse said I 'looked pale'. I was too tired to explain...

I've had comments and 'jokes' and people do look. I find it really weird. It's just pale white skin.

Anyway, I keep my skin in tip top condition with body scrubs and lots of moisturiser and it's silky smooth and soft. I look years younger than I am, (said by lots of other people, not my opinion), and I've bought my first pair of shorts this year. I'm fed up of being too hot every Summer so I'm getting them out.

I genuinely do like being pale now. There are lots of Hollywood actresses who have embraced their natural skin colour rather than using fake tan so I think it's becoming less fashionable to be tanned. Either way, I'm happy I have smooth healthy skin.

Surely pale skin is something you just have or don't have, and is therefore neither good nor bad.

There are attractive and unattractive people of every skin tone / colour.

I like getting a slight tan as I feel it makes me the colour I "should" be. I have olive skin which looks unhealthy when it has not seen the sun all winter.

Should also say that I've had lots of compliments in my pale skin too. They're not all negative. DH especially likes it.

Also I've noticed that a lot of the tourists from Japan carry umbrellas on sunny days presumably to protect their skin and prevent tanning.

I have that delightfully translucent, milk bottle-like Irish skin. It's to be 30c today in London. Am I wearing tights to work? Hell no. It's sticky enough as is. I'm wearing a short tea dress and Converse to work.

dangerrabbit, that's great, I'm going to do that - deadpan is clearly the way forward

Hi-fives TriJo - I mean, there's the Tube, and the walk the station, and eurgh, it's just so horrible in London in this heat

How rude! I think I'd have replied 'Blimey, you're narrow-minded to assume that everyone wants to look the same'.

There are lots of Hollywood actresses who have embraced their natural skin colour rather than using fake tan so I think it's becoming less fashionable to be tanned.

Part of my reasoning behind staying pale and unbothered is that it helps give other people with similar colouring the confidence to do the same until eventually there might be a more mainstream acceptance that it's fine, we come in many shapes, sizes and colours.

And as for the select, privileged few who have seen me naked? Well none of them have complained about my skin [smuggedy smug smug smug]

Looks lovely, Fraggle, but WTF does it have to be fragranced? I'll stick with my oilatum.

I've got my pale blue legs out and I don't care. Nobody's ever made a rude comment to me about it though. YANBU.

Yanbu

Sisters, lol at death pale. My dh says I should be an actor... of dead people on slabs.

Oh number I feel your pain. Mine says he can't tell if I'm ill because I always look dead.

My foundation is Maybelline 'Snow White', I can use talc instead of loose powder and don't notice any difference.

My Dad was really dark for someone from a white, Staffs background. Back in the 50's when the sight of someone dark skinned was somewhat of an amusement in these parts the locals thought he was Indian. The only thing I inherited was his dark hair, which just adds to the deathly look.

Stuff them(!), it's hot, their your legs, so get them out. What's so wonderful about their legs anyway?

Well, ifonly, considering the pale "problem" is exacerbated by me only being 5'1, their legs may well be considerably more lovely than mine

I do tan but can't be bothered with the hassle of either sunbathing only for it to fade as soon as we get a cloudy day or the smell and bother of fake tan.

A colleague of mine goes on sunbeds regularly and her skin is so wrinkled and awful compared to other people I know her age and all I can put it down to is her obsession with having a 'healthy' glow

There are lots of lovely pale skinned celebs that look fantastic- Paloma Faith, Gwen Stefani, Nicole Kidman, Anne Hathaway, Emma Stone.... I bet nobody questions why they haven't slapped the fake tan on!