Sun Protective Gear
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I buy UV swimsuits and sun hats for my little boy.
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Before I had my Ahiida Islamic swimsuit, I used to wear a long-sleeved swim shirt and quick-dry pants.
I really do use a modern-day parasol when out in the sun. Being in the sun too long gives me headaches, so my parasol helps me to not get headaches as well as keeping me cooler and protecting my facial skin from the sun.
Do you know what a “hijabi tan” is? It’s what headcovering Muslim women get in the summertime—tan face (but not neck), tan hands, and maybe tan feet. That tan demarcation looks weird when the woman is in her less-covering clothing like when at home or with relatives only. When I wear short sleeves at home, my arms are still pale, but my hands are darker making a weird look. My mother-in-law is particular about looks and wants me to get sun protective gloves to keep my hands from getting darker than the rest of me. At first I thought the suggestion was ridiculous, but now I’m considering the idea. What I don’t like is my tan face and white neck! It looks like I’ve got a bad foundation jawline when I’m not wearing my headcovering. My SPF sun cream doesn’t completely keep me from getting a tan face.
April 26th, 2010 at 11:46 pm
We all need SOME sun for Vitamin D. (I recently found out that my Vitamin D level is “off the chart” low.) Vitamin D is also a hormone (because it is manufactured by one organ [skin] for use in / by other organs of our bodies.
This may sound crazy, but we have an unused (as in, the liner is totally shot, so there is no water in it) above-ground pool in our back yard. Since we are in the country, and don’t have any close neighbors, it makes a wonderful place for discrete sunbathing!
Without a similar set-up available to you, another alternative would be to spend some time in the sun daily (in some kind of private place) with at least your head, arms, and legs exposed to the sun. Even 15 or 20 minutes, right in the middle of the day, would be a huge help.
You might want to start off with a shorter period of time, and work up to more, if you are extremely fair-skined. I have not had any trouble with burning, even on parts of me that have not seen the sun in years, by starting out slow — and in the spring, whent the sun’s rays are less direct.
July 20th, 2010 at 7:07 am
Have you ever considered using one of those slowly tanning lotions to even out the color on the rest of your body? It’s not a real tan. I tried it once a long time ago, and it works fairly well.
August 18th, 2010 at 2:56 pm
I consider it, but never get around to it. I should though. Thanks for the reminder.