Swimwear

[Violet Thyme]

What do you wear at the beach/pool? Do you go at all? What time do you usually go? How do you keep your skin pale?

I've been going to the pool a lot for my summer job (nanny, we're in Florida, too hot to do anything else, you do the math!), and I quickly realized that even SPF 75 *washes away* the instant you go in the water. When you spend ALL DAY in the pool, you can't keep applying and washing away (gets expensive and still doesn't protect)...so I got a terrible tan/burn. The worst is the shoulders/neck/arms area, where the sun beats down the most.

Not having a lot of money, I decided to get a couple rash guards - this one and this super-cute shirt. These are GREAT - you can get them in short/half-sleeve or full-sleeve versions, and the material is UV-rated so almost no sunlight gets through. I'll probably get a long-sleeve one too soon; for now, I'll just have to use sunscreen on my arms and legs (I figure a full-body wetsuit would be a little conspicuous at a public pool!)

I love going to the beach in the late afternoon/evening - that's when I get to wear my cute bikinis with black-and-white polka dots or skulls. Then watch the sun go down and go for a moonlight swim...pretty Goth, don't you think?

[ape descendant]

I usually go to an indoor pool. I'm pretty pale... so if I go to an outdoor one I am guaranteed a horrible burn.. especially after my sunblock washes off.

I hate being burned and blinded by the stupid sun.

[Saya]

You can get waterproof sunscreen! Granted you need to reapply every hour but the spray on kind isn't so bad.

But I like the shirt, I hate going to a pool because I'm really self conscious and hate showing off skin, I should look into getting that.

[vindicatedxjin]

Get yourself a bikini and walk around in the sun...it makes you feel good.

[Solumina]

I love my Neutrogena cooling mist sunscreen. You can get it up to spf 70 but I use the 30 (I use a cream on my face that's a bit stronger), it holds up rather well to water (even salty, sandy waves at the beach) and is actually very refreshing when you put it on so it isn't a pain to reapply like some sunscreen is.

[ThenAgain]

Originally Posted by vindicatedxjin

Get yourself a bikini and walk around in the sun...it makes you feel good.

Enjoyment of this experience is subjective. Don't be silly.

[Solumina]

Actually the vitamin D that your body makes in response to the sun exposure can create a mild euphoria and low levels of vitamin D can actually lead to mood disorders, most notably SAD, so yes sun will make you feel good, as long as you don't get burnt, thankfully sunblock doesn't cause any problems with vitamin D production.

[ape descendant]

Sunshine is overrated. You can get vitamin D through diet,

catfish
salmon
eel
mackerel
sardines
tuna
whole eggs

are natural sources. You can also get vitamin D fortified foods like vitamin D milk.

(Well, sunshine isn't totally overrated, it can help prevent and treat mood disorders like SAD)

[Underwater Ophelia]

I love swimming, and I love the beach. I wear a vintage style one piece that was actually a hand-me-down from badteccy.

[Solumina]

Originally Posted by ape descendant

Sunshine is overrated. You can get vitamin D through diet,

catfish
salmon
eel
mackerel
sardines
tuna
whole eggs

are natural sources. You can also get vitamin D fortified foods like vitamin D milk.

(Well, sunshine isn't totally overrated, it can help prevent and treat mood disorders like SAD)

Food based vitamin D is actually processed slightly differently than what is produced as a reaction from sunlight, hence why the food based stuff doesn't help much with SAD.

[Greggles]

i use the pray on sunblock that Solumina mentioned. My trunks are black and white patterned and are to my knees. I don't mind getting a tan because when fall comes, i can wear my long coat that has long sleeves and i usually have some sort of fingerless gloves on andd the rest of me is hidden by, you know, clothing. As for my face, that nothing that some foundation doesn't take care of.

[morgy]

Originally Posted by Solumina

Actually the vitamin D that your body makes in response to the sun exposure can create a mild euphoria and low levels of vitamin D can actually lead to mood disorders, most notably SAD, so yes sun will make you feel good, as long as you don't get burnt, thankfully sunblock doesn't cause any problems with vitamin D production.

This is actually true and I experienced it, in the bad way, the last winter.

I'm greek, so after moving to Sweden, during last winter I suffered a lot from headaches and I was often in a bad mood. The sun doesn't really go up here during winter months, and it can be cloudy and rainy for weeks.
So I started taking vitamins, nothing too heavy, just the regular ones that you dissolve in a glass of water, and my headaches went away.
And now that it's finally summer in Sweden it's obvious that EVERYONE is in a much better mood.

Funny thing, I'm also very pale and in Greece I always avoided the sun to avoid sunburns but whether you like it or not, if you live there you can't really avoid sun. I guess that's why I was always so happy for no apparent reason :P.

I used to think that sun was overrated but actually it's not. It's a biological thing so goth, no goth, we kind of need it. Just be protected with sunblock creams and shirts.

I wouldn't sunbathe just to get a "fashionable" tan.
Tan IS overrated.

[morgy]

aaaaaaand, I really like the second shirt

[kitteehcat]

sunblock. (highest SPF)
lip balm (+ SPF)
floppy sun hat.
pareo.
parasol.
sunglasses.
.. and of course the bathing suit!

The best hours for going out on the beach are in between 06.00-09.00 AM and
from 19.30 - (...), if you consider keeping yourself protected and having your skin remain pale.
I do preffer indoor pools more, yet you can set up a vacation to the beach when
the weather is rather "gloomy", with a cloudy sky. Although, be sure to expect colder water!

PS. If, by any chance you manage to get a tan, have no worries for there are plenty recipes for
removing it. Think of the past centuries!

[Tam Li Hua]

What do you wear at the beach/pool?

Black swimsuit, sunglasses, and lots of waterproof sunscreen.

Do you go at all?

Every chance I get! Which, sadly, isn't as often as I would like.

What time do you usually go?

Any time it's available!!

How do you keep your skin pale?

I haven't thought of this until recently, but lots of high SPF sunscreen, a hat, and/or a parasol or umbrella. But really, the sunscreen is the most important thing, if you want to stay pale.

[Heretic]

Originally Posted by Violet Thyme

What do you wear at the beach/pool?

I'll typically wear a synthetic Nike or Under Armour shirt (they dry very quickly), along with some long swim trunks featuring a suitably sinister print or design.

Do you go at all?

I live in Minnesota; you can't go a mile in any direction without stumbling over a lake-side beach. I'm not a sunny day-type person, but when you have kids, you get dragged out to the beach quite a bit in the summertime. After all, we only have a couple of months of true summer before the lakes freeze over again. Gotta make the most of it.

What time do you usually go?

Whenever we get there to whenever we feel like leaving. Something else with kids; good luck maintaining exact timing on anything.

How do you keep your skin pale?

Seeing as how my skin is about as far from pale as you can get, this is not a worry. As my daughter put it recently, "Papa, you don't 'tan', you just get more chocolaty"

However, I do take pains to protect my mass of tribal tattoos. I take great care to apply a high spf sunblock every other hour. Even then, after about 30 minutes in the sun, I can actually feel every line and angle in my tattoos. You all know how much fun wearing black clothing under the sweltering sun can be; imagine, if you will, what blackwork tattoos must feel like under the same circumstances. It almost feels like I'm getting branded sometimes.


- Heretic

[badteccy]

Originally Posted by Underwater Ophelia

I love swimming, and I love the beach. I wear a vintage style one piece that was actually a hand-me-down from badteccy.

You still wear that little number?

That's haaaaaaaawt...my vag was on that LULZ

[carakitty]

Now I want to see a pic of that suit, UO + teccy.

As for my outdoorsy stuff I have a basic black cross-back one piece suit that I swim in. I slather on the sunblock and stay in my clothes as long as possible. I love the idea of a big black floppy straw hat or a parasol but I'm always afraid I'd lose them somewhere.

Haven't spent much time out by the water lately. When we lived in HI I'd go with my girl to the pool next to the beach at least once a month. I prefer pools to the beach because I hate having to clean out the sand from everything

We never had a set time for going to the pool.

I don't worry about keeping my skin pale. I don't purposely lay out to tan so whatever color that happens is just coincidence.

[honeythorn]

I often wear a plain black one piece, and I now own a bikini.

It's black and white and the bottoms are basically like big pants, almost like little shorts . I live in the UK and am 200 miles from the nearest beach. So as you can imagine I do not wear swimwear at the beach, seeing as it's usually freezing and the substrate is made of rocks.

I have worn my bikini in the swimming pool however, seeing as I've lost 50+ lbs. I don't look good in it but at the same time I've lost enough so that people don't seem too horriied by me. No one has laughed yet or approached me with a whaling net which is always a bonus.

I usually go for an hour every sunday when it's quiet.

I stay pale by applying factor 50+ and keeping out of the sun.

[Li'l Miss Sticky Kiss]

Body glove makes nice items to get in the water with. then all you need is to cover your face, hands and feet in sunscreen. That is what I did when I had to take swimming class in high school. I grew up in Florida myself with a pool and a lake in my back yard and never more than 10minets from the beach. I did not go more than 2hrs before sunset. Well, except for gym class (not my fault).
As for now I have a remake from the 1920's all in black with matching swim cap.