Self tanners offer safe way to tan - Atlanta News, Weather, Traffic, and Sports | FOX 5

If you like the look of tanned skin, it's hard to swear off the sun even when you know it's not good for you. But there's another way to tan without doing a number on your skin.

After a recent skin cancer scare, one Marietta blogger is sharing her secrets to pulling off the perfect safe tan.
 
When Amy Mikkelsen isn't playing mom, she's blogging as "Your Southern Peach."

"Sometimes I don't know how I have time to do it all, but I find time," said Amy Mikkelsen

She shares decorating ideas, recipes for her homemade peach pound cake. And in May, Amy shared a shocker -- basal cell carcinoma, a slow-growing form of skin cancer.

"I wasn't completely surprised because I am fair skinned. I did do a lot of tanning in my younger years. In tanning beds and outside," said Mikkelsen.

But for years, Amy has been getting her glow from a bottle and she knows now it's more important than ever. She says it's actually pretty easy to fool Mother Nature.
     
First, you just have to prep your skin. She says she likes to use a little bit of exfoliating wash.

"It gets the dead skin off, so it gives you just a really smooth surface to start with. And then the moisturizer helps with any dryness that you have on your skin," said Mikkelsen.

Amy gets her glow from drugstore spray and cream tanners. She says using a tinted or gradual tanner helps prevent streaks.

Whatever you choose, wear gloves, or wash your hands often, and blend like there's no tomorrow.
   
"You may want to try it out one or two times before your go to your first pool party this summer, but it's pretty foolproof if you take your time with it," said Mikkelsen.

Most self-tanners don't contain sunscreen because people put them on before they go to bed. If they do have an SPF number, it's probably not high enough to protect your skin. For more information on Amy Mikkelsen, click here.