Mail.(Letter to the editor)

The Mail

Living It Up I have loved Liv Tyler for years. Thank God a magazine was able to put on its cover a woman under 30 who has not gone to jail or rehab, gets along with her parents, and is not bleached blonde beyond recognition. In addition, she is a wonderful mother and not anorexic. She is one of the last of a breed in Hollywood that is sadly disappearing. Toni Bugarin Arlington, TX

I just wanted everyone at Allure to know how grateful I am that you put Liv Tyler on the cover. She is such a great role model, and I respect her far more than any other celebrity in Hollywood. Olinda Cadena Via email

I wanted to express my concern about a comment Liv Tyler made about getting plastic surgery in the future ["Sweet Emotion," July]. Having seen pictures of her in a bikini in the current issue, I really can't believe it. I just don't understand how she can talk about the effects of pregnancy on her body. If this body will need plastic surgery, how are the rest of us ever going to cope with our postpartum bodies? Fatimah Dincsoy Via email I was shocked to see the normally pale and luminous Liv Tyler looking as brown as any other Hollywood starlet. Tyler may be bronzed by makeup artist Stephane Marais and safe from the ravages of the sun, but normal women are not. As long as the tanned look is trendy, many women, especially young ones, will avoid the expensive and uncomfortable fake tan and go for the cheap and easy version -- from the sun. Linda Wells's Letter from the Editor addresses this issue but fails to reach an acceptable conclusion. She writes that dermatologists "prefer abstinence [from the sun] and urge their patients to revere pale skin. Those experts are up against a beauty ideal that has held sway for decades." Well, Linda, you and Allure are in a position to change that beauty ideal, and I wish you would. As long as a tan is "in," people will tan. Jennifer Lipps Sunnyvale, CA

Pale Mail As one of the palest women ever born into our sun-worshipping culture, I understand why so many out there torture themselves to achieve the perfect summer glow [Letter from the Editor, July]. I learned as a teenager that the golden brown skin of my high school pals would never be mine -- not if a mere half-hour of sunbathing led to days of painful, crispy-red flesh (and that's not a good look for anyone). Self-tanning creams led to nothing more than a sickly orange nightmare. By the time I was in my 20s, I realized that even if I could somehow bronze my skin, any shade deeper than snow white simply was not me. I came to embrace my Victorian pallor. Now I love my skin tone and wouldn't change it for a million bucks. Linda Wells is probably right when she suggests that preaching tan-abstinence is an exercise in futility for dermatologists, however, practicing that particular type of abstinence has kept me clear of the sun (whether shaded or just drenched in sunblock) for nearly 20 years -- and is arguably the reason why I have no deep lines, ...