There's nothing quite like the allure of an all-over tan. But many of us either have religious scruples about baring flesh in public, are too prudish, or need to avoid the attentions of paparazzi.

Enter our sun-bathing cloche.

The simplest form is just a robe, made out of UV-transparent material. Change in the privacy of your beach hut, sit/lie on your deck chair, then adjust the robe to reveal as little or as much flesh as desired, knowing that the hidden parts are still browning.

For beaches in Moslem countries, or over-populated by giggling youths, we offer the full cloche: a small tent made out of the self-same material. Screened vents at each end keep a gentle breeze flowing through.

Now you can not only change without prying eyes seeing a millimeter of flesh, but sunbathe starkers, knowing that only Allah and your husband will ever see your nakedness. Or, if you're a godless infidel, that your photos will only be appearing where your agent places them, not the Sunday tabloids.

Shz/bris: that's the material I'm talking about. The technology is not new, only the application. Not everyone (in fact, almost no one, as a percentage of women over 30) is willing to be seen in a bikini.
-- DrCurry, Sep 06 2005

Like this http://www.thevietn.../USarmy/Puptent.Jpg
...but with UV-transparent cloth. [DrCurry, Sep 06 2005]

(?) Solar Tan-Thru http://www.solartan...om/store/index.html
A bit smaller, and full of holes [Shz, Sep 06 2005]

Cool Tan Tan-through swimsuits http://www.tanthrough.com/cj/index.htm
Shirts, too. [bristolz, Sep 06 2005]

yeah, Shz. you wish... didn't beaches have little changing tents once upon a time?
-- dentworth, Sep 06 2005


What? (And btw, my "religious scruples" have never got in the way of me taking off my clothes. We were all born naked.)

Tanning is an invitation for skin cancer.
-- blissmiss, Sep 06 2005


There have been UV transparent (tan-through) swimsuits on the market for a long, long time. I remember seeing them for sale when I was a child (and THAT was a damn long time ago).
-- bristolz, Sep 06 2005


We were all born devoid of knowledge too [bliss] but that doesn't stop me reading books.
-- DocBrown, Sep 06 2005


This tan-thru swimwear is marketing nonsense. They advertise a 6 SPF, but that's only for direct incidence. If there's any angle between the face of the fabric and the sun, the SPF is going to much higher. And the fabric isn't transparent to UV, as DrCurry thinks. UV is absorbed more readidly than visible light, so the garments work (as little as they do work) by allowing light through holes between the yarns, and then confusing the eye with a patterned print. So a robe would never work, because fabric of a "UV-transparent material" doesn't exist. And if it did exist, you'd be able to see through it.
-- ldischler, Sep 06 2005



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