Oscar Winners Getting Instant Tans for the Academy Awards

St. Tropez has its annual tanning suite set up to tan the limbs of Oscar-going ladies, but it's amazing who's taking them up on it.

4:24 PM PST 2/22/2012 by Merle Ginsberg

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Gwyneth Paltrow

Remember Gwyneth Paltrow in her slinky gold lame' Calvin Klein gown at the Oscars last year?

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Her limbs were caramel and shiny, and with her golden hair, every inch of her glowed like she'd been kissed by a honey-coated sun. But the reality is -- she was pale as London and New York winter before she got treated by St. Tropez to some of their amazing self-tanning products. She was wise enough to know that a gold sparkling dress demands bronzed, shiny skin for full effect.

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It turns out, getting either spray-on tans, or product-given bronzing, can make your limbs look more lithe and show off your muscles to their best aspects. Photos pick up amazing nuances -- and actresses know that with bronzer limbs, their arms and legs look much more toned. Paltrow even did her face last year! And rumor is, she'll be working with the St. Tropez aestheticians at the Four Seasons Hotel again for this year's Oscars.

Penelope Cruz and the very pale Emma Stone are also rumored to be booking appointments with St. Tropez, as well as many producers, writers, directors, agents. Fiona Locke of St. Tropez is their tanner to the stars, and she knows how to paint on a flattering shade that won't rub off on your dress or your sheets. This is yet another trick that goes along with the idea of last week Oscarexia! Optical illusions work, too.