After the cold and gloomy winter, your skin might look like it hasn’t ever seen the sun. And before summer officially starts, spray tans are a quick fix to achieve sun-kissed skin before showing up in a swimsuit for the first time. One of the most common hiccups with a spray tan is blotchy and uneven color on the hands and feet.
Though there are numerous proven methods for how to get spray tan off hands and feet, the best method is exfoliation.
Getting spray tan off feet and hands isn’t too hard, but might require multiple methods. In this article, we will be detailing multiple ways of how to get spray tan off feet and hands, and what you can do to prevent the disaster altogether.
Why Do I Need to Take Care of Fake Tan on Hands and Feet?
Sun-kissed and glowing skin is one of the few essentials for many.
The sad news is, only some are gifted with naturally tan and olive skin that looks good and glows under the summer sun. The good news, however, is the beauty world has a plethora of tanning products available. From self-tanners to spray tans, the choices are endless.
Even the best tanning session of your life can’t promise disaster-less results. One of the most common issues many experiences is excessive, blotchy, or uneven tan on hands and feet.
So why is this an issue and why does it need to be taken care of?
Unsightly blotchy and uneven hands and feet
When you’re self-tanning at home, you might accidentally step on or touch a pool of tanning solution. Instead of achieving a natural glow, this is a giveaway of your tanning session.
Blotchy hands and feet don’t look good and you will have the urge to cover them up with gloves – in summer of all seasons!
When you end up with blotchy hands and feet, you should be familiar with the know-how of removing tan on said areas.
Uneven tan
The hands, feet, and even the elbows tend to be drier than the rest of the body. This causes these areas to absorb more color. If left alone, you would probably end up with uneven hands and feet that are darker than the rest of your tanning job.
Before debuting your new tan to the world, you want to make sure you’ve gotten rid of the uneven color so it matches the rest of your body.
Getting ready for your next tanning session
Even if some time has passed since your last tanning session, there might still be some color left on your hands and feet. You don’t want to go into your next session with a still-heavy tan on them. You want to start with a clean slate like the rest of your body.
Re-tanning, when there’s still some color on your hands and feet, can lead to even more unevenness.
How To Get Spray Tan Off Hands and Feet
Uneven and blotchy hands and feet after a tanning session is unsightly and no one wants that.
If you want to make the best out of your new sun-kissed and glowing skin for the summer, we have below easy hacks you can try to get spray tan off your hands and feet:
Exfoliate dead skin cells
One of the common ways to get rid of tan from hands and feet is by exfoliating the areas. Tan holds onto and colors the skin’s surface. Gently exfoliating might help with removing the excess color.
You can opt for washcloths, sugar scrubs, or oats to exfoliate.
Soak in a tub or go swimming
A relaxing way to get rid of excess tan is by taking a bath and soaking your skin in a tub of warm water. To make it an even more relaxing experience, add a few drops of essential and bath oils. This will also help soften the skin’s surface, making the excess tan easier to remove and exfoliate.
Swimming also applies the same logic. Soaking the skin in water for an extended time will help soften the tan and will be easier to remove from your hands and feet.
Head to the steam room
Heading and going into the steam room is another effective yet relaxing way to get rid of spray tan on your hands, feet, and the rest of the body. The steam effectively smoothens the skin and color, making them easier to wash off later. This is a great way to remove spray tan before heading to your next spray tan session.
Remove fake tan with tan remover
If you’re an avid spray or self-tanner, having a bottle of tan remover should always come in handy in case of tanning disasters. A tan remover is a fool-proof and efficient way to get rid of stubborn orange-tan tones and tan from your hands and feet.
Lemon juice
Lemon juice is acidic so this makes it an effective tan remover for smaller areas like the hands and feet.
Simply squeeze the juice on affected areas and rub in a circular motion. To take it up a notch, add either baking soda or sugar. Baking soda or sugar with lemon juice forms some sort of exfoliator to remove the excess tan on affected areas.
Toothpaste
This DIY method works best for getting rid of tan between fingers and toes and on nails.
Grab an old toothbrush and some whitening toothpaste. Remember, it has to be a whitening variant, otherwise, it won’t work.
With the toothpaste on the toothbrush, brush and scrub the areas you’re targetting. After that, leave it on to soak for about 20 minutes. Then, simply wash it off.
Baking soda
This method is a bit similar to the DIY lemon juice paste. But if you don’t have a lemon readily available, simply mix baking soda with water instead to form the paste.
Apply the paste to the affected areas and gently scrub it in. Leave it on for a few minutes before washing it off.
White vinegar
Another acidic kitchen staple, white vinegar is great at removing lightening tan results on small patches of skin. Simply pour some on a cotton pad and dab it on the affected area. Let it sit for a few minutes before washing it off.
Nail polish remover
Just like how it breaks down nail polish, nail polish remover is also effective at breaking down fake tan color due to its acetone content. Simply rub a cotton pad with nail polish remover on the area. Once the excess tan is gone, wash off the solution.
Nail polish can be a rather harsh tan remover but using it on only small areas shall do little to no harm.
How to Avoid and Prevent Spray Tan Disasters
So you don’t have to go through the trouble of removing spray tan off your hands and feet, keep in mind our tips on avoiding the disaster altogether:
Use barrier cream
Applying a barrier cream before your tanning session will protect your hands and feet from absorbing too much tan color. It can also help moisturize the areas so they don’t develop a much darker color than the rest of your skin.
Moisturize hands and feet
Dry skin absorbs tan more. Hands and feet tend to be drier areas so they could attract and absorb more of the tan applied to the skin. To prevent excess color, moisturize your hands and feet well so they don’t overdevelop.
Use tanning mitts
Applying self-tanning products with your bare hands is never a good idea. When opting to self tan, apply with tanning mitts. These do not only protect your hands but offer far better tanning results.
Wear gloves
When getting a spray tan, the best way to prevent too much tan on your hands is by wearing a pair of gloves to cover them entirely. After your tanning session, you can go ahead and tan them separately so you can keep an eye on them as the color develops.
Conclusion
A spray tan is one of the quickest and easiest ways to achieve sun-kissed skin with that beautiful glow. No one has the time to spend time under the sun and it isn’t all that healthy for the skin either.
Even a spray tan from a professional can have a few hiccups along the way. One of these roadblocks is blotchy and uneven tan on the hands and feet. Though there are quite a few you can get rid of this, the most popular way to do it is by exfoliating.
And that has been our guide on how to get spray tan off hands and feet. If you have questions, just hit us up right below!
