What makes a tan fake? If your color is uneven and blotchy, then your friends will definitely know you didn’t go to the beach to get your tan. Fake tan is characterized by orange skin instead of bronze or gold. There is nothing wrong with having a fake tan: the problem comes in when your tan is unevenly distributed on your skin. You only have two choices: to get rid of your fake tan altogether, or make it less uneven. Since you don’t want to say goodbye to your new color just yet, below are some tips on how you can minimize your uneven tan streaks.

Focusing on Each Part

Face and Neck – Look at the color of your face and neck. If you see an orange look, dab cotton pads in liquid makeup remover. Use this to wipe your face and neck. If your problem is blotchiness, then you should dampen your face first. Sprinkle dry baking soda into your hands. Massage your face and neck in a circular manner and wait until the area appears even. Do this at night so that you will immediately see the results in the morning. Repeat until you achieve the desired evenness of your skin.

Hands and Feet – The easy way out is through body bleaching. Bleach your skin carefully because you are going to use the same bleach that you use on your upper lip. Simply apply the body hair bleach to the affected area. Let the bleach stay on your hands and feet for 10 minutes and then wash it off.

It’s also best to keep hydrogen peroxide in your home for emergency purposes. If the bleaching product produces a cut, wipe the affected area with hydrogen peroxide. Before doing this, do a skin test first. Just apply a small amount of hydrogen peroxide on a small area of your skin to see if irritation happens. You will need extra patience because it will take you days before you can change your orange hands and feet into a more bearable skin color.

Legs and Arms -- Your arms and legs need gentle treatment, including your torso. Working on these areas is easy because you only have to apply baby oil and then wait for half an hour before taking a bath. Exfoliate your skin while taking a bath using a soft wash cloth. Massage your body gently.

Complete Orange Body – Is your body completely orange? Worry not because just like your legs and neck, you can deal with such a big area. Take a bath. Relax. Just enjoy soaking in the tub. You may not know this, but one long bath can help you get rid of the obviously-fake tone of your skin. If you don’t want to kill too much time taking a bath, then go out and swim. It will give you the same treatment for your skin.

It is best to stick to only one product, especially if you got your tan from sunless tanner. The use of multiple products will only irritate your skin. You can use body hair bleach, baking soda or hydrogen peroxide, but using these all together will cause more damage.

Get the Job Done

You can’t get rid of a fake tan overnight. Speed up the process by soaking in a bath tub or swimming for long hours everyday. Your skin should be kept moisturized all the time so that the dead skin cells and the chemicals on your skin will loosen up, making exfoliating easier. Spray a moisturizer on the affected area carefully. Check your shade or color by sitting under a sun lamp.

Avoiding irritation is more important than removing fake tan streaks. Irritation occurs when you start feeling a burning or stinging sensation after applying the chemicals on your skin. Test a small amount of any product on a small area of your skin first before using it on the tanned area. If you skin gets irritated, then it’s time to look for another product.

After getting a fake tan, avoid getting water on your skin for at least one to three hours. To avoid getting your skin wet, don’t take a shower, say no to physical activies to avoid perspiration, and don’t go swimming. After all, you want to achieve a natural-looking tan and you don’t want to spend the rest of your summer thinking of ways to get rid of streaks.