EVELYSS / Guides / Beauty

How to Remove Fake Tan From Hands (Palms, Knuckles and Nails)

“Orange palms give away a fake tan faster than anything else. The fix is patience, not force: soften, buff, moisturise, repeat. And next time, the barrier cream goes on before the tan does.”Her take

Why does fake tan cling to hands?

Most fake tans develop colour by reacting with the outermost layer of dead skin cells. Hands have the driest, thickest skin on knuckles, between the fingers and around the nails, which grabs more product and develops darker. Palms pick up tan from the mitt or from touching freshly tanned skin.

Because the colour sits in that top layer, it fades naturally as the skin sheds, usually within about a week on the body and faster on hands because you wash them so often. Removing it means speeding up that shedding gently, not bleaching the skin.

Step by step: the quickest gentle removal

This works for most streaks and patches in one or two rounds.

• Soak your hands in a bowl of warm, not hot, soapy water for about ten minutes, or do this at the end of a bath.
• Buff with a damp exfoliating mitt, a soft nail brush or a gentle body scrub, using small circles. Focus on knuckles, the webbing between fingers and the sides of the hand.
• Rinse, pat dry and check the result in daylight.
• If patches remain, massage in a body or baby oil, leave it for ten minutes to soften the tan, then buff again with the mitt.
• Wash off the oil, dry your hands and apply a rich hand cream.

What about products you already have at home?

A dedicated tan remover is the most predictable option, and many work in a few minutes. Without one, oil plus an exfoliating mitt is the gentlest home method. A paste of a little bicarbonate of soda and water, rubbed gently and rinsed after a minute, acts as a mild scrub, but don't use it on cracked or sensitive skin.

Skip lemon juice, neat vinegar, household cleaners and bleaching products. They can sting and irritate skin. If your skin is broken, sore or very dry, stop exfoliating and let the tan fade on its own.

How to fix dark knuckles, palms and nails

For dark knuckles, bend your fingers into a fist so the skin is stretched, then buff with a mitt or a cotton pad soaked in tan remover or micellar water. Stretching the skin opens the creases where tan settles. For orange palms, wash with soap and a nail brush, then exfoliate with the mitt; palms usually clear in one or two rounds.

Stained nails and cuticles respond to a cotton bud dipped in nail varnish remover on the nail itself, and a soft toothbrush with soap around the cuticles. If nails stay tinted, a coat of nail varnish is the fastest disguise until they grow out a little.

How to stop fake tan streaking on your hands next time

Before you tan, rub a thin layer of hand cream or barrier cream over your knuckles, the sides of your fingers, your nails and your wrists. This dilutes the tan on the driest areas so they don't develop darker than the rest of you.

Do your hands last, with whatever is left on the mitt rather than fresh product. Make a loose claw with your hand and sweep the mitt over the back of it, then blend down over the wrist so there's no line. Wipe your palms, between your fingers and your nails with a damp wipe immediately. Avoid washing your hands for as long as the tan's instructions say, and if you must, wash only your palms.

Questions people ask

The takeaway

Soak, buff, oil the stubborn bits, moisturise, and next time cream your knuckles and do your hands last with what's left on the mitt.

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