5 mistakes that make your fake tan look fake

Everyone can clock a bad fake tan. Orange palms, streaky shins, one knee two shades darker than the other. Most of it isn't the bottle's fault. It's what you did (or didn't do) in the 20 minutes before and after you put it on.

Mistake 01

You skipped the prep

Your skin isn't a clean canvas by default. Dry patches elbows, knees, ankles, knuckles soak up tan faster than anywhere else and go darker and patchier than the rest of you. The fix is boring. Exfoliate the day before. Not an hour before, not in the same shower, the day before.

One thing most people miss: oil. Most body scrubs and "moisturising" body washes leave a film that blocks the tan from absorbing evenly. That film is why your shins went blotchy last time. Read the back of the bottle. If it's got oil in it, don't use it the day of.

Mistake 02

You're applying with bare hands

Orange palms are the single easiest way to out yourself. Even if you scrub them immediately, the creases around your thumb and fingers hold the colour for three days. A mitt is cheap and it removes the entire problem. If you haven't got one, use disposable gloves. If you haven't got those, at least rinse your hands with cold water and soap between sections of your body instead of at the end.

Mistake 03

Hands, feet, and face

The extremities are where fake tan goes to die. Hands and feet absorb more than your thighs or stomach, which means people either skip them entirely (pale hands, dark arms instant giveaway) or apply them the same as everywhere else (orange knuckles, feet that look dipped). The answer is almost nothing. Whatever's left on the mitt after you've done your arms and legs is enough. Drag it over the tops of your hands and feet, blend into the wrists and ankles, then stop.

Face is a separate product. Body tan on the face sits in pores in a way face formulas don't, and the colour is usually too strong for how thin facial skin is.

Mistake 04

You rinsed too early, or too hard

The guide colour comes off in the first rinse. The actual tan is still developing underneath. Hot water and body wash strip the whole thing before the DHA has finished doing its job. Lukewarm water, no soap, no scrubbing. Just let the brown water run off. Real exfoliation and body wash can wait until day two.

Same goes for sweating or swimming within the first few hours. If you tan at night, do it before bed not before the gym.

Mistake 05

You went too dark for your skin

Nobody wants to hear this one. If your natural tone is pale, a deep dark tan reads as painted on, because it is. A shade or two darker than your natural colour is roughly the ceiling for "could be real." Past that, every photo has that plastic quality no filter fixes. Working up gradually over a couple of applications looks more convincing than jumping straight to the deepest shade in the range.

None of this is talent. It's about 15 extra minutes of attention most people don't bother with. That's the gap between a tan that looks like a tan and one that just looks like skin.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★    4.9 from 358+ reviews

"Applied it 9 days ago. I train 5 days a week and wear strappy heels — absolutely no streaks, no patches, not coming off anywhere. It gives the most perfect realistic tan for naturally pale skin."

— Verified Customer

The range that makes it easy

Three mousses, three shades. Pick the one closest to "a shade or two darker than you." Build up from there if you want more.