Being able to relax in summer, poolside with your costume should not cause you to feel self-conscious.
There is no need to let blemishes and imperfections stand in your way of enjoying your summer, wearing high shorts and pretty sundresses, especially when there are easy ways to cover these blemishes up.
Many women have varicose veins on their legs. This can be a real put off when thinking about walking around in summer clothes and can cause a host of insecurities. Luckily, self-tanner is able to help cover up varicose veins, if applied correctly.
So, will fake tan or self-tanner help cover varicose veins? Yes, fake tanning products like self-tanner or spray tan can help to reduce the visibility of varicose veins. However, preparation and proper application are really important.
Not only will the self-tanner help to cover up varicose veins, but it will give you a gorgeous, radiant glow without you having to spend hours in the sun!
What Are Varicose Veins?
Varicose veins are fairly common. They are enlarged, twisted veins which become visible under the skin.
Superficial veins can become varicosed, but most noticeable are the veins in the legs. They are more common in the legs because walking and standing cause an increase of pressure in the veins found in your lower body.
Most commonly, varicose veins are only a cosmetic problem. For more extreme cases, varicose veins can cause discomfort and aching pain.
Self-care is the best option with dealing with varicose veins, elevating your legs, light exercise and compression stockings can help the varicose veins from getting worse, however, it will not make them disappear completely.
How To Cover Light Varicose Veins
If you only have a mild case of varicose veins, with the veins only being lightly visible, you can get away with a simple application of a self-tanning product.
Your best bet would be to use an aerosol self-tanner. Spray the aerosol product onto your hands and rub it gently in small circles over the visible varicose veins. This will leave your legs looking more smooth and even, and will give them a sort of airbrushed look, perfect for going out in summer.
How To Cover Varicose Veins With Self-Tanner
Prominent, more visible varicose veins can be a little trickier to cover. A once-off application of self-tanner might not cover them completely.
What you need when using self-tanner to cover varicose veins:
- Self-tanner lotion (lotion works best as it is easier to spread)
- Body scrub
- Your favorite body makeup
- Waterproof concealer
- Makeup brush
- Tanning Mitt
- Airbrush leg spray (if you really want a flawless look)
Covering Varicose Veins with Self-Tan Lotion – Step By Step
Here is a step by step guide on how to completely cover your varicose veins, giving you perfect summer legs:
Step 1: Exfoliate
Exfoliate your legs properly the day before applying the self-tanner to your legs. Areas such as the heels and knees are notorious for having an excess amount of dead skin. This excess dead skin will cause your tan to appear blotchy and have some orange streaks.
Step 1: Shave
Shave the day before applying the self-tanning lotion. It will be nearly impossible to apply self-tanning lotion over leg hairs and will make the application be very uneven.
Step 3: Apply self-tan lotion
Using a tanning mitt, spread the self-tanning lotion all over both of your legs in small, circular motions. Make sure to spread it evenly over all areas to ensure a smooth, blended appearance. A tanning mitt really does help to ensure the self-tanner is spread properly.
Beauty By Earth is my favorite self-tanning lotion, and I think it would work great on varicose veins. If you want more of a gradual tan, then I highly recommend Bondi Sands Gradual Tanning Milk.
Step 4: Let the tanning lotion dry
Wait for the product to dry before touching anything. Wet self-tanning lotion can stain clothes and linen quite easily.
Step 5: Use concealer
Use body makeup that closely matches your skin color. Use a makeup sponge or your fingers to apply a light layer of the concealer over the areas of your legs with varicose veins. Make sure to blend the concealer over a large portion to make it look more natural, and don’t forget to blend in the edges.
Using a thin makeup brush, apply waterproof concealer which is a shade lighter than the body makeup. Apply this to the varicose veins in small, thin lines to hide them even further.
Using a makeup sponge or your fingers, blend the concealer into the rest of the leg to make it look perfectly blended and natural.
Step 6: Maintain your tan
You will need to apply the self-tanning lotion every one to two weeks in order to maintain a gorgeous tan, and you only really need to use the concealer when you are going out with your legs showing and you do not want your varicose veins to be noticeable.
Make sure to self-tan the rest of your body as well to match your legs. Who doesn’t want a gorgeous summer tan from head to toe?
Dos and Donts When Self-Tanning Your Legs
Now that you know how to cover varicose veins on your legs, it is a good idea to know what else you should do, and what you should not do, when applying self-tanner to your legs.
If you’re looking for great products for self-tanning your legs, check out my guide here.
Dos
• Do only apply the self-tanner in small sections. Start from your upper legs and blend your way down to your feet. Blending down towards your feet will create a natural-looking tan, without you walking around with orange feet.
• Do moisturize your legs an hour before applying self-tanner. This creates the perfect canvas for the self-tanner to react with your skin. Dry skin will result in a streaky, blotchy tan.
• Do remember to remove old self-tanner from your skin before applying a new one. An exfoliating mitt and body scrub will do the trick perfectly.
• Do choose a self-tanner that matches your skin type. One that is too dark will look horribly unnatural, and one which is too light will make hardly any difference at all.
• Do remember to give your self-tanner some time to dry before getting dressed or sitting down. Wet self-tanner can create such a mess when touched on other surfaces.
• Do remember to wash your tanning mitt after each use. If not, residue product from your previous self-tanning application will interfere with how smoothly the new coat is applied.
• Do self-tan the rest of your body to create a flawless tan from head to toe.
Don’ts
• Do not put on clothes straight after self-tanning, once again this can cause staining and can result in your tan being patchy.
• Do not apply fake tan immediately after shaving or exfoliating. The fake tan will absorb into the open pores and could cause them to clog up, creating a breakout or irritation.
• Do not layer over an old fake tan if you are not using a gradual tanner. The tan will be incredibly blotchy and will fade quite quickly.
• Do not apply too much self-tanner in your first go. Start off small. You can always go back and apply more self-tanner, but it is difficult to reduce the amount of self-tanner on your skin once it has developed.
Airbrush Self-Tanners vs Self-Tanning Lotion
When it comes to self-tanning your legs to cover up varicose veins, there are pros and cons to using either an airbrush self-tanner and a self-tanning lotion.
Airbrush self-tanners are perfect to use if you want a light, even coverage. This type of self-tanner is fairly simple to use and is a quick and easy application.
It helps to cover areas evenly and has a glowing finish. However, airbrush self-tanners will not give a thick, complete coverage. It is best used for legs which have only slight varicose veins.
It can be used if you aren’t completely phased by your varicose veins and only want a slight coverage.
Self-tanning lotion is one of the more popular options. It is easy to apply if you use a tanning mitt, which helps to achieve a very smooth, blended coverage.
Self-tanning lotion is good to use over more prominent varicose veins, as it does offer a thicker coverage depending on the product you use. Self-tanning lotion can be used all over the body, which means you will have a summer tan from head to toe.
Whichever you decide to use, and if you choose to use it over the rest of your body, just remember that you will need a lighter shade of self-tanner to use on your face.
Using the same self-tanner on our face that you used for the rest of your body can cause it to look darker than the rest of your skin, and nobody wants to walk around with an overly-tanned face and lighter body.
Achieving The Perfect Coverage
Finding the confidence to step out into the sun in your favorite bikini doesn’t have to cost you a heap of money. You can achieve it all at home using a self-tanner to cover up your blemishes and flaws, like varicose veins.
At the end of it all, varicose veins are really common, and should not be something to be ashamed of. However, many women choose to have airbrushed, flawless looking legs to boost their confidence, and that is perfectly okay!
There is nothing wrong with wanting a little bit of help from a cosmetic product to brush up on your look, and self-tanning lotions and sprays give you the perfect opportunity to create glowing, flawless legs that you can flaunt around all summer long.
