Anyone have horrible tan lines that last for months?

Question

This isn't about resolving the issue (I know, self-tanner, tanning beds, etc.) I'm more curious...I have very fare skin that does not tan easily. Any little tint fades completely within days; I HAVE to burn first in order for it to last. Don't get me wrong; I don't do that. It's just that the only time my tan DOES last is if I burned first. I normally try to avoid all color with sunscreen because I hate what happens when I don't, which is the rest of my question. Without planning it, I accidentally got a pretty bad burn on my back five months ago while wearing a cross-backed tank top. I was left with a hideous criss-cross line on my upper back, with a defined line and completely pale lower back. Now, five full months later, that horribly lined tan is STILL there! I'm beginning to think these lines will never fade! Does anyone here experience tan lines for months and months after the fact? Like I said, if I hadn't burned, it would have faded quickly. But now, it won't budge.

Answer 1

Haha! I still have tan lines from the bottom of my bathing suit. My top half is ok because I have a couple of suits that cover differently, so the tan lines are a bit different. But those never seem to fade! Same with my watch. If I forget to take it off even once for just a few moments, I get the ugly farmer's tan watch line thing.

I know that putting on aloe right after you get sun helps a tan last longer, but it also helps burn feel better (maybe help heal, I don't know). So that's a cost/benefit analysis for you right there!

Answer 2

I naturally have really tanned skin, but for 7 years I wore long jeans and kept my legs and upper arms covered, year-long. Never even wore a swim suit. I literally lost the pigment in the parts of my body I had covered up and my naturally tanned skin went kaput.

Then one year I put on a pair of capris and got a sock tan up to my shins. When my legs tanned, they got back to my normal, naturally tan skin tone. But my feet and the rest of my legs didn't.

That was about 3 years ago, and I still have the tan lines. I know it's because that's my natural skin color so the little pigment I have left is holding onto it. But it sucks, cuz my feet and the rest fo my legs are still missing all their color!

It blows. lol.