Everybody dreams of having super smooth and evenly-toned skin with a natural, sun-kissed glow. Unfortunately, quite a few reasons can lead to uneven skin tone, which results in both an unhealthy and tired-looking complexion. The main causes for an uneven skin tone, also known as skin discoloration, are pigmentation, pimples, acne, injury or overexposure to sunlight. No matter if you’re Caucasian (light skin) or African American (dark skin) or anywhere in between, we are certain that you will enjoy these neat home remedies. Learn how to apply them, try one out and make your own skin product to heal your uneven skin tone naturally!
What Causes an Uneven Skin Tone?
There are several reasons why you might suffer from an uneven skin tone. While some of it is due to genetic disposition, a majority of uneven skin tone issues can be traced back to environmental factors. Here are some of the most popular reasons why you might be paddling uneven skin tone:
Hyperpigmentation – Hyperpigmentation can be mixture of both genetic disposition and environmental factors. For example, some people might be born with skin conditions that cause natural hyperpigmentation. For many, this comes in the form of freckles.
There is also hyperpigmentation that is due to the environment. One of the main causes is not taking good care of your skin when you are outside in the sun. The harsh rays of the sun can cause skin damage that will result in changes in the overall tone of your skin. The most common example is having some of your skin protected while other parts of your skin are exposed. Hyperpigmentation due to the sun can easily be avoided by the use of sunblock. When you use sunblock, you prevent the harmful rays of the sun that can damage the outer layer of your skin.
Skin conditions – Having skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis can affect the overall texture and tone of your skin as well. When you suffer from a skin condition like eczema or psoriasis, there will be patches of your skin that will change in consistency due to a flare up. One of the best ways to avoid this is by managing flare ups and using appropriate medications for these skin conditions.
Cleansing and Exfoliation – Lifestyle habits like daily cleansing and exfoliating of your skin can drastically change the overall texture of your skin and can help you get rid of an even skin tone. For example, if you neglect to exfoliate your elbows and knees, you can expect to find that these areas will generally be darker than the rest of your skin.
When you do not properly exfoliate, you do not allow your skin to get rid of dead skin cells. Instead, those dead skin cells will build up and create a layer of skin that is darker in color.
1. Baking Soda
Our first recommendation for treating uneven skin tone is simple, yet extremely efficient. You are probably already familiar with the fact that baking soda is an excellent healthy solution for whitening teeth, so the fact that it helps you achieve gorgeous skin is almost natural. In the case of skin, baking soda acts as an exceptional bio exfoliator that does not damage your skin like other commercial products. It has the power to remove dry skin resulted by scarring or tanning and leaves you with a beautifully even skin tone.
What to do:
- All you need is to make a paste of baking soda (approximately one teaspoon) and water.
- Directly apply it to your body or face, leaving it for several minutes to set.
- Carefully rub the damaged area for around 3 minutes with the tips of your fingers and then wash the paste off with water.
2. Aloe Vera
Aloe vera really is one of the founding fathers of home remedies. It’s a wonderful solution for a great number of problems and it heals the causes in a 100% natural way. As far as skin care is concerned, aloe vera is a wonderful moisturizer and can greatly aid you in getting rid of dark patches and obtaining a healthy and even skin tone.
What to do:
- Particularly the gel extracted from leaves of aloe vera helps out, so you are going to need to extract it by cutting a leaf or more of aloe.
- After squeezing out the gel, you can directly apply it to the area you want to treat.
- Allow the gel to take action for around a half hour, rinsing it off with water afterward.
- Repeating the process helps you achieve the best results, so make sure to use aloe vera gel often for an even skin tone.
3. Orange
Aside from being a delightful source of Vitamin C and healthy to consume under numerous forms, oranges are also known for naturally lightening your skin tone. It comes packed with natural bleaching properties and can help you obtain the smooth and even skin you have been hoping for.
What to do:
- To get this home remedy right, you are going to need just a little bit of turmeric powder and some orange juice. You can obtain the juice by yourself by squeezing or juicing the orange.
- Take the pinch of turmeric powder and mix it with 2 tablespoons of the orange juice, thus creating a thick paste. If you are interested in covering a larger area of skin, just equally multiply the amount of each ingredient.
- Cover the designated area with this paste right before going to sleep and let it set during the night.
- The following morning you normally wash it off, making sure to repeat the process.
4. Oatmeal
Baking soda is not the only natural ingredient you can use to exfoliate your skin in a healthy way. This will not only help you achieve a lovely and even skin tone, but it will also leave your skin silky smooth. This home remedy works very well in two ways, by mixing oatmeal with another ingredient.
What to do:
- Tomato juice – combine tomato juice with oatmeal and stir well. Afterward, take the solution and apply it on your body or face, depending on the area you want to correct or fix. Let it take action for around twenty minutes before rinsing with cold water. As you wash the oatmeal and tomato juice off, carefully rub your skin so you eliminate the unnecessary cells. It is best to repeat this process every day until your skin tone becomes fully even.
- Lemon Juice & Turmeric Powder – the second way you can use oatmeal to exfoliate your skin and get rid of that uneven skin tone is to mix it with a couple of drops of lemon juice and a bit of turmeric powder. Mix the ingredients together well, apply on your skin and allow it to dry naturally. Like in the case of oatmeal and tomato juice, you wash it all off and repeat daily.
5. Honey
Honey is an awesome source of enzymes which allow your skin to have that healthy glow we were talking about in the introductory paragraph. This solution should work fine for sensitive skin, but if you want to use it as a pace pack, make sure you test it on a patch of skin beforehand.
What to do:
- To nail this home remedy, take some honey and mix it with equal amounts of milk powder, lemon juice and soak almonds (optional).
- Take the mixture and apply it to your face or body, allowing it to dry on its own.
- After it has fully dried, you can wash it off with lukewarm water. Practice makes perfect, so repeat often!
6. Papaya
The fact that papaya is a delicious healthy treat is already well-known by most people. But did you know that it can help you solve your uneven skin tone problem? You might have guessed it as many skin care products contain papaya extract, but you should know that it’s fantastic for lightening skin, as well. Like in the case of oranges, papaya contains bleaching properties so you can enjoy glowing skin once again.
What to do:
- You can either incorporate papaya into your diet for natural cleansing over a long-term period or apply it directly to your skin.
- You can actually take a piece of raw papaya and rub the inside part on your skin, allowing it to dry on its own.
- Afterward, wash the area with cool water and repeat every day for that natural glow.
- Alternatively, you can mash up a papaya and stir it with 1 cup of lemon juice (it is best if you squeeze it by yourself so you know it’s 100% natural).
- Apply the mixture on the affected area and let it work for at least thirty minutes.
- Wash off and repeat one time a week for fabulous results.
7. Sugar
Treat your skin to sweetness! Just like baking soda and oatmeal, sugar acts as an incredible exfoliator for your skin, leaving you looking younger and better than ever. We love exfoliating with sugar and do-it-yourself projects so much that we have made an entire article with 12 DIY salt and sugar body scrubs that you can easily make at home.
What to do:
- The types of sugar scrubs you can whip up on your own range from coconut lime, chocolate coconut oil, green tea, banana, oatmeal, and honey to vanilla and coconut oil brown sugar.
- The possibilities are endless, so you can get creative, make your very own sugar scrub and enjoy velvety smooth skin afterward.
8. Cucumber
Isn’t it funny that almost all skincare product commercials or posters include a lovely lady with cucumbers over her eyes? Well, you should know that there are plausible reasons behind it all! Cucumbers are amazing for skin, as they bind collagen and allow you to enjoy firmness and a light and even skin tone. You can use cucumbers to treat uneven skin tone, no matter what your type is.
What to do:
- Lemon juice – a great way to use cucumbers for lightening your skin is to mix one teaspoon of cucumber juice with one teaspoon of lemon juice. Apply the mixed juice to your face and let it dry for approximately twenty minutes. Use cool water to wash it off and repeat once a day.
- Honey – use a grater to finely cut up a cucumber and mix it up with some honey. This mask will help you reduce spots on your skin if applied twice a day, so make sure you try it out for awesome results.
- Directly – the easiest way to use cucumbers for solving uneven skin tone problems is to place slices of them directly on the affected areas. After letting the slices sit for a couple of minutes, take them off and wash your skin. Try this two times a day and enjoy your glowing skin.
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