Argh! I volunteered as a storyteller at a library thing this morning outside, and I didn’t even think about the sun because it was so cold when I got up this morning! Halfway through my session I snuck off and got a hat out of my car, but I suppose the damage was done - there’s some redness on my face, and (worse) some on my chest in the pattern of my shirt’s neckline.
Now, it doesn’t hurt but a tiny little bit - it isn’t a major sunburn. But I have a party to go to tomorrow where I’ll be the guest of honor, and I bought the cutest little white strapless dress! And nothing looks worse than tan lines (which I don’t have - I am the whitest of all white people) or a sunburn in a weird pattern and a strapless dress.
What can I do? I’ll be wearing makeup tomorrow, but I don’t wear much makeup when I do wear it (tinted moisturizer instead of foundation if I even wear that) and I’m afraid makeup on my chest and neck will look weird. I’ve got some Burt’s Bees sunburn remedy stuff around the house somewhere, but god knows how old it is.
Is there a home remedy or a readily available product that will take the red out of a mild sunburn within 24 hours?
I don’t know about taking the red out, but I’ve found aloe vera gel to be great for relieving the pain. I’m thinking it couldn’t hurt to try it, but you won’t know until tomorrow if it helped with the redness.
Of course you could always try a heavy application of fake tanning lotion. Do orange and white look good together?
Hmm I’m not sure about the red. But I keep Desitin Creamy (I guess now called “Rapid Relief”) around for sunburn and it’s amazing. I don’t think I’ve peeled one bit since I started using it for burns and it also makes the burn feel so much better immediately.
You’ll see on that page that they have a clear product now too.
The very best thing I’ve found for pulling the red out is plantain leaf, but I’ve always put it on right away when I realize I’ve burned.
It’s a weed that grows just about everywhere. There are twoformsof it, but both grow in people’s lawns and are hated by people who like uninterrupted grass. Both are good for bites and burns and other skin owies.
If you pick a bunch of the leaves and whir them up in the blender with just a skosh of water, you can then smear the leaf goo on your burn and - again, if used right away - it will relieve the burn and pull out the red. Leave the leaf mash on as long as you can stand it. As it dries, it will fall off. I’m not sure if it will be as effective pulling the red out hours after the burn or not. It will soothe any pain if used later, just not sure about the redness, which I know is your real goal.
If I’m outdoors or camping, sometimes I just chew the leaf and slap it on, especially if it’s a sting or insect bite. Plantain works for pretty much all red skin irritations.
I had a really horrible sunburn as a kid. My grandmother, a nurse, wrapped me in sheets soaked with cooled brewed black tea. Worked better than anything I’ve tried before or since.
What bizarre claims. Is blood clotting at all chemically like paint curdling? I thought it was all clotting factors and platelets and inflammatory response stuff.
Y’know…soap will make floating ground pepper scatter. Better avoid soap, it might make your skin fly apart like fireworks.
And trust me, it’s not a taste to savor and swallow. Chewing it is generally followed by spitting and a few "blech"s. If it was potent enough a coagulant to cause physical danger at that oral dose, it’d be extracted and standardized and sold for $80/mL as a pharmaceutical agent.
On Preview: Holy smokes! Plantain is psyllium! Like, the fiber supplement. I had no freaking idea!
I looked at the cites, and yeah, it sounds like BS. But so do all the other claims of medicinal uses of the stuff. You’re just going to pick and choose which to believe?
There used to be something called Folie that was a burn ointment. It worked very nicely on sun blisters. But I haven’t been such a fool for over 30 years and don’t know if you can still get the stuff.
Be very careful for a severe burn regarding infection. See a doctor if you have blisters.
Black tea works too to take the heat out, which in turn will keep the red from getting redder. It seems to shorten the healing time, but I don’t know anything that would take all the red out in 24 hrs. Soak a couple tea bags in about 1/2 cup cool water for a few minutes, dab on burn. The tea will stain clothes so take care with drips.
No, I’m going to pick and choose (and share, since the OP asked) the ones that have worked for me personally. I’m not recommending it because I found it in a dusty old herbal, I’m recommending it as something I’ve used or seen used repeatedly successfully, on myself, my children and my friends and the occasional patient at first aid during camping season.
