My mum used gravy browning during WW2, but the big disadvantage of this is that dogs tend to lick your legs!
I think the other trick was potassium permanganate solution. I know you can buy the chemical easily, but I'm not too sure of the proportion. Just experiment, I guess.
Prudie, you took the words out of my mouth, I thought it was purple.
Fruity, it's not a fake tan, it washes off with a good dollop of soap and warm water, it goes on in a spray mist type thing and dries quite quicky, it's also easy to blend. My mum has started using it and her veins are quite bad, I think they do about 3 different shades.
No suechu, nothing so grand, I live on a hill in suburban Essex.