Spots, blemishes and acne are not the reserves of the young. Many of us at mamabella regularly suffer from outbreaks and blocked pores, usually when it’s our respective times of the month, so we know only too well the pitfalls of trying to get rid of them.
Our resident makeup artist Victoria Howe has already let us in on the industry secrets around applying concealer to mature skin and how concealer can be used to reduce the appearance of dark circles, and in the latest in our Ask the MUA series, Victoria reveals how to successfully hide those annoying pimples and blemishes to leave you with flawless looking skin.
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Victoria is founder and Chief Makeup Artist at Victoria Howe Make Up and you can follow her stunning looks on her Instagram page, @victoria_howe_makeup.
Blemishes are largely caused when our skin produces too much of a natural oil called sebum. When sebum comes into contact with the dead skin cells, it can cause the pores to become blocked and bacteria to form which leads to blackheads and spots.
If you regularly suffer from skin imperfections and want to get rid of spots and blemishes a little more permanently, we can’t stress enough the importance of drinking more water and avoiding fatty and greasy foods. Your skin is a direct reflection of what you’re putting in your body and while this may sound boring, it’s a leading cause of spots and blemishes beyond our teenage years.
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We also recommend you take the time to develop a good skincare routine. A good skincare routine doesn’t need to be overly time-consuming or expensive and we explain more in our best cleanser, best toner and best moisturiser pages. This involves cleansing your skin twice a day, using an exfoliator at least twice a week and regular face masks help to sweep away dead skin cells, unclog your pores, remove excess oil and clear away pollution and dirt. If your skin is particularly blotchy, we highly recommend Rosalique’s 3-in-1 Miracle Formula. It’s not cheap – coming in at £30 – but it’s an absolute godsend for sensitive or irritated skin.
It’s also incredibly important to keep your makeup brushes and beauty blenders clean and ditch makeup when it’s out of date. In a recent study, scientists tested 467 makeup products – 96 lipsticks, 92 eyeliners, 93 mascaras, 107 lip glosses and 79 blender sponges – for bacterial and fungal contamination and found that 90% contained potentially deadly germs and can make your skin worse.
Sadly, other causes of spots and blemishes are a little less within our control, brought on by the likes of stress and hormonal changes, but ruling out the causes that we can control should at least make these annoying breakouts more manageable.
We usually advise using concealer after applying foundation but in the case of covering spots and blemishes, the rules change ever so slightly.
Victoria is Chief Makeup Artist and founder of Victoria Howe Make Up. After graduating from The Academy of Freelance Makeup in Soho two years ago, Victoria now owns and runs her own studio called The Beauty Barn in Havant specialising in helping women of all ages feel beautiful
