Don’t let blemishes, breakouts and acne get you down, darling. Discover my recommended foundation and concealer for acne-prone skin and learn how to cover acne, spots and blackheads with makeup.
9 minute read
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Face Kit
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The way that you should approach covering a breakout or blemish with makeup will depend on the degree of spots and redness that your skin is experiencing. Whether you have one stubborn blemish that you want to conceal or a larger outbreak of acne spots, discover the most effective ways you can use makeup to cover them up.
And remember darlings, it starts with skincare! Dedicating time to caring for your skin with skincare and washing your face thoroughly to remove bacteria is essential for acne-prone skin. Makeup can cover acne but skincare can help to reduce its appearance. Before applying foundation for acne, always moisturise and prime your skin for the most seamless application.
Discover Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream – my gel moisturiser awarded Best Moisturizer for Acne-Prone Skin by Marie Claire 2024! It’s formulated to reduce the appearance of facial redness and moisturises skin with an ultra-light water-break texture that leaves a glass-like glow.
1. Apply a light or medium-coverage foundation
Got a spot, darling? You don’t necessarily need to wear a full-coverage foundation if your blemish is localised to one small area. Wearing a light or medium-coverage foundation like Unreal Skin Foundation Stick or Beautiful Skin Foundation will help your skin tone to appear more even and will provide base coverage for your spot. Smooth an even layer of foundation over your face then you are free to disguise your blemish with full-coverage concealer.
2. Dot concealer directly onto blemishes
Identify any areas where blemishes are peeking through your foundation then carefully dot a full-coverage concealer like AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer over the top. The goal is to cover the centre of the blemish and the surrounding area that’s showing any redness. To prevent contaminating your concealer tube, you can swipe concealer onto your hand then use your finger or a concealer brush to apply onto your blemish.
3. Leave your concealer to dry for a few moments
Letting your concealer dry down can maximise the coverage you get from the formula. After initial application, leave your concealer in place and let it set down where you need it. While it sets, start concealing under your eyes and in other areas of your face, then come back to your blemished area and begin to blend.
4. Blend carefully around the edges
You want your concealer to stay in place, darlings, so instead of blending haphazardly to diffuse the coverage of your concealer, concentrate on blending out the edges to diffuse any harsh lines and help it fade seamlessly into the rest of your complexion. This method avoids disturbing coverage in the affected area but also makes concealer look undetectable.
5. Tap powder onto and around the blemish
Once concealer has been applied and blended, set with powder for longevity and a blurring effect. With the Powder & Sculpt Brush, lightly press AIRbrush Flawless Finish over your blemish to set concealer into place. The super-fine powder gives skin a diffused, soft-focused finish with a flawless, poreless effect.
6. Set and blur with setting spray
The secret to a long-lasting flawless makeup base is a misting of setting spray. When covering blemishes and acne with makeup, adding setting spray is the insurance you need to make sure your makeup lasts all day. I created my AIRbrush Flawless Setting Spray to lock in makeup for up to 16 hours!* Spraying my legendary setting spray over your makeup secures any spot concealing you have done and makes powder makeup appear more skin like for a flawless-looking skin finish.
1. Apply a full-coverage foundation
For skin experiencing acne or breakouts, spot concealing may not suffice and you may want to reach for a full-coverage foundation with ample pigment to cover your whole face. Acne commonly appears on the cheeks, around the mouth and in the T-zone, so a full-coverage foundation like AIRbrush Flawless Foundation is often the most effective at covering larger areas of the face that appear angry and red.
2. Tap colour corrector into areas of redness
Colour correction can play an important role in disguising the appearance of acne. Flare ups of acne can cause skin to appear red and blotchy but using a green concealer shade can help to counteract red tones in skin and calm the overall look of your complexion. For instances such as post-blemish marks and acne scars that look uneven and dull, try adding an orange or peach colour corrector like Magic Vanish to the area to help brighten and neutralise their appearance.
Discover more about colour correcting
3. Swipe concealer onto acne and breakouts
A dot of full-coverage concealer can go a long way but when acne is spread across larger areas of the face such as the cheeks or forehead, swiping motions are best. Identify the areas you want to conceal, then apply AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer focusing on the most prominent areas you are looking to cover. The trick is not to apply a mask of concealer, darlings, but to create an even-looking base with foundation and adding coverage with concealer as and where you need it.
4. Stipple concealer into skin and blend away harsh lines
Sweeping motions will blend away some of the coverage you are getting from your concealer, so when covering acne it’s best to use stippling motions that lightly stamp concealer into your skin. Using a brush like the Hollywood Complexion Brush to blend out your concealer will prevent coverage being lost to your beauty sponge, just be sure to take some extra time to buff away any visible brushstrokes.
5. Set foundation and concealer with powder
After camouflaging the look of acne with foundation and concealer, set your makeup with powder to boost its longevity. Tapping a blurring makeup powder like AIRbrush Flawless Finish over acne helps to diffuse the look of acne spots and mattifies your complexion, setting down your base makeup and creating a flawless, poreless-looking skin finish.
6. Set and blur with setting spray
Setting spray is a non-negotiable step for makeup that lasts all day, especially full-coverage makeup looks that show more obvious signs of fading. I never complete a makeup look without spraying my iconic AIRbrush Flawless Setting Spray all over the face to lock in makeup for up to 16 hours!* If you are wearing makeup all day at work or for a special occasion and want acne to stay covered, it would be a makeup mistake not to set your face with setting spray, darlings!
Tilbury Tip: For an ultra-blurred look, you need to try my AIRbrush Flawless Setting Spray Matte! This mattifying formula has the lasting power you love combined with an air-matte finish that makes skin appear smooth, blurred and flawless!
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The best foundation for acne-prone skin is a full-coverage foundation with high-coverage pigment necessary to cover acne, blemishes and facial redness. Foundations with a matte finish are preferable for covering acne because they have a blurring effect that helps to diffuse the look of spots without leaving glowy reflects that may enhance the appearance of texture or acne scars. To cover acne and blemishes, I recommend wearing my AIRbrush Flawless Foundation for flawless full coverage that smooths, blurs and retexturises the look of acne-prone skin.
Shop AIRbrush Flawless Foundation
The best concealer for covering acne and blemishes completely is a full-coverage concealer that closely matches your skin tone. Instead of reaching for a concealer that brightens the look of your complexion, choose a shade that resembles your natural skin tone to create a camouflage effect for blemishes and breakouts. A concealer that’s high coverage and has a matte finish is the beauty trick you need to make acne appear invisible; swipe on a full-coverage concealer in the areas you are experiencing acne, then stipple into skin until your breakout appears vanished. I like to use my AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer to cover acne because it has flawless, full coverage off the bat and has a super-flattering, blurring, soft-matte finish that conceals the look of redness, blemish marks and breakouts.
Shop AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer
It is perfectly acceptable to wear makeup on acne-prone skin, darlings, but there are some important caveats that you need to keep in mind. Before applying makeup, always prep your skin with moisturisers and primers to unlock the best version of your skin. Makeup with comedogenic ingredients can worsen the appearance of acne, so always reach for non-comedogenic formulas like AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer where possible. And finally, always remove makeup with a high-performance formula like Take It All Off makeup remover to let your skin breathe and prevent makeup from clogging your pores.
Discover how to remove makeup the right way
Non-comedogenic refers to skincare and makeup products that are formulated with ingredients that are proven not to clog pores. Non-comedogenic foundations are generally the best foundations for acne-prone skin because they don’t contain ingredients that are prone to causing blockages in pores. Charlotte Tilbury complexion products such as AIRbrush Flawless Foundation, AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer and Unreal Skin Foundation Stick are all non-comedogenic and are powered by skincare ingredients that improve the look of your skin with each wear.
Sometimes once blemishes and acne have healed they leave behind marks and scars that cause uneven skin texture. Good skin prep such as rich moisturisers to plump the appearance of skin and primers with a smoothing and blurring effect can help to make post-blemish marks look less apparent, however, using a targeted serum is the best way to reduce their appearance. I created my Dark Spot Correcting Radiance Recovery Serum to fade the appearance of pigmentation, fast! This face serum is your superpower for reducing the appearance of post-blemish marks and creating a more even-looking skin tone.
Discover how to reduce the appearance of acne scars, dark spots and hyperpigmentation
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With over 30 years experience, Charlotte Tilbury MBE is the world's number 1 makeup artist and British beauty entrepreneur. Charlotte established Charlotte Tilbury Beauty in 2013, which is now a record-breaking beauty brand that has won over 400 awards.
