What causes facial redness? Discover how to reduce redness on the face with skincare and cover a red face with makeup with these tips, tricks and recommendations for flushed, inflamed or irritated skin.
12 minute read
Darlings, redness on the face is a common skin concern that can be experienced by people of all skin tones and skin types. In this guide, I’m sharing my tips and tricks on how to reduce the appearance of redness on the face – discover my best skincare products for minimising the appearance of redness including Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream and Dark Spot Correcting Radiance Recovery Serum for incredible before and after results, as well as full-coverage makeup from my AIRbrush collection that's perfect for disguising redness and rosacea.
Item 1 of 32
Skincare Kit
$138.00$96.60
Item 2 of 32
Item 3 of 32
Item 4 of 32
Item 5 of 32
Item 6 of 32
Item 7 of 32
Item 8 of 32
Item 9 of 32
Item 10 of 32
Item 11 of 32
Item 12 of 32
Item 13 of 32
Item 14 of 32
Item 15 of 32
Item 16 of 32
Item 17 of 32
Travel Kit
$107.00$101.65
Item 18 of 32
Item 19 of 32
Item 20 of 32
Skincare Kit
$134.00$120.60
Item 21 of 32
Item 22 of 32
Item 23 of 32
Item 24 of 32
LIMITED EDITION Kit
$210.00$126.00
Item 25 of 32
Item 26 of 32
Item 27 of 32
Item 28 of 32
Item 29 of 32
Skincare Kit
$121.00$114.95
Item 30 of 32
Item 31 of 32
Item 32 of 32
Skincare Kit
$190.00$180.50
Facial redness can be caused by a variety of environmental and biological factors. Here are some of the common causes that can lead to our skin becoming flushed with redness:
Genetics: Some people are naturally predisposed to facial redness. Our skin tones are made up of a number of different colourations and pigmentations, with some people having prominent red tones in their skin. If your skin is regularly flushed with redness, it’s likely that your skin naturally appears more red than others.
Dry and Sensitive Skin: Dry and sensitive skin types are more prone to experiencing facial redness because of their susceptibility to skin irritation. Dry skin can become itchy and irritable which can lead to redness on the face, and sensitive skin easily becomes inflamed and often experiences redness to a greater degree.
Allergies: Allergic reactions can cause the skin on your face to become red. Allergic reactions can be caused in response to consuming certain foods or applying skincare products with ingredients that you may be allergic to. You can tell when redness is caused by allergies because skin often becomes puffy and swollen.
Emotional Response: Facial redness can be a physical response to experiencing emotions like distress, embarrassment, anger, and anxiety. This form of redness is triggered by our natural bodily response to daily situations and often subsides when the moment has passed.
Body Temperature: Heat from hot weather, central heating, spicy foods and intensive exercise can trigger our inflammatory response and cause redness to appear on the face. Redness from overheating can range from a subtle rosy flush to prickly heat rash depending on temperature and heat sensitivity.
Menopause: When going through the menopause, many people experience hot flushes that can lead to redness on the face. These hot flushes are a result of hormonal imbalances that lead the blood vessels in the skin to dilate and appear red.
Sun Exposure and Sunburn: Exposure to harmful UV rays can damage the veins in your skin, leading to what is known as thread veins or spider veins. These small, broken veins are close to the surface of the skin and appear as visible red lines on the face.
Alcohol: For some people, drinking alcohol leads to their face and cheeks getting visibly flushed. Alcohol flush reaction often occurs when the body has trouble digesting alcohol, leading to a rosy facial flush.
Skin Conditions: If you have conditions like eczema and rosacea that affect your skin, you are much more prone to experiencing facial redness. Skin conditions like these involve symptoms of dryness, irritation and inflammation, all of which can contribute to the emergence of facial redness.
Blemishes and Acne: Breakouts and flare ups of acne trigger the skin’s inflammatory response which cause areas of the face to become red and blotchy. Poking and squeezing at spots can aggravate the skin and can increase and prolong the facial redness associated with acne.
When experiencing facial redness, it’s important to use soothing skincare ingredients in your skincare routine. Below are some skincare ingredients to look out for when choosing the best products to help reduce the look of redness on the face.
Skincare products infused with Beta Glucans can help to reduce the appearance of facial redness thanks to their skin barrier-strengthening properties. This emollient ingredient is suited to skin that’s experiencing redness, helping to hydrate dry, irritated skin and working to help reinforce a damaged skin barrier to in turn reduce the appearance of associated redness.
Known for its soothing properties, aloe vera is suited to irritated skin that’s experiencing redness. This anti-inflammatory ingredient is rich in antioxidants and helps to soothe the skin. It’s a popular choice for helping to revive sunburnt skin and has a similarly calming effect when tackling facial redness. Aloe vera is one of the ingredients in my Magic 8 Matrix of skincare ingredients, and it’s a skin-soothing presence in both of my magic moisturisers: Charlotte’s Magic Cream and Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream.
The brightening, balancing effects of niacinamide are wonderful for helping to reduce the appearance of facial redness. Not only does niacinamide help to strengthen the skin barrier to increase skin resilience, it also helps to even the look of skin tone which can balance out redness in the skin. To add niacinamide to your skincare routine, reach for Glow Toner, Charlotte’s Magic Serum Crystal Elixir, and NEW! Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream.
Evening the appearance of your skin tone is easy with my Dark Spot Correcting Radiance Recovery Serum! Not only does this silky-smooth serum target dark spots and hyperpigmentation with laser-like precision, it can also reduce the appearance of redness on your face.
The formula is infused with soothing tranexamic acid which can help to calm redness, as well as Precision-Fade Evenskin™ Technology that specifically targets areas of facial redness and helps to create a brighter, more even-looking tone.
Apply my Dark Spot Correcting Radiance Recovery Serum morning and night to help soothe and neutralise the look of your facial redness and reveal an even-looking complexion with a healthy-looking glow.
Shop Dark Spot Correcting Radiance Recovery Serum
Darlings, Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream is formulated to visibly reduce the appearance of redness on the face. This ultra-lightweight gel moisturiser is infused with Waterlocking Fusion Technology ™ and niacinamide to hydrate irritated skin and strengthen the skin barrier while giving your face the best, fresh water glow of your life!
To see the benefits for yourself, I recommend applying Charlotte's Magic Water Cream every morning and evening as part of your skincare routine, using my Tilbury Tap technique.
In clinical trials, applying Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream saw redness appear reduced by 100% in just 4 weeks!* Seeing is believing, darlings… just look at the incredible before and after results, below:
Item 1 of 107
Skincare Kit
$138.00$96.60
Item 2 of 107
Item 3 of 107
Item 4 of 107
Item 5 of 107
Item 6 of 107
Item 7 of 107
Item 8 of 107
Item 9 of 107
Item 10 of 107
Item 11 of 107
Item 12 of 107
Item 13 of 107
Item 14 of 107
150 ml
$55.00
Item 15 of 107
Item 16 of 107
Item 17 of 107
Item 18 of 107
Item 19 of 107
Item 20 of 107
Item 21 of 107
Item 22 of 107
Item 23 of 107
Item 24 of 107
Body Kit
$215.00$204.25
Item 25 of 107
Skincare Kit
$87.00$82.65
Item 26 of 107
Item 27 of 107
Item 28 of 107
Item 29 of 107
Item 30 of 107
Item 31 of 107
Item 32 of 107
Item 33 of 107
Item 34 of 107
Item 35 of 107
Item 36 of 107
100 ml
$62.00
Item 37 of 107
120 ml
$34.00
Item 38 of 107
Item 39 of 107
Item 40 of 107
Item 41 of 107
Item 42 of 107
Item 43 of 107
Item 44 of 107
Skincare Kit
$444.00$421.80
Item 45 of 107
Skincare Kit
$135.00$128.25
Item 46 of 107
Skincare Kit
$134.00$120.60
Item 47 of 107
30 ml
$16.00
Item 48 of 107
Item 49 of 107
Item 50 of 107
Item 51 of 107
Skincare Kit
$135.00$128.25
Item 52 of 107
Travel Kit
$107.00$101.65
Item 53 of 107
Item 54 of 107
LIMITED EDITION Kit
$210.00$126.00
Item 55 of 107
Item 56 of 107
Item 57 of 107
Item 58 of 107
Lip Kit
$60.00$57.00
Item 59 of 107
Item 60 of 107
Item 61 of 107
Item 62 of 107
Item 63 of 107
Skincare Kit
$140.00$133.00
Item 64 of 107
Item 65 of 107
Item 66 of 107
Item 67 of 107
Item 68 of 107
Item 69 of 107
Item 70 of 107
Skincare Kit
$145.00$137.75
Item 71 of 107
Item 72 of 107
Item 73 of 107
Item 74 of 107
Mins
$35.00 redeemable against products
Item 75 of 107
Eye Kit
$99.00$94.05
Item 76 of 107
Item 77 of 107
Body Kit
$215.00$204.25
Item 78 of 107
Item 79 of 107
Item 80 of 107
Skincare Kit
$175.00$166.25
Item 81 of 107
Item 82 of 107
Skincare Kit
$121.00$114.95
Item 83 of 107
Skincare Kit
$66.00$62.70
Item 84 of 107
Item 85 of 107
Item 86 of 107
Item 87 of 107
Item 88 of 107
Item 89 of 107
Item 90 of 107
Item 91 of 107
Item 92 of 107
Skincare Kit
$155.00$147.25
Item 93 of 107
Item 94 of 107
Skincare Kit
$190.00$180.50
Item 95 of 107
Item 96 of 107
Item 97 of 107
Item 98 of 107
Item 99 of 107
Item 100 of 107
Item 101 of 107
Item 102 of 107
Skincare Kit
$190.00$180.50
Item 103 of 107
Skincare Kit
$250.00$225.00
Item 104 of 107
Skincare Kit
$240.00$216.00
Item 105 of 107
Item 106 of 107
Skincare Kit
$121.00$114.95
Item 107 of 107
Skincare Kit
$222.00$210.90
If you would like to conceal the look of redness with makeup, darlings, it’s best to reach for medium or full-coverage options depending on your makeup preferences and the prominence of your redness. I recommend applying my Dark Spot Correcting Radiance Recovery Serum and Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream to prep your face for makeup and reduce the appearance of redness, then applying your foundation and concealer and setting with powder to perfect the look of your complexion.
Before you cover redness on your face with makeup, be sure to prep your skin with a lightweight moisturise that will soothe and hydrate your complexion. Some moisturisers like Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream are infused with ingredients that help to reduce the appearance of redness and make skin tone appear more even. My gel moisturiser is infused with niacinamide to balance the look of skin tone and beta glucans which strengthen your skin barrier and can help to soothe the appearance of redness. Commit to using Charlotte’s Magic Water Cream, darlings, and redness appears reduced by up to 100% in just 28 days!*
Exposure to intense sunlight can cause skin to become dehydrated and damaged which can contribute to the onset of redness on the face and worsen instances of rosacea. Prime your skin with a sunscreen that acts as a shield against harmful UV rays. Wearing my Invisible UV Flawless Poreless Primer underneath your foundation for redness smooths and blurs the look of skin while providing SPF50 protection that protects skin from the harmful affects of the sun.
Look to colour theory to conceal the appearance of redness on your face, darlings. When skin appears red, you can colour correct your complexion by adding a green shade of concealer to areas of redness. Green is the perfect opposite of red so blending a green colour corrector into a red face can neutralise the appearance of redness and leave skin looking balanced and even.
Tilbury Tip: Don’t be scared of colour corrector, darlings… Use the correct colour and blend well so the shades work in harmony with your skin tone!
Light and medium-coverage foundations often allow skin’s natural redness to peek through to create a real-skin look, so to cover redness completely you will need a full-coverage foundation with high pigment to eliminate the appearance of redness. The best foundation for a red face is a hydrating, full-coverage formula like AIRbrush Flawless Foundation that delivers flawless coverage while feeling light as air and looking like skin. My soft-matte formula airbrushes away the appearance of skin concerns from redness and blemishes to pigmentation and pores – if you want flawless, poreless-looking skin that disguises every inch of redness, this is the foundation for you darling!
After you have applied foundation, use concealer to customise your coverage and effectively conceal the appearance of any remaining redness. Areas like the cheeks and around the nose are especially prone to becoming red, so dotting concealer into these points is a good way to build coverage and conceal the look of redness and rosacea. Just a Micro-Dot of my AIRbrush Flawless Blur Concealer can make a huge difference, darlings… Add little by little and let your concealer build an airbrushed-looking skin finish with a beauty-blur effect.
Tilbury Tip: Charlotte’s Beautiful Skin Radiant Concealer can also be used to help conceal the look of redness on the face. The formula is effortlessly buildable, making it easy to customise how much concealer you will need when concealing facial redness.
The coverage you will need to conceal the appearance of facial redness will come from your foundation and concealer, but it’s essential to set your base makeup with a light veil of setting powder for longevity with a mattifying, blurring effect. AIRbrush Flawless Finish is my award-winning pressed powder that adds soft coverage to your makeup look while helping your foundation and concealer to wear beautifully throughout the day. It has smoothing and blurring effects that are extremely flattering and will help to diffuse the appearance of any redness that may be peeking through. Then, once the stage is set, lock in your anti-redness makeup base with AIRbrush Flawless Setting Spray to look flawless for up to 16 hours**.
Item 1 of 44
Item 2 of 44
Item 3 of 44
Item 4 of 44
Item 5 of 44
Item 6 of 44
Item 7 of 44
Item 8 of 44
Item 9 of 44
Item 10 of 44
Item 11 of 44
Item 12 of 44
Item 13 of 44
Item 14 of 44
Item 15 of 44
Item 16 of 44
Item 17 of 44
Item 18 of 44
Item 19 of 44
Item 20 of 44
Item 21 of 44
Item 22 of 44
Item 23 of 44
Item 24 of 44
Item 25 of 44
Item 26 of 44
Face Kit
$78.00$74.10
Item 27 of 44
Item 28 of 44
Item 29 of 44
Item 30 of 44
Item 31 of 44
Item 32 of 44
Item 33 of 44
Item 34 of 44
Item 35 of 44
Item 36 of 44
Item 37 of 44
Item 38 of 44
Item 39 of 44
Item 40 of 44
Item 41 of 44
Item 42 of 44
Item 43 of 44
Item 44 of 44
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.
