Make Yourself “No Makeup” Beautiful

This post was originally published on the Carruthers & Humphrey blog.

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During this year’s “awards season” it became clear that the new beauty trend among Hollywood celebrities is to achieve a natural look with minimal makeup. Meanwhile the hashtag #nomakeup has been trending across social media, with everyone from Cindy Crawford to Kim Kardashian to Beyonce posting selfies to show off their makeup-free looks. The move toward less makeup, or no makeup at all, is refreshing to see.

A key message from this movement is to embrace your natural beauty without the need to alter your appearance. Of course many people wonder if they can pull it off and may want to improve their skin tone and complexion before going makeup-free.

At Carruthers & Humphrey, we strive to deliver natural looking results that give our patients greaterconfidence in the appearance of their skin. While every patient receives a customized treatment plan, for those looking to go makeup-free there are a few common treatments that may be utilized to help create that effortless look.

1. Skin care – A proper skin care routine is vital to keeping skin looking refreshed. There are a number of products that can help give your skin a healthy glow, but I will highlight a few. Topical vitamin A, known as retinol, can be helpful to minimize fine lines, reduce brown spots and improve acne. Specific formulations of topical vitamin C can act as potent antioxidants and can protect the skin against damage from UV. Sunscreen daily and sun protection strategies are also essential to maintaining healthy skin.  It is important to get into a routine with skin care to protect the skin, prevent those signs of aging and help you get that makeup free look.
2. Lasers and light-based therapies: There are a few different options that can help you achieve your no-make up look. Clear + Brilliant is a non-ablative laser that is helpful for reducing unwanted pigmentation, while also improving pore size and skin texture. Excel V is a different laser that is commonly used to reduce redness and the appearance of blood vessels. Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) also known as a photofacial can reduce pigment, redness, even out the skin town and help to create that healthy glow. These treatments all tend to have minimal downtime. There can be some immediate redness and swelling following the procedure, but this typically subsides within a day or two up to a week or so. Once this subsides the skin will appear smoother and clearer.
3. Skin Tightening: There are now some great non-invasive options to lift and tighten the skin. Ultherapy utilizes ultrasound while Thermage relies on radiofrequency, but both achieve similar outcomes by triggering a natural process known as neocollagenesis that strengthens existing collagen and stimulates new collagen production that is essential for healthy skin. The results are generally seen over 2-3 months as the process of neocollagenesis takes effect. The results can be long-lasting  Both of these procedures are popular due to minimal patient downtime.

By taking both corrective and preventative actions for your skin you can have the confidence to go #nomakeup.