Skin better after not wearing make up

[GayPareeee]

I’ve been wearing a full face of make up for at least the past 15 years (am late 40s) but recently cba plus's thought it was making me look older.

Turns out my skin seems much better too, have pretty much gone back to using only friendly soap and a natural moisturiser on it.

I have DRAWERS full of products it seems I've only needed due to the effect other products were having on my skin.

Anyone else?

No.

I spent the entirety of lockdown barefaced and it honestly did nothing for my skin. I do live in a city so I'm sure pollution has something to do with it. I also have rosacea and had hoped that not wearing makeup would really help with that - nope. Only antibiotics, regular acid skincare, laser therapy and lots of sunscreen has done anything.

I also have rosacea but think it was also a reaction to treat, I've never made it past 0.015% despite being on it for over a year.

I actually wonder if by not wearing make up In looking in the mirror less and noticing less flaws, genuinely?

I Have finally realised that I do not suit foundation and therefore have stopped wearing it. Still use concealer bronzer and blush but actually my base skin is just fine

Makes my skin itch these days.

Yes, I retired at 52 stopped wearing makeup apart from lippy and blusher. I get quite a few comments about my lovely skin! I look younger as foundation and bb creams just emphasised the lines . . .

I haven’t worn any make up at all since I was a teenager quite a few decades ago. In those days, hypo-allergenic stuff cost an arm and a leg, and I was allergic to cheap stuff. My colleagues tell me I have young looking skin. My ex once commented that the advantage of never wearing face paint was that I looked no worse in the morning than I did the night before. I still can’t figure out if that was a compliment or an insult…

Yeah I noticed this when pregnant/ postnatal. Felt like crap - no energy or inclination for my skincare or make up routine and my skin was clear and gorgeous! I've massively pared back on everything now - a light skin tint, a basic moisturiser and sudocrem for spots/blemishes and that's it. Honestly my skin is the best it's ever been!

After I had covid I seemed to have a bad reaction to my make up whenever I wore it so stopped. My skin is a lot better but maybe I'm just used to seeing it without makeup!

I use all cream based make up now on my skin now. Just a small amount of concealer, bronzer and blush.

Recently started using Skin and me, am on month 3 and it's seems to be helping my skin look fresher. It's the only skin care routine I've ever managed to stick to for more than a week or two.

I think it’s good to have a break maybe one or two days a week but I don’t wear heavy make up, most of it has melted off by 5pm no matter the time of year.

Same OP. My daughter was in hospital for 3 days and I barely washed my face. My skin was amazing! My dry/ inflamed outer eye corners completely improved.

For me it's not so much the makeup but the bloody cleansing needed after.
Someone recommended the Body Shop Chamomile cleanser here recently and it's ok, but pretty much everything else strips my skin and triggers rosacea like rashes.

In my 50s and used to wear make-up every day. Stopped during covid, and now wear it twice a week. I haven't noticed any difference in my skin at any point - it's always fairly good. I don't use any harsh cleansers though, just micellar water, and a cheap (but thick) moisturiser afterwards.

I agree OP, a break from not wearing makeup does my skin the world if good.

Another thought, it may be your tret that is leaving you looking more fresh faced also, a year is when it started to be noticable with me.

I've actually not been using the tret the past 4 months or so, so it's definitely not that.

Maybe it' sjust one of those things

I had terrible Perioral Dermatitis flare up this year after years of dormancy so I looked into everything I use and I think it's SLS for me.

My skin was on zero products during lockdown just a rinse of water, hardly going out so not pollution and then there were less cars etc anyway in the little walks I went on every few days. My skin wasn't good and I aged.

Natural skin care is not zero care and I'm slowly moving everything and purging my make up, too. I'm also concerned about how they affect hormones and impact my health. It's a minefield working out what's safe and what isn't.

I don't feel like there is any difference. I also don't feel skincare makes any difference. I double cleanse (oil cleanser and a normal cleanser after) and apply hado labo lotion morning and night. Also sunscreen in summer (just use bb cream or primer with spf the rest of the year). My skin actually feels better

I didn't need the serums and the facial oil and the 8 step skincare routines!

For makeup, its primer, bb cream/foundation, liquid blusher, cream highlighter stick, light dusting of powder highlighter and powder blush, shimmery brown eyeshadow, liquid liner, mascara, brow powder, tinted lip balm and setting spray.

My grannie never used any kind of foundation, just a good face cream, didn’t get too tanned, and looked in her 60s when she was in her 90s. She ate a lot of fruit and nuts and had olive skin that was a little greasy (if it got dry she would moisturise the hell out of it with ponds or blue Nivea) so now I’m convinced less is more when it comes to skin care- spf and sun hats if you’re out in the sun, cleanse well before bed (but don’t scrub your face, it’s not the kitchen floor- she’d say) and that diet matters. Carry a little more weight so your face has some padding and you’ll look less wrinkly too. Spend the money you save on face cream on a lymph draining massage and relax!

I don't actually agree that make up is the problem. I DO think a LOT of people don't clean their faces properly - a few swipes of a micellar water soaked cotton wool pad is not enough if you've got make up on! Ditto, a cleansing wipe is NOT the answer.

Having said that, finding the right products for your skin, including make up, is really important. A lot of heavy make up probably doesn't do your skin any favours and makes my cleaning whinge above even more true.

There's definitely an element of not touching my face and looking in the mirror that is good for me.

I still occasionally wear make up but honestly, I find I feel weird wearing it now. Logically I know nothing has changed - but now I feel like I'm wearing a mask, and it looks strange.