When pores are plagued with excess oil and/or dry dead skin, they tend to appear larger and can make skin texture look uneven. This can also be a further annoyance because makeup tends to look blotchy. While there is no permanent solution to shrink pores forever, with the right skin regimen you can help de-gunk pores so they’re less noticeable.
Clean-up crew: exfoliation
While pores tend to be a common problem in teen years (hands up if pore strips were the party favour du jour at grade seven sleepovers), the truth is once bouncy collagen and elastin deflates over time and pores can seem to “sag” (ugh!) making texture an issue well beyond your teen years. The solution? An exfoliating cleanser that’s not too drying will be your essential item to combat clogged pores. It can be a weekly scrub or a daily exfoliating cleanser – ingredients like salicylic acid or astringent ingredient like citrus will make pores less noticeable.
From left: Caudalie Deep Cleansing Exfoliator, $42; Aveeno Positively Radiant 60 Second In-Shower Facial, $12; Omorovicza The Moor Cream Cleanser, $100.
The weekly treatment
Used once per week, more intensive treatment masks can help to melt away blackheads while ingredients like clay help to draw impurities out of pores to tighten them. If your blackheads are really stubborn, consider layering a salicylic-acid based serum on your T-zone.
From left: DiorHydra Life Pores Away Pink Clay Mask, $79; COSRx BHA Blackhead Power Liquid Serum, $24;Biore Deep Cleansing Pore Cleansing Strips, $10.
Brilliant ways to disguise
Like the beauty product equivalent of an Instagram filter, blurring makeup primers, foundations and concealers help you disguise over-sized pores, giving the illusion of a uniform texture and tone — with the added benefit of keeping your makeup in tact.
From left: Clarins Pore Perfecting Mattifying Foundation, $39; YSL Touche Éclat Blur Perfector, $56; Milk Makeup Blur Stick, $43.
Estee Edit Pore Vanishing Stick, $34; Boscia Porefecting Charcoal Mattifying Treatment Primer, $50; Shiseido Ibuki Smart Filtering Smoother Serum, $29.
Related links:
Want Flawless Skin? A (V. Helpful) Primer on Primers
10 Things Your Blemishes Are Trying to Tell You About Your Health
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