How To Hide Acne Scars With Makeup

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You've been doing everything right with your skincare routine. Cleansing, toning, moisturizing, treating...and yet, the worst uninvited guest still comes out of nowhere: a breakout. While you're not going to see anyone IRL soon, your calendar is still packed with virtual get-togethers where your new friend will be on display. And, as helpful as it may be to set up a teledermatology appointment, your doc can't reach through FaceTime to give you an emergency cortisone shot to kill the zit. Here's where makeup comes in.

While concealers and foundation can't fix acne, they sure can help your confidence when a cyst makes an untimely appearance. If you're looking to minimize the your breakouts, look no further than these expert tips from makeup artist Allan Aponte on how to cover up every kind of pimple in the book.

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What it looks like:

Darkened, clogged pores. It may make the surface of your skin look like the outside of a strawberry.

How to cover it up:

Prep skin by applying a primer with smoothing ingredients, like cetyl ethylhexanoate (a skin conditioner that removes appearance of dry patches/flakes). Aponte's pick is the Surratt Perfectioniste Primer. "It's a light, water-based primer and gives a flawless finish," he says.
Use a medium coverage liquid foundation ("something too thick will enhance the appearance of blackheads," Aponte says). Dispense a pea-sized portion in your hand—a little goes a long way.
Use a fluffy brush (he uses the Real Techniques Setting Brush) to pick up some of the product and move it in circular motions to sheer out the amount of product that goes into the brush. "This way it will be easier to apply thinner layers and create your desired coverage," Aponte suggests.

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What it looks like:

A tiny bump with a white spot.

How to cover it up:

First things first: Do not pop the pimple. "You can infect the area and cause a major breakout or serious infection," the makeup artist warns.
Instead, treat the skin with a spot treatment. "I am a big fan of the Burt's Bees Herbal Complexion Stick that contains tea tree oil, and the Indie Lee Blemish Lotion with salicylic acid and colloidal sulfur, a combination that is the best for blemishes," he says.
Use a thicker liquid foundation with medium, buildable coverage. His favorite is the Oxygenetix Acne Control Foundation, which contains two percent salicylic acid. "It has an aloe vera base instead of water or oils that can attract bacteria to your skin," he says. "It's antibacterial, soothing, and because it has a breathable composition allows and speeds up healing."
Apply the foundation with clean hands, spreading it all over the face to reduce redness, Aponte suggests. "Then, dab it where more coverage is needed."

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What it looks like:

Big, red, and bulging just under the skin.

How to cover it up:

Prep the skin with chemical exfoliation. Aponte is currently using the Wishful Yo Glow Facial Enzyme Scrub to get rid of dead skin cells on the surface.
Apply a soothing product. Aponte swears by The Mist by La Mer, Milk HydroGrip Primer, and Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base. Using a moisturizer helps manipulate the skin texture to achieve a softer surface, he says, making for a smoother foundation application.
Color correct. Aponte likes using the Dr. Jart Cicapair Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment. "Any time there's anything red in your skin, you will want to use a light layer of something with a green undertone," he explains. "The covering process will be quicker and look softer." If your cyst has more of a purple tinge to it, use a yellow-toned concealer like Urban Decay's NAKED SKIN Color Correcting Fluid. Aponte says it's packed with pigment so a little goes a long way and the texture resembles skin. No caking here!
While it's tough to deal with the texture of these zits (they are raised from the skin, after all), Aponte says your best bet is to seek out a buildable coverage foundation. Use a Beautyblender sponge in a tapping motion to work the product into the skin, rather than just sitting on top of it. "That's what usually happens when you apply foundation and want coverage—you start getting streaks," he says.
Wait five minutes for matte foundation to set (he uses a combo of Fenty Beauty's Pro Filt'r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation and the Bobbi Brown Skin Longwear Weightless Foundation SPF 15).
Finish with a powder foundation, like MAC Studio Finish Powder Foundation, for more coverage and an "airbrushed" finish. Apply powder only where it's needed with a wet beauty blender. "It's important to wait for powder," says Aponte. "When it's applied too quickly on top of the liquid foundation it'll look thicker than it is."

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What it looks like:

A red, small raised papule on skin.

How to cover it up:

Color correct. To tone down any redness, use the Bobbi Brown Under Eye Corrector (it comes in a variety of peaches for a range of skin tones). Apply it with a flat synthetic brush to get maximum coverage on the affected area.
Apply a cream solid foundation, like the Milk Make Up Flex Stick Foundation or Tom Ford Traceless Foundation Sticks. Apply it with a sponge—he suggests Beautyblender or Real Techniques—and dab into skin to get coverage while keeping a natural finish.

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What it looks like:

A flat, brown mark left behind after a zit dies down.

How to cover it up:

Prep the skin using a blurring primer—Aponte is a fan of the Tatcha The Silk Canvas Protective Primer to give the skin a really smooth base.
Apply a full-coverage foundation, like Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-In-Place Foundation. Dispense some on the back of your hand instead of directly on skin so you don't accidentally go overboard on your face.
Dip a duo-fiber brush like MAC 187 in foundation and stipple it, rather than sweeping it on the skin. Stippling is more of a repetitive tapping motion rather than in sweeping or circular motions. "This allows air to be infused to the foundation and for it to stick better," Aponte explains.

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What it looks like:

They come in a range but generally appear as small depressions or sunken surfaces in the skin. Ice pick scars look like tiny holes in your skin, as if a needle poked it. Boxcar scars have a deeper indentation with sharper edges. Rolling scars are shallower with softer edges and usually appear in a cluster that can make the skin look like an orange peel.

How to cover it up:

Clean skin, and make sure it has no moisturizer or skincare product on the surface at all.
Apply toner or witch hazel because any oil inhibits the next step from working. Apply the Dermaflage primer, which preps skin for a smooth application.
Put on a light layer of a mineral powder foundation to even out the skin tone.
Fill the skin depressions by using a topical filler. "For a long time, I've used Dermaflage Scar and Wrinkle Filler, which makes it easy to hide scars with makeup," Aponte says. "It's a topical filler made with medical-grade silicone that starts in a honey-like consistency and dries to a film that mimics skin super quick." You apply it with a syringe and it dries translucent (hence the application of foundation beforehand).
There's a pad in the Dermaflage kit that allows you to flatten the mixture so it's imperceptible on skin. Hold it down for 20 to 40 seconds.
Apply a thick foundation on top—Aponte likes using Dior Airflash spray-on foundation or a cream one by Dermacol that he says "covers everything and anything."
Set with a powder if you have oily skin and with a spray if you have dryer skin. His go-to spray is Smith and Cult's Instant Recall Invisible Powder Setting Spray. "It's completely transparent, sets makeup without adding weight to it, and works on every skin tone."

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This article is part of Women's Health 2020 Acne Week. Click here for more.

Kristina Rodulfo Beauty Director Kristina Rodulfo is the Beauty Director of Women's Health—she oversees beauty coverage across print and digital and is an expert in product testing, identifying trends, and exploring the intersections of beauty, wellness, and culture.