1 reply to this topic

[gettingoverit]

Hi,
I'm on Accutane (unfortunately) and I pretty much get to wear whatever I want cause I won't break out, but, I can't blend! It looks terrible because of my dry, dry skin.

My derm tells me the dryness tapers off, but I need to cover in the meantime.
Any suggestions?
Thank you.

[redhedgrl]

Hi,
I'm on Accutane (unfortunately) and I pretty much get to wear whatever I want cause I won't break out, but, I can't blend! It looks terrible because of my dry, dry skin.

My derm tells me the dryness tapers off, but I need to cover in the meantime.
Any suggestions?
Thank you.

Hi there. First, I suggest a very good moisturizer that won't cause any breakouts but will still hydrate well. (Something like Sage Skin Care's Gelloid Moisturizer or Hydrating Emulsion is good...but anything with similar ingredients is fine if Sage is too pricey--I use the Gelloid Moisturizer and can put tons on and never have a problem with breakouts). You can also check out natural oils for moisturizing. I find that some of the plant or nut oils are really great, surprisingly, even though it seems nuts to put oil straight on your skin. Many of them are great for people with acne-prone skin. Like hazelnut oil, jojoba, emu...even cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil (which a lot of people have on hand anyway). You can Google any oil you're curious about and research whether it's a good idea for people who may tend to break out.

What you might also find that helps is using a natural cleanser, like raw honey, that won't add to the dryness of your skin. Although any mild cleanser will do, just make sure it doesn't have Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, which is a detergent that can cause irritation. The fewer ingredients a cleanser has, (usually) the better. Less chance it'll strip your skin.

Now, onto the makeup. If you can get your dryness down to a minimum, what you may find is that liquid makeups are still a pain in the arse to blend, so you might want to go with powder and just customize it to your skin. I always suggest mineral makeup, because even though Accutane is on the way to clearing you up, there's no reason to tempt fate. Mineral makeup really lets the skin breathe and won't smother it. And you never know what kind of stuff is in those drugstore brands.

You can try out tons of mineral makeup brands cheaply by sampling. Many of them offer a nice-sized foundation sample that'll last you days for less than $2.00. Some great companies are:

BareFaced Minerals (great foundation--there are several options for foundation type and coverage--and the lip balms from this co. are awesome!)
MeLange Cosmetics (one of the best foundations I've tried...medium to heavy coverage, in my opinion, but it never looks cakey or heavy, just looks natural)
Pure Luxe Cosmetics (in addition to the foundation, which I've heard is great, the eye shadows and Ultimates from this co. are gorgeous)
J.Lynne Cosmetics (I've heard good stuff about the foundation, and the Smooth Lip Creams she offers are terrific, and you can sample them before you commit to a full size)
Alima Cosmetics (again, heard good stuff about the foundation)

What you can do to make the foundation more creamy is use a damp brush to apply it. Use a spritzer bottle to dampen the brush before or after you swirl it around in the minerals and then buff or dab it onto your face. You can also try mixing the foundation with moisturizer to thicken it and make it almost like a liquid. That could help with dryness and make your makeup easier to blend and work with. Some people also say that instead of letting their moisturizer sink in for 10 or so minutes, they apply their makeup right over top of it so that the minerals mix with the moisturizer and get a creamy consistency. There's lots of options.

Hope that helps you out some. If you want to look up more info on mineral makeup, I would suggest you check out Delphi Forums and search for Mineral Makeup Mania. There's so much you can do with mineral makeup, it's crazy. I am fully addicted to this stuff, and I'm a former and current Accutane user. I've discovered so many great foundations that I have 2 or 3 I can use, including MeLange, which I think is terrific. It goes on really nicely. MeLange is sold on the website I gave above and on Ebay.

Hope you can find something that works for you!
~Kat