Keke Palmer has nothing to hide. Last week the 27-year-old actor opened up about her years-long struggle with polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS, as well as the acne she experiences as a symptom. She shared a series of unfiltered photos that showed her acne and scarring on Instagram, as well as a heartfelt caption explaining how her acne was never taken seriously until she did her own research.
On Sunday, December 6, Palmer posted an in-depth Instagram TV video demonstrating how she covers her acne. The 13-minute-long video offers a candid look at not only her process but also her experience with having acne in the entertainment industry.
Part of that experience, it turns out, is having strangers in the comments section telling you what you're doing “wrong” when it comes to your skin care (as a nonfamous person with acne, I can confirm this happens to me, as well).
“YOU WILL GET BLOCKED TELLING ME HOW TO MANAGE MY SKIN IM NOT ASKING YOU FOR ADVICE OR YOUR HELP,” she wrote on Instagram. “PLEASE STOP ITS VERY RUDE AND I PROMISE YOU CANT CURE ACNE OVER THE INTERNET 🙃😘‼️ #PCOS”
She went on to speak to the other thousands of people who struggle with acne on the regular and reminded them to ignore the unsolicited “advice” people often give on the internet. “To all my people suffering with conditions and acne,” she wrote, “ignore the misguided comments suggesting things for you. There are a lot of people trying to sell products, I tried to delete them all! If you want help seek it out through extensive research, don’t let people take advantage of your condition on Instagram. — y’all should be ashamed.”
Despite the comments, she continued to share her wisdom. Let's get into her routine.
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She started by prepping her skin with a thin layer of Aquaphor all over her face: “Just a light barrier to make it easier for the makeup to come on.” She mentioned that her skin has been really dry from things she's been doing to her face—most likely her acne treatments—which is why she needs the extra moisture. Then she misted her face with Caudalie's Beauty Elixir.
Caudalie Beauty Elixir
To my mind, the ideal way to avoid a midafternoon slump is to hook myself up to a high-octane espresso drip. But until that happens, I’ve got this beauty mist to revive and refresh. Hydrating orange flower water mashes up with an uplifting blend of essential oils, including mint, rosemary, and rose, for an instant boost to both my skin and psyche. —L.S.
After her skin prep, Palmer went in with a MAC Studio Skin Fix Conceal and Correct Palette to color-correct. She used the orange shade on any pigmentation—if you're fair, use a lighter shade like peach—which she said she didn't believe worked until she tried it. While she blended, she explained that she never found joy in makeup until she starred in Cinderella on Broadway.
“Those memories are fun,” she said. “Sometimes makeup can bring negative memories up for me. When you're trying to always hide acne scars and texture, it can get to the point where you don't even want to do it anymore, it can be hard and difficult. So I think about the fun times, when makeup wasn't about covering up, but celebrating the character.”
She then used Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in the shade Walnut, which is lighter than her skin tone, to cover the orange. In the video, she encouraged her followers to play with makeup and do what works for them. Palmer then used a Beautyblender to apply MAC Prolong Wear Foundation in NC 50 on her whole face. She noted that she uses so many shades not only to color-correct but also to get her skin tone right.
“As you can see, it's not really a one-two step; it's a combination of different things,” she said. “When I was younger, they would usually just put what was the darkest color of my acne scars, and you look at my movies and I was three, four, five, different shades at once. They would just make me whatever the color of my acne. It was sad because you're changing me up and I'm looking crazy, and I didn't know how to help myself. So I had to learn how to do my makeup on my own, to make sure that I felt happy and comfortable.”
Palmer let her foundation settle, and applied a brow marker and brow gel. Then she contoured with a darker foundation shade and highlighted with a lighter concealer shade. She powdered everything down with a mix of MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in Dark, Lancôme Absolue Powder in Absolute Almonds, and Ben Nye Setting Powder, and stressed the importance of keeping things matte: “If you have texture problems like I do, you should really keep your skin as matte as possible, since you don't want to highlight that. It will make it look more obvious.”
Her final step was where things got really interesting. She went back to any texture or dryness that was still peeking through, and added another thin dab of Aquaphor, then a bit of corrector, and finished off with a dusting of powder.
“Okay, babes,” she concluded. “Everything can be covered up but an ugly heart.” Truer words have never been spoken.
Bella Cacciatore is the beauty associate at Glamour. Follow her on Instagram at @bellacacciatore_.
