beauty tuesday: those damn large pores (and how to cover them up)

before | after Estee Edit's Pore Vanishing Stick

Over the past year, I've become quite content with the direction my skin is going. With the help of Paula's Choice, my acne has drastically cleared up, and with the help of my tretinoin cream, the hyperpigmentation I had from the acne is now going away too. Which means it's time for me to focus my skin insecurities on the next item...my large pores.

I've always had them, and after talking to my dermatologist about it, turns out I have my genetics to blame as genetics are really the reason for the size of our pores...which means there's also not a ton that can be done about them.  We have all seen products that promise to reduce pore size, and not shockingly, they don't really work. My doctor did say that my tretinoin cream should help, but to be honest, I've been using it for nine months now, and I haven't really noticed much of a difference. So I'm going to continue her recommendations, which is to use the tretonoin cream, and start an at-home microdermabrasian about once a week (do you have any recommendations? I was debating trying the Ole Hendricksen power peel, if any of you have tried it, I'd love to hear your thoughts!).

Anyway, all of this is to say that since there isn't a ton that can be done about the actual pores on my face in ways of treatment, I was more than willing to try out Estee Edit's new Pore Vanishing stick to cover them up. What it is is basically a primer in stick form that blurs the look of pores. While not really a new concept (Smashbox and Benefit both have primers geared toward reducing the look of the size of pores), I found the concept in stick form to be so much easier to use. In the morning before putting on my makeup, I use my regular primer (I use this Laura Mercier hydrating primer for my dry skin) over the rest of my face, and then use the Estee Edit primer on just my nose. Although the rest of my face is on the dry side, my nose is my one oilier spot, so this primer not only helps with the oil, but it really does blur away the enlarged pores! As you can see in the picture on the right, you can't see all the little spots like you can on the picture on the left. I currently don't wear foundation on a regular basis (my face is covered up by a face mask most days anyway), so I like that this helps cover up my insecurities without adding much more than five seconds to my morning routine. I'd definitely recommend at least swiping it across your nose the next time you're in store so you can see the difference it makes - when I tried it, I immediately felt okay spending $28 on the stick as I saw that it actually worked.

This is  my first purchase from the new Estee Edit line (which is an Estee Lauder line at Sephora) but I was playing around with a few items while I was in the store recently so I'm looking forward to trying a few more items. I'm going to get a sample of the White Mask for sure (the reviews look promising!). I'm also intrigued by their mascara as it comes with two wands - one side to build up your lashes (the brush looks very similar to my beloved Too Faced mascara) and a smaller side to define (great for the lower lashes).