On May 6(ish), beauty influencer Ingrid Nilsen woke up to a big, fat, juicy pimple. On May 7, she decided to 'gram it. "It hit me last night that this pimple is a physical manifestation of all the work I did last week," she reflected. "I pushed through nerves, anxiety and some of my biggest fears to strive for something I've always wanted to do. I'm proud of that and if this is my body's way of saying 'We did it, but MAN I'm tiiiiired!' then I'm proud of that, too. Our bodies are so complex. They work hard for us every day, whether we notice it or not, so try to be generous with yourself. Meet yourself where you are right now and sink into the gratitude of the breath you just took. That's your body telling you you're good enough...because you're alive." (Again, somewhere, Dr. Pimple Popper's fingers are itching.)
Also fighting to end clear-skin tyranny is actress Ruby Rose. Last December, Rose took to Instagram to share her recent acne struggle, which, per her dermatologist, was a direct result of using her cell phone for promotional interviews for "Pitch Perfect 3" and sleeping on hotel pillows. (Rough life.)
In an Instagram Story showing her broken-out right cheek, Rose addressed fans and acne-bullies alike: "This acne belongs to me, not them, and you are welcome to it. I never thought I'd see the day I'd leave my beautiful country balling my eyes out," she wrote. In a second post, she added, "Yeah it sucks...for me. I don't see how it's bothering so many others? But I'm a human. It happens...one side of my face is clear and the other is a mess."
The next time you're thinking about canceling a date because of bad skin, remember Mindy Kaling appeared on "The Tonight Show" hours after this photo was taken. You'll feel better.
Further proof that pimples are, in fact, chic: In February 2017, model Starlie Smith — sister to Lucky Blue, Daisy Clementine and Pyper America and lead singer of family band The Atomics — walked the D&G runway with visible acne (masked by layers of foundation and concealer, but still). The following month, she posted a photo of her (seemingly) makeup-free face on Instagram with the caption: "Also, WHO CARES IF YOU HAVE ACNE YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL (A love note to myself & others struggling) #honest." The post prompted a ton (around 300) of positive responses and got close to 11,000 likes.
Many a professional beautiful person struggles/has struggled with acne. Australian-Portuguese model Belle Lucia falls into the latter category. Four months ago (rather uncharacteristically), Lucia posted a side-by-side photo comparing her face as a teen (when she had cystic acne) and her look now. "No one is perfect," she wrote in the caption. "I'm posting this to hopefully help those out there suffering with acne or anyone worrying about the way they look, because when I was young I wish someone would have told me that your looks don't define you and even the 'models' you see on advertisements aren't perfect."
