Here's Why You Shouldn't Wear Makeup to Your Aesthetic Treatment
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
If you follow us on Instagram (which you can do here!) you may have seen something we reposted to our stories: an infographic showing why you shouldn’t wear makeup immediately before and after your aesthetic treatment.
It’s obvious to most of us that you wouldn’t want full-glam makeup before you get a facial--your esthetician is going to cleanse the face anyways, right? Turns out, the same applies for neuromodulator treatments (i.e. Botox) and filler.
When you come in for Botox and/or filler, your practitioner is going to remove any makeup, sunscreen, or skincare products you might have on, just by virtue of the fact that they have to completely cleanse the area being treated. Which is why there are several reasons you shouldn’t wear makeup to your treatment:
We need to see your “real” face. When you come in with contouring--and that includes anything from using bronzer/blush to doing a full-baked contour--it makes it harder for us to see how to treat you. Most likely, your practitioner will have to remove all of that makeup so they can assess and treat you accordingly. However, if you’re having a virtual consultation, we won’t be able to remove your makeup, which means it might be more difficult to assess you properly.
It minimizes risk of infection. Keep in mind--aesthetic injectables are being, well, injected. Like any other injection, this leaves a small wound in the skin, and just like any other “wound”, you want to keep the area clean and protected, to prevent foreign matter (read: makeup) from contaminating the area. When you wear makeup to your appointment, particularly foundation or heavy lipstick, expect a lot of scrubbing. Your practitioner does not want you getting an infection, so they need to make sure your skin is squeaky clean before treatment. When you wear makeup, it makes this process more challenging.
Don’t be afraid to wear SPF. SPF is generally very easy to clean off, and we can still assess your face accurately with it on. Even a slightly tinted SPF is fine; just hold off on the heavy foundations.
Don’t apply makeup for 12-24 hours after, either. At the very least, give yourself the night off, especially after getting filler. If you need to apply makeup the next day, we recommend only applying the minimum of what you need and preferably applying mineral makeup, which naturally has antibacterial properties since most mineral makeup contains zinc oxide.
Remember to be gentle when you do apply makeup. If you’ve just had filler or Botox, there’s the possibility of displacing it if you massage the face with too much pressure. When applying skincare or makeup, caution is your best friend.
Remember, even if you love makeup--it’s worth it to go without for a day when it comes to your aesthetic treatment!