Whether it's a cream, powder, mineral, or liquid concealer, I always feel like it just doesn't blend perfectly. There's always a giveaway that screams "I'm trying to cover up a spot!" which often draws more attention than the blemish itself. So I've been doing without concealer for a fair few months now and have, contrary to my predictions, felt more confident in my skin. This has been a very welcome side-effect and has made me make the decision to abolish concealer for the long haul.

Now, there may be the odd while where my skin is playing up and I have a fancier occasion to attend, in which case I'll reach for my mineral concealer that has the least amount of build-up and doesn't clog my pores, but for the most part I'm saying goodbye.

This may be a terrifying thought for some of you, in which case I urge you to really consider joining me! There's a whole list of reasons I wanted to try without concealer, but perhaps the main one was that I wanted to feel better about myself. Seem strange? Well, having blotchy, uneven, marked skin is not considered beautiful by today's popular standards. But that's exactly what is natural for the majority of us living on this planet. It's an impossible task to wake up every morning with industry-standard 'perfect' skin and yet a lot of people feel 'less than' when it doesn't happen. Do you ever look in the mirror in the morning and let out an 'urgh' sigh of despair at the sight of your skin? Do you wish it was different? Do you automatically get up close and personal with the bathroom mirror and check out any 'faults' you noticed the day before? If you answered yes to any or all of these you are not alone but you are also perfect in your own skin and where you are today. There's nothing abnormal about pimples, blotchy skin, acne, eczema, psoriasis, moles, dark circles, blackheads... the list goes on. Everybody has something going on and it's about treating your skin to good health and healing from outside and within, and for all the rest... acceptance. Know that your body is beautiful just as it is. Truly.

You can be happy with where you and your skin are today, right now, without having to change a thing.

If you're still not totally with me on this one, you might be when you hear about how my skin has dramatically changed for the better since going concealer-free. I have been known to break out in various places all over my face, usually during my cycle, but also throughout the month. Not severely, but enough that I'd be concerned that others would look at my skin and then notice me afterwards. I mark very easily so any blemish would last weeks or months before going away completely. This would leave my skin raw, dry in patches, oily in others, completely out of balance, and with hyper-pigmentation all over. Since binning the concealer my scars have completely vanished, I barely break out at all anymore, and I'm not worried about whether my makeup is rubbing off or causing me to flake... because it's not there in the first place!

At first I felt uncomfortable baring all, but actually over time I've noticed that nobody cares. Nobody even looks. Most people are so wrapped up in their world that they really don't have time to look at yours or even care. I realised that, actually, all I was doing before was being totally vain and self-indulgent thinking that anyone even notices my skin. And who was paying for that vanity? Me and my skin. Now I feel completely comfortable and confident going totally bare-faced in public, let alone just concealer-free. 

My mental heath has improved an incredible amount just from this simple thing and my skin is glowing more than ever.

If you want to try it for yourself but you're not sure whether you'll be able to jump right into the deep end, take smaller steps. Practice going to the local shops and supermarket first. Then take it to a friend's house or shorter trips on the bus. Then eventually you'll feel like you can conquer the whole town. And believe me, your confidence will be sky-high.