Adult Acne

I love Acne.

I know that sounds insane. Especially since I’ve been plagued with it my entire life.

I grew up with horrible acne: shiny oily skin, bombarded by big breakouts that came and went but lived on in scars I caused by constant popping and picking. I know this is gross.

Me, circa 1983 at the Farmhouse in Fremont for my Noni’s birthday. Note the double cocktails. My brother posted this on Facebook a few months ago and I wanted to kill him. My acne was outed.

A huge bonus of growing older is this: your skin dries out and your face clears up.

Through the passage of time and prescriptions for Retin-A, my complexion became more manageable. This was all so liberating as I had spent a lifetime blowing through miles of tinted Oxy 10, concealer and pancake makeup.

And then it happens. Again. A few days before my 20^th high school reunion, big hard bumps burst onto my cheeks, chin and forehead.

I am diagnosed with Rosacea, aka “adult acne,” and sent home with a month’s worth of pills and two different lotions to apply every morning and night for the rest of my life. Rosacea can’t be cured, only managed. Extreme cases include WC Field’s bulbous nose, an image that scared the shit out of me.

Petrified, I pray the pills and potions will work. By some miracle, they do, resulting in skin more creamy and smooth than ever. It’s like Adult Acne is the best thing that ever happened to me. Adolescent and young-adult acne has turned out to be a blessing in disguise too, as the oily skin I so hated protected my skin from drying out and wrinkling like most women my age, and the Retin-A I used to treat my acne now works as an anti-aging cream.

So now that I don’t have acne, I wear it: Acne (Ambition to Create Novel Expression), the brand out of Sweden that  takes classic silhouettes and adds just the right amount of edge to make them interesting. They cut their garments just right, use quality fabrics like cashmere, leather and wool, and are better made and priced than many brands in their category. Below are some favorites from their current Fall 2012 line that demonstrate how Acne puts their modern twist on classics by creating a winter wool coat in shocking acid green, leather pants in a more slouchy, low slung stance, and belting the trench coat low and wide:

Model 1: Acne Suzane acid green coat, Acne Ace black platform boots.

Model 2: Acne Lucille black dress, Acne Jasper Fluo Fluo yellow pouch, Acne Marlin brown shoe boot.

Model 3: Acne Flora cash coral cashmere turtleneck, Acne best leather burgundy pants.

Model 4: Acne Cary raw beige trench, Acne Olivine turquoise clutch, Acne Hex Basement mid-rise slim jeans, Acne Free brown ankle boot.

Yet another bonus of aging: one can afford to buy better clothes. And thank God I’m not too traumatized to buy Acne.