Last weekend, ahead of my engagement party, I asked my best friend and maid of honour to do my make-up for me. My beauty routine is a minimal one, and because such a special occasion requires something a bit more out-there than my usual tinted moisturiser and swipe of mascara, I put my fate (and face) in her very capable hands.

“What kind of look are you after?” she asked. “Just make me glow,” I replied immediately. It’s the same brief that I’ve given to the make-up artist for the big day: make me look glowing, natural, radiant. I don’t care about what colour eyeshadow she uses or the colour on my lips, I just want my skin to look the way it does on holiday: tanned, fresh, luminous.

I’m far from the only one that craves this aesthetic. Between trends for skin to look like glass and glazed doughnuts, it’s no wonder that 72% of people say that a ‘healthy glow’ is what they’re aiming for when they shop for skincare. But why? As appealing as the high-shine look is, when did ‘dull’ skin become the enemy?

Breaking down the ‘myth’ of glowing skin

Of course, medically speaking, ‘glowing’ skin is impossible to achieve, so what do we really mean when we say we want to ‘glow’?  “Usually what people are reaching for when they say they want glowing skin (or don’t want ‘dull’ skin) is that they want younger looking skin,” explains Dr Catriona Maybury, a clinical dermatologist and medical lead at Dermatica.

“As we get older, our skin changes and the turnover of skin cells reduces, meaning that we gradually lose collagen,” she explains. “From your 40s onwards, skin also tends to become a bit drier too, so I think a combination of those processes probably leads people to feel like they have ‘dull’ skin in comparison to when they were younger and their collagen was at its peak.” However, as Dr Maybury reminds, this is a natural aging process that we all go through.

“As much as we can use good quality products and take care of our bodies, we’ve also got to work within our genetics,” she says. “I’ve got a tendency to have greasier, acne-prone skin so no matter what I do in terms of topicals and regimes, my skin is never going to be perfect. I’ll always have bigger pores or flare ups. But the best thing we can do is use the information and products available to us to try to get our individual skin as healthy as it can be, without striving for perfection.”

Instead of glamourising ‘glowing’ skin, Dr Maybury shares that she tends to use the term ‘clear’ skin instead when working with patients at a clinical level. “By that I mean clear of things like acne, eczema or pigmentation,” she explains. “When people come to me as a dermatologist, we try to treat their rosacea or other inflammatory skin disorders first and then once the skin is clear they might want to optimise it.”

However, she says that many fall into the trap of buying into expensive miracle ‘cures’. “There’s still very much this belief that you can buy something, a pricey cream or moisturiser and your skin is going to look dramatically different in a few days. But more people need to realise that you often need a few good products and that it’s going to take time for them to work and achieve the effect you want them to, usually around three to four months.”

Overall, Dr Maybury says that she’d like to see more understanding and knowledge transmitted in a way so that all women understand what’s realistic and what’s not. “We spend billions on beauty products, facials, lasers and all of these things, which is fine if you enjoy them or want them, but I think a lot of us get frustrated by having high hopes, spending a lot of money and not getting the results we wanted.”

“Whatever the choices are, I want women to be informed and empowered to spend their money on not only what they want, but what’s really going to work for them.”

This article is part of Skin Freedom, a Stylist Love Women series that aims to champion the reality of women’s skin in all its glory.

Images: Getty