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I Tried 30 Pore Strips and Plumping Products So You Don't Have To
30
items Summer heat turns pores into craters and every foundation just slides right off by noon. If you've been staring at your nose in the car mirror wondering why nothing works, I spent three months testing everything from pore strips to plumping serums so...
Sections
6
Pore Strips That Actually Pull Stuff Out
Plumping Serums That Fill In Fine Lines and Pores
Pore Minimizing Primers for Hot Weather
Exfoliators That Keep Pores Clear All Summer
Setting Products That Lock the Smooth Look In
Nighttime Recovery to Undo Summer Pore Damage
Pore Strips That Actually Pull Stuff Out
I used to think pore strips were a scam until I found ones that left my nose genuinely smooth instead of just red and irritated. These made me do a double take in the mirror the next morning.
Stick one on after a shower and watch what comes off. My boyfriend was horrified and also immediately asked to try one. Perfect if you want visible results you can actually see on the strip.
Oil-Absorbing Pore Treatment Strips - Peace Out
Use this when your T-zone looks like the surface of the moon before a night out. Sixty seconds, rinse, and your skin feels tight in the good way. Grab it before pool party season.
GlamGlow's Instamud 60 Second Pore Refining Mask
Peel it off slow and prepare to be both disgusted and satisfied. Works best for anyone whose pores clog up the second humidity rises above 60 percent.
Boscia Luminizing Black Mask Review - samantha ann
Slap these on your nose and cheeks while you do your makeup on the other areas. They dissolve into your skin and leave pores looking tighter. Wish I'd found them two summers ago.
Dr. Jart+ Pores
Try this once a week and your pore strips will actually have less to pull out over time. My skin texture changed after three uses. For anyone who wants a longer-term fix, not just a quick pull.
Drunk Elephant TLC Sukari Babyfacial trial size
Plumping Serums That Fill In Fine Lines and Pores
Pore strips clear things out, but plumping serums fill in the gaps so your skin looks smoother even without makeup. I rotate between these depending on how wrecked my skin feels that week.
Swap your regular moisturizer for this on days your skin looks flat and tired. My forehead lines practically disappeared for a full eight hours. Stock up before your beach trip.
The Dewy Skin Cream Plumping & Hydrating Moisturizer
Put this on before bed and wake up looking like you actually slept eight hours even if you got five. For anyone who runs the AC all night and wakes up with dry, creased skin.
LANEIGE Water Sleeping Mask for Moisture Barrier
Mix two drops into your sunscreen and your skin looks plump and blurred all day. A coworker asked if I got a facial. I just laughed and reapplied sunscreen.
Watermelon Glow Niacinamide Dew Drops - Glow Recipe
Get this if you want the plumping effect without spending a lot. Layer it on damp skin, then moisturizer, and watch your pores look half their usual size by the time you leave the house.
Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 Hydrating Serum - The Ordinary
Keep this in your bag for mid-day touch-ups when the AC dries you out at work. One pump smooths everything out. For the person whose skin looks great at 8 AM and like a raisin by 2 PM.
Water Drench® Hyaluronic Glow Serum - Peter Thomas Roth
Pore Minimizing Primers for Hot Weather
Finding a primer that doesn't melt off in July took me embarrassingly long. These actually kept my pores blurred through a 95-degree outdoor wedding.
Dab this into your T-zone and your pores literally vanish under foundation. I've repurchased this four times. Grab it if you're tired of seeing every pore through your base.
The POREfessional Pore Minimizing Primer
Try this if silicone primers usually pill on you. It goes on like a balm and fills in every line without feeling heavy. Wore it to an outdoor concert and my makeup stayed put for seven hours.
Tatcha The Silk Canvas Protective Primer
Use this on days you need your makeup to survive sweat. It grips foundation like velcro. Saved me during a July road trip with no AC in the backseat.
Milk Makeup Hydro Grip Gripping Primer
Squeeze a tiny amount onto your nose and chin before foundation. It blurs pores without adding oil, which is the whole problem in summer anyway. For oily skin people specifically.
Photo Finish Pore Vanishing Primer
Bring this into your routine if your skin gets dehydrated from sun exposure and then overproduces oil to compensate. Breaks that cycle. My chin stopped being a grease slick by week two.
Hangover Primer - Face Primer
Exfoliators That Keep Pores Clear All Summer
Pore strips handle the surface, but these go deeper to stop the clogs from forming in the first place. Took me three breakouts to learn that prevention beats extraction every time.
Swipe this on with a cotton pad after cleansing every other night. Within a week my blackheads were noticeably fewer. For anyone who picks at their nose in the mirror, this replaces that habit.
Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant - Paula's Choice
Pat this on after cleansing and it tightens pores while gently exfoliating. Smells like watermelon candy. Perfect for people whose skin is too sensitive for strong acids.
Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow PHA+BHA Pore-Tight Toner
Use this as your second cleanse to get sunscreen residue out of your pores at night. I stopped getting those tiny bumps on my forehead once I added this step. Simple fix, huge difference.
Drunk Elephant Beste™ No. 9 Jelly Cleanser
Toss this on for ten minutes after a day at the beach when your skin feels gritty and sun-stressed. It calms everything down and your pores don't freak out the next morning.
Jet Lag Mask - Summer Fridays
Dab this on problem areas three nights a week. My nose went from constantly congested to smooth in about two weeks. Wish someone had told me about this before I wasted money on nose strips alone.
COSRX BHA Blackhead Power Liquid, 100ml / 3.38 fl.oz
Setting Products That Lock the Smooth Look In
What's the point of prepping your pores if everything melts off by lunch? These keep that blurred, plump look going even when you're sweating through your shirt.
Press this into your T-zone with a puff and your pores stay invisible. Survived a humid rooftop dinner without a single touch-up. For anyone who hates carrying a compact everywhere.
Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Setting Powder
Spray this on and go. My makeup survived a beach bonfire last August. If you only buy one setting spray for summer, make it this one before they sell out of the travel size.
Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray ≡ Sephora KSA
Keep this in your desk drawer for afternoon refreshes. It sets makeup and adds a little hydration so you don't get that dry, cakey look by 4 PM. Lighter than most sprays.
Mini Always an Optimist 4-in-1 Mist
Dust this lightly over primer and your pores basically disappear without looking powdery. Worth every penny if you photograph a lot because it doesn't cause flashback.
Hourglass Veil™ Translucent Setting Powder - Talc Free
Grab this if you want the staying power without the price tag. Held up through a sweaty summer festival and I reapplied exactly zero times. For budget-conscious people who still want results.
SEPHORA COLLECTION - Makeup Setting Spray
Nighttime Recovery to Undo Summer Pore Damage
Sun, sweat, and sunscreen residue wreck your pores by the end of each day. These overnight products undo the damage while you sleep so you wake up with skin that actually cooperates.
Okay this is for lips not pores, but sun-cracked lips ruin the whole look. Slather this on before bed and wake up with soft lips that don't need three layers of balm. A summer overnight staple.
Lip Sleeping Mask - LANEIGE
Apply a thin layer before bed and your skin texture is noticeably smoother by morning. My pores looked refined after one week. For night owls who want their skincare to work while they binge shows.
Honey Glow 17% AHA + BHA Resurfacing Acid Serum
Two drops before sleep and your skin bounces back from sun exposure overnight. Smells like lavender. Saved my face after a weekend of forgetting to reapply sunscreen, which yes, I know.
Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate Moisturizing Face Oil
Use this twice a week at night when your pores feel congested from sunscreen buildup. It's gentle enough that your skin won't freak out. Woke up with the clearest skin I'd had in months.
BLUE TANSY Resurfacing Clarity Face Mask
Slap this on as your last step before bed. It seals everything in and your skin looks plump and dewy the next morning instead of oily. Perfect for anyone who sleeps with a fan blasting all summer.
Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream Night Cream + Mask