I have to admit that I'm a creature of habit. My skincare routine rarely changes, my hair is almost always the same, and experimenting for me looks like trying out a new lipstick or a sheet mask packed with ingredients I already know and love. I like routine, especially when it comes to beauty — the predictability offering me something the rest of life can't. Which is to say, I was slow to adopt pimple patches, the hydrocolloid-filled stickers designed to sit atop your pimple and sort of magically make them disappear. It felt like an elevated version of the bandaid trick (you know, the one where you just stick one on soaked in tea tree oil until it goes away), but simultaneously seemed to good to be true. Until I tried it. And it actually worked.
I've since turned into a pimple patch evangelist, recommending them to anyone who will listen, whether their pimple is buried deep beneath the surface or itching to pop (which you should never do, by the way). See the most effective pimple patches ahead, so you can stock up for your next breakout.
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1.Hero Cosmetics Mighty Patch
Anthropologie
Available in four variations for a range of needs, Mighty Patch is one of the OG pimple patch brands and doesn't disappoint. There are larger acne patches for bigger areas — called Surface — and invisible ones that practically melt into the skin so you can wear them throughout the day. A pack will run you anywhere from $12.99 for the micro-point patches for early stage blemishes to $17.99 for the Surface patches. Better yet, you can buy them at Target and toss them in your cart alongside other things you definitely don't need.
2.ZitSticka KILLA Kit Pimple Patches
When it comes to pimples buried deep beneath the skin, ZitSticka is unmatched in its ability to target and get rid of them. The genius is in the microdart technology, which penetrates the zit and injects targeted ingredients that clears up your skin before it can make its way to the surface.
3.Starface Hydro-Stars
Hypebae
If you find yourself sticking rhinestones on your face just for fun, then these star-shaped pimple patches might be the answer to your blemish woes. The spot treatment stars both dress up and address your pimple and help to stop you from picking at your skin while the patch does its thing.
4.Peace Out Acne Healing Dots
Peace Out Skincare
Peace Out Acne Healing Dots takes a holistic approach to zapping your zit, using a blend of Vitamin A to prevent clogged pores, salicylic acid to help congested pores, and aloe vera to soothe the skin and reduce redness.
5.COSRX Acne Pimple Master Patch
Soko Glam
One of the most popular pimple patch options out there, COSRX offers waterproof patches that extract while also hydrating the skin.
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Featured image by Shutterstock
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Skylar sees things differently. At the time, she was shooting content on her iPhone. Temi came into the picture with a new perspective, an understanding of tech, and, eventually, a camera. “He doesn't give himself enough credit,” Skylar says. “He wasn't just my tripod. He wasn't just standing behind the camera and going ‘click.’ He was giving advice. He was giving me insight to how I could look at things from a different perspective. And I was like, 'Oh, he’s an artist.' I think it was maybe a heartbeat of that kind of energy of like, ‘Baby, can you take this picture?’ And it turned so quickly into, we're partners. We can work together in a way where we're advancing each other's creative thinking.”
The pair often says they’re two sides of the same coin. Skylar is an Aquarius. She attended art school, paints, and loves poetry. She’s more than happy to let the couple’s management firm and agency, Kensington Grey, handle their admin work. And, she loves to sleep in. Temi, on the other hand, wakes up early. He’s a Virgo. He loves a to-do list and regularly checks in on the couple’s brand partnerships spreadsheet to make sure everything is on track.
Because his storytelling was steeped in his love of technology, he didn’t always think of himself as a creative person. “Where I [am] the dreamer who wants to pluck things out of the sky and spend all day with my head in the clouds, Temi [is] so good at grounding me and helping me figure out how to make things make sense on paper. We just work together in such a complimentary way,” Skylar says.
It’s been more than six years since Brooklyn-based couple Temi and Skylar started dating, and nearly four since they cemented their working relationship. On TikTok and Instagram, the couple’s travel, fashion, and home content regularly rack up hundreds of thousands of views. They’ve worked with brands such as Coach, Aesop, Away, and Liquid IV, bringing their vibrant perspectives to every campaign they execute. Still, nearly two years since both Temi and Skylar committed to full-time content creation and creative directing, the couple says their romantic connection remains their priority.
“We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting,” Skylar says.
Working from home can make it hard to separate work from personal life for any entrepreneur. It can be even more challenging when your business partner is also your lover. Temi and Skylar had already used couples therapy as a tool to help them effectively communicate with one another. When they ran into challenges while working together, their therapist helped them set physical boundaries to help combat the issues.
"We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting."
“It actually took us doing very specific physical things to create boundaries between work and play in our relationship,” Skylar says. “So, for instance, we will only have conversations about work when we're out of bed or we're at the table or in the office. Initially, when we started, we had to light a candle to say that, 'Okay, this is a space where we're connecting, we’re not talking about work.' We needed really hard boundaries at the top. And then it became a little bit more organic.”
The boundaries have been crucial to implement, especially because the couple began working together so naturally. When the pair first met, Skylar was NY-based a social strategist for BuzzFeed and was using content creation to drive business to her lingerie company. She was shooting her own content. Temi was working for Microsoft in D.C. He’d recently traded in his DJing equipment for a camera. “I've always loved taking pictures,” he says. “Even when I was a kid, my African mother would wake me up at 3:00 a.m. [during a] party, and be like, 'Come take the family picture.'”
Growing up, Temi says he watched his parents support each other and be the true definition of partners. He knew he wanted the same for his own relationship. But, the couple also wanted to make sure they were being financially responsible. The pair didn’t quit their traditional jobs until they’d saved up two years' worth of their cost of living. And, Temi received his Master of Business Administration from New York University with the knowledge that it could either help him advance in his corporate career or be applicable to his business with Skylar.
Temi and SkylarCj Hart @hartbreakToday, they say their working relationship is more of a “quiet dance.” They still implement some of the boundaries they learned in therapy, but they also lean into their natural strengths and deep love for one another. When we speak, Temi has planned a date for the couple to see Princess Mononoke in 4K IMAX and added it to their Notion so they can factor it into their busy schedules. “I fully plan to date for the rest of my life,” he says.
Skylar says the couple doesn’t just wait for date nights to check in with one another, though. This often happens in the mornings, after Temi has made her peppermint tea and poured himself a cup of coffee. When they ask each other how they slept, she says, it’s not just a “nicety.” It’s a genuine question meant to foster connection.
“A lot of it happens during the day in the midst of work. We'll stop and we'll hug. Or we’ll slow dance in the kitchen,” she says. “Sometimes it's hard to set a whole date night when you have 7,000 things going on. So, we must grasp these moments and check in when we can. And I think it's become so organic to us that I actually didn't even realize how often we do it. But all day long, we're like, 'Are you good? I felt like your energy shifted,' because we're best friends, we just know. We just feel it happen.”
What’s better than being in love? Building wealth while doing it. Watch Making Cents here for real stories of couples who make money moves together.
Featured image by Cj Hart @hartbreak