I’m Wiwin. I’m 28. I’m currently living in Malaysia. My platform began with my love for makeup. I was a makeup artist for 2 years. When I was a makeup artist, I worked with many different skin types, and I started to learn about different types of skin. From there, I started to research esthetics and facial treatments. Now, I’m a facial therapist, and I run my own facial studio. I’ve been doing that for the past 4 years. I’ve seen the things my clients go through, so my platform is a way to share skin stories. I’m trying to normalize skin problems and skin issues. 

Personally, I went through acne twice. At first, it was something that I didn’t really notice, but over time, it made me very insecure, especially in college. I felt the need to be more outgoing when naturally, I am introverted. I guess I was compensating for my skin because on top of wanting to distract my peers from acne, I also wanted to fit into my mask of makeup that I applied on a daily basis. 

As I mentioned before, I have to exert a lot more energy when I’m around people so that was a very exhausting time for me. It totally drained me, but I had this idea in my head what cool was, and I was always trying to make myself that person. As much as I found comfort in being in a big group of friends at all times, I also felt drained as that meant I would have to keep up with this persona even longer. But over the years, I’ve made peace with not being that way. 

As I got older, I began to know myself. Having a strong bond with true friends helped profoundly. It was true friends who encouraged me to be myself. 

By the time I had my daughter, I was a lot more comfortable with myself. After I gave birth, I had hormonal acne, but it wasn’t so hard this time. It was just skin. I realized that I needed to be a good role model for my daughter. When it comes to having a healthy self-image, I want to set the example. I want to raise her in an environment that doesn’t stress the external. Our external appearance is temporary, and it’s okay to have acne. If my daughter ever gets acne, I will make sure that she’s not hard on herself. I will make sure that she doesn’t feel alone because loneliness is where my insecurity came from. 

When I was younger, I was the only friend who had acne, and I didn’t understand why I had the issues that I did. It made me so anxious that I used astringents as cleansers on a daily basis. I thought drying my skin out as much as possible was the solution for my acne. I dried my skin out to the point where it was very raw.  That’s why I want to help others with acne feel comfortable and be kind to their skin. 

In Malaysia, we are exposed to a lot of 10 step and 12 step skincare routines, and this leaves people feeling very paralyzed or like they need to change themselves I have a lot of clients that come in, and they’re like - “I need an essence! I need a toner! I need an emulsion!” So, I made my platform to help people understand that skincare and being yourself should be seen as something positive, not as a chore or an inconvenience. 

@Wiwin.zulkifli