Everything you need to know about freckles – and the beauty hacks to try

Telegraph

18-02-2025

The actor Julianne Moore is in 'great shock' after her first children's book, Freckleface Strawberry, has been suspended in schools run by the Department of Defense in the United States following a presidential executive order.
The book, a semi-autobiographical story about a seven-year-old girl who dislikes her freckles but eventually learns to live with them, is 'a book I wrote for my children and for other kids to remind them that we all struggle, but are united by our humanity and our community,' Moore said in an Instagram post on Monday.
Moore is a style icon for women with freckles, and at 64 years old has perfected the art of enhancing her skin with make-up without covering her natural marks. Lindsay Lohan, Emma Stone and Sienna Miller are known for their freckles, too. In fact, they have inspired many beauty brands to create specific products to either enhance natural freckles or apply 'faux' freckles to give the appearance of a sunkissed complexion. Here's everything you need to know about freckles.
What are freckles?
'Freckles are often used as an umbrella term for what we refer to in dermatology as ephelides and lentigines – brown marks that typically appear on sun-exposed areas,' says the consultant dermatologist Dr Cristina Psomadakis. She agrees they are entirely natural and should not be on a diversity agenda.
'While they can occur in any skin type, they are most common in fair-skinned individuals, particularly those with red hair or Celtic backgrounds.' For people with a high number of freckles, like Julianne Moore, there may also be a genetic link to the MC1R (melanocortin-1 receptor), indicating a hereditary component, adds Dr Psomadakis.
Make-up advice if you have freckles
'Don't try to cover up or conceal your freckles,' says the make-up artist Lan Nguyen-Grealis. 'There are lots of brilliant tinted moisturisers on the market that will even out the skin tone naturally while still letting your freckles shine through.' Try Studio Body and Face Foundation by Mac, £38, or the Vital Skincare Complexion Drops, £62, by Westman Atelier.
Studio body and face foundation, £38, Mac
Vital Skincare Complexion Drops, £62, Westman Atelier
Once you've used a tinted moisturiser, a good concealer can work wonders on dark circles or any blemishes. 'Use a stick concealer rather than liquid to not go over the natural freckles,' says Nguyen-Grealis. Try the Pin Point Concealer, £27, by Lisa Eldridge, which is precise and offers a natural finish.
Pin Point Concealer, £27, Lisa Eldridge
How to create 'faux' freckles
Using a product such as The Original Freckle by beauty brand Freck, £18, 'dot the pen across the nose, cheeks and random places allowing space,' says Nguyen-Grealis. 'Work from the outside of your face in, and focus on where the sun naturally hits the face.' To keep your faux freckles in place, spray a setting spray over your make-up for a lasting effect. Try the Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray, £32, by Charlotte Tilbury.
Original Freckle, £18, Freck
Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray, £32, Charlotte Tilbury
If you want a longer-lasting freckle, Nguyen-Grealis suggests using a self tanner with a toothbrush, and 'flick for natural dispersion and leave to dry'.
What to wear if you have freckles
'We tend to see more of the warm brown freckles on people with yellow-based undertones,' says the colour consultant Jules Standish. 'Colours that will therefore be flattering are honey and caramel browns, coral reds and pinks, orange, lime green, golden yellow and teal blues.' Julianne Moore falls into this category, and, says Standish, 'looks particularly glowing and gorgeous in gold and ivory, camel, yellow and orange-red.' Gold also suits warmer complexions better than silver.
For those with light, cool-brown freckles that appear on blue-based skin tones, such as actress Claire Foy, there are some colours in clothing that will suit you better. 'Icy/pastel blues, raspberry reds, magenta pinks, lavender and taupe, dove grey and sometimes black look fabulous,' says Standish, 'as well as silver.'