Celebrate Your Pekas: These Women Show Us How It's Done

Faux freckles may be the big beauty trend of the year, but your natural pekas are no fad — they’re part of what makes you uniquely beautiful!

If you are lucky to have natural freckles, then that probably means you are a fair-skinned Pinay. Freckles (pekas in Filipino) are extra melanin patches usually due to sun exposure or genetics. Fairer-skinned people and those who have the MC1R gene are more predisposed to them. Natural freckles are harmless and tend to fade on their own.

Freckles used to be considered flaws. In fact, they still are in cultures that continue to promote flawless, porcelain skin as the standard of beauty. Thankfully, we live in more skin-positive times, and certain features that were once "problems" are now marks of beauty.

In the name of normalizing these once-shunned marks, why not try showing off your freckles like they’re the hottest beauty accessory? With everyone else having to draw — or tattoo! — them on, you sure are fortunate to have beautiful freckled skin. 

Freckles are not an indication of health. Those naturally predisposed to freckles will most likely develop them with sun exposure, but this doesn’t necessarily mean they are dangerous. Freckles are harmless marks on the skin that can fade as we age. In adults, they are signs of UV exposure, just like a tan. If you're prone to freckles, make sure to use sunscreen every day. Otherwise, bask in your beauty marks like model Kelsey Merritt, who loves a bare-faced natural look. 

These days, even the tiniest bit of outside time merits some bragging rights. Think of your freckles as proof that you’ve been living! When we’re out in the sun, our skin produces more melanin to protect itself from sun damage. If melanin builds up in certain areas, a brown or gray freckle can appear. Just look at Bella Poarch, who developed some cute souvenirs during her stint in the US Navy. No biggie. 

Contrary to what The Postal Service says, no two people develop the same number or pattern of freckles. While it’s okay to want to remove them, too, seeing them as beauty characteristics that make you uniquely you, is also perfectly acceptable. Because they also tend to fade over time, embrace them and wear them proudly for as long as you can like Patricia Henson.

However, don’t try to induce freckles by sunbathing without protection. Instead, you can try the faux-freckles trend and draw them using an eyebrow pencil or liner.

Pigmentation and “glow” don’t usually go together, but in the case of freckles, they can work. Freckles are associated with being sun-kissed. You can build on this idea and use your beauty marks as the foundation for a golden glow like Georgina Wilson. 

Another tip: use minimal foundation or none at all. Instead, use POND’S Bright Miracle Serum Burst Cream. This cream turns into a hydrating serum upon contact, which can serve as a dewy base for your makeup. Your freckles will be luminous as well since this has no coverage. Using a fluffy brush, swipe bronzer from one cheekbone to another, making sure to add color to the bridge and tip of the nose. You can also use a cream bronzer to achieve the same effect. 

There are many reasons to celebrate your natural pekas or rock faux ones! Take your cue from these women who are wearing them proud and showing us how beautiful they can really be.

Read What Causes Freckles and When You Should Worry About Summer Spots for more on pekas and why you have them.