Beauty apps to make your skin glow

Can an iPhone make you more beautiful? Many people with the device are accustomed to using the camera’s “narcissism” setting to apply makeup or freshen up their looks while on the go – to apply glitter shadow to a neutral lid before a holiday party, for example.

But it turns out that this is just the beginning of what your phone (or tablet) can do for your face. Thanks to apps, these gadgets now also function as colour and hairstyle consultants, spa finders and skin-care specialists.

From Aveda to Yves Saint Laurent, almost every cosmetics company offers a free app. Some advise, or let you chat with experts. Others make product recommendations or show how you will look after applying the items you’re thinking of buying.

The L’Oreal Paris Color Genius helps users coordinate makeup with outfits, taking a photo of themselves and then deciding whether to Match, Blend or Clash it. In the magazine world, the InStyle Hairstyle Try-On lets you satisfy your curiosity about how you would look with Heidi Klum’s or Jennifer Aniston’s tresses.

Such options help to narrow the distance between person and product, said Hillary Sica, associate director of partnerships for ModiFace, a virtual makeover technology provider based in Toronto, with an office in New York City. “People are more comfortable choosing from model options that look like them,” she said.

Many of these apps are purely commercial, like that of the chain Sephora, which entices shoppers with tips, coupons and samples; allows them to try on nail colours; keeps their purchase histories and shopping lists; and scans their bar codes.

But others are edging into public-health territory. The Coppertone MyUVAlert, for example, supplies consumers with localized, real time UVA and UVB information, sunscreen reapplication reminders, coupons and sun protection tips (most involving Coppertone products, of course).

“Apps in the skin-care category are just scratching the surface of what’s possible,” said Daniel Joseph, a founder of the App Business, a London-based software company. “It’s not surprising the majority of apps are still gimmicks shooting for short-term attention.”

That might be changing. If the Yellow Pages put health care specialists at your fingertips, apps are putting them in your lap.

MyChelle Dermaceuticals, a skin-care company in Louisville, Colo., provides app users with a free 30-minute consultation with a licensed aesthetician via Skype, iChat or FaceTime. Introduced last year, the app has been downloaded 3,500 times, according to the company.

Have a mole you’re concerned about? SpotCheck, developed last year by Dr. Bobby Buka, one of several board-certified dermatologists available to review your photo submission, responds within 24 hours to tell you if your mole looks atypical.

(The app is free to download. Submitting a photo for review costs $4.99.) Of the 6,000 downloads, 4,000 photos were submitted. Seventy percent were atypical, or precancerous, and needed a second look, according to the company.

“‘Do I need to get this checked out?’ is the initial question that can keep patients away” from a traditional doctor, Buka said. “The average wait to see a dermatologist in the United States is 38 days. When your window for catching a melanoma early is very small, 38 days can be a matter of life or death.”

SpotCheck also offers a list of doctors who have agreed to see a SpotCheck patient within two weeks. It is available in New York, New Jersey and California, with fewer than 10 dermatologists on call. Within the next several months, Florida will be added, said Buka, whose goal is to get dermatologists from each state on board.

The app as a diagnostic tool is not evolving without scrutiny. Last year, AcneApp, created by a dermatologist, Dr. Greg Pearson, claimed it could improve acne and wrinkles by exuding a blue or red light when pressed up against your skin. The app was removed from iTunes after the Federal Trade Commission became involved, citing health-related claims without scientific evidence. The app had been downloaded more than 11,600 times. Acne Pwner, a similar app available for the Android, was also eliminated.

Own, a three-year-old skin-care company based in San Francisco, took a more playful approach when introducing its free app, My Own App, this month. Using facial-recognition technology to track 50 points on your face, the app assesses signs of aging by the number of fine lines, deep-set wrinkles, percentage of pigment and number of age spots. Those numbers are then compared to others in your age group.

“My numbers were eight for deep-set wrinkles on my forehead, 23 for fine lines around my eye area, and I have 28 age spots,” said Stephen Matt, chief marketing officer at Own (for a man in a sunny area, apparently, he did pretty well).

Users take a photo of their faces, answer a few questions and indicate skin type and date of birth. Within two minutes of submitting this data, they receive an analysis of their complexion. Matt also recommended the tracking tool, which lets users see how their complexions have changed over the past months.

If such measures fail, you can at least have fun with your face thanks to apps like Beauty Booth, which erases acne, scars and dark circles and enlarges your eyes on a photo you submit; and Makeup Touch, which lets you “paint” your face or add silly accessories like gemstones, sunglasses, bunny ears or a Santa hat. And for those who believe beauty comes from within? Try Beauty Quotes from sages like Coco Chanel, Sharon Stone and Tyra Banks.