Bustle's 2025 Beauty Icon Awards: The Star Educators

We’re living in a time when anyone with a skin care cabinet and an iPhone camera can call themselves a “beauty influencer” and spread misinformation to millions. At best, it’s annoying — no one wants to waste money on viral TikTok products that don’t actually work — but at worst, it’s downright dangerous. The wrong DIY formula can cause lasting skin damage, and skipping sunscreen in the name of “wellness” is equally risky. Social media has officially become the Wild West of bogus beauty advice, which is why it’s more important than ever to have experts you can trust.

Sure, content creators are great for GRWMs and product inspo. But when it comes to the science of beauty — and the very real ways it can affect your health — you want voices with credentials: dermatologists, cosmetic chemists, and product developers who’ve built their careers studying what goes on beneath the surface, and who use their platforms to share that knowledge with you.

Keep scrolling for 10 of the best pros in the business — the star experts you can trust to cut through the noise, challenge the hype, and make all of us smarter shoppers.

The Sustainability Savant: Allison Turquoise

Follow: @allisonturqoise

Followers: 38.7K

With two-thirds of Gen Z consumers prioritizing eco-friendly products, marketers have pushed sustainability to the forefront of their messaging. Yet “greenwashing” — making people believe that their company is doing more for the environment than it actually is — remains a major problem throughout the industry, and that’s where Allison Turquoise comes in.

She’s made it her mission to keep consumers informed about the realities of sustainable beauty that brands don’t want you to know about — like why refillable packaging is a scam, or why glass bottles aren’t as eco-friendly as marketers would have you believe. In addition to using her social media platform to help shoppers make informed decisions around the “sustainable” products they’re investing in, Turquoise also partners with brands to develop better sustainability practices that will actually move the needle on their environmental impact.

The Skin Science Decoder: Ava Perkins

Follow: @ava.perki

Followers: 18.2K

After feeling disheartened by the amount of skin care misinformation on social media, Ava Perkins decided to use her platform to bridge the gap between industry knowledge and consumer understanding. A cosmetic chemist currently pursuing her Ph.D. in skin science, she’s deeply versed in the science behind beauty products and practices — and she’s committed to making it easy for her community to grasp, too. Whether she’s explaining how a product really works (or doesn’t) or breaking down why the latest DIY TikTok trend should stay far from your face, Perkins delivers science-backed insights in a way that doesn’t require an advanced degree to understand.

The OG Beauty Nerd: Michelle Wong

Follow: @labmuffinbeautyscience

Followers: 662K

Thanks to cosmetic chemist Michelle Wong, Ph.D., nerding out on beauty has never been cooler — or easier to understand. She launched Lab Muffin Beauty Science in 2011 to fill a gap in the market: back then, almost no one was breaking down beauty science in a way that felt approachable (and it would be another decade before her fellow chemists began taking over TikTok). Today, Wong uses real science to cut through the noise, spotlighting which products are actually worth buying and sharing clear, graphic-driven explainers on everything from everyday ingredients to the most complex skin concepts.

The No-BS Esthetician: Charlotte Palermino

Follow: @charlotteparler

Followers: 352K

Just as it says in her Instagram bio, Charlotte Palermino isn’t afraid to say the quiet stuff out loud. As the co-founder of a skin care brand, a licensed esthetician, and a former editor, she has seen how the sausage is made in nearly every part of the industry, and her multi-faceted knowledge has made her one of beauty’s most trusted voices. On social media, she uses her expertise to debunk ingredient misinformation and bogus marketing claims, becoming a leading advocate for consumers by pushing for greater transparency. Her own brand, Dieux — a cult (and editor) favorite — embodies that ethos, delivering science-backed formulas and radical transparency instead of hype.

The Derm Resource: Dr. David Kim

Follow: @dr.david.kim

Followers: 673K

Board-certified dermatologist David Kim’s Instagram page is a master class in understanding skin. He goes beyond the usual concerns (acne, discoloration, aging) to break down everything from rosacea and eczema to the latest in-office procedures with a mix of clinical expertise and approachable explanations. He’s built a reputation for translating complex conditions into content that feels both useful and compassionate, and is a must-follow whether you’re hoping to find advice on your own complexion or simply looking to dive deeper into beauty.

The Skin Science Teacher: Esther Olu

Follow: @themelaninchemist

Followers: 45.3K

As a cosmetic chemist, teacher, and esthetician, Esther Olu is passionate about skin — and about helping consumers understand how to keep theirs happy and nourished. That’s why she’s made it her mission to share what she knows on social media, where her feed is filled with educational videos breaking down everything from how ingredients interact with your skin to the science behind preservatives. You’ll scroll through her content curious, and leave her page a mini beauty science pro. But with her mix of smarts and humor, learning about skin care feels less like homework and more like hanging with a friend.

The Beauty Literacy Leaders: The Lipstick Lesbians

Follow: @thelipsticklesbians

Followers: 505K

The Lipstick Lesbians take things one step further than your average content creators. Instead of just showing you how a product works (which is what you’d expect from your standard tutorial or GRWM video), they want to help you understand why it works. Power couple Alexis Androulakis (a veteran product developer) and Christina Basias Androulakis, Ph.D., (an educator and tech scholar) use their platform to champion what they’ve coined “beauty literacy” — a movement aimed at arming consumers with insider knowledge that brands don’t typically share. With their flagship course, Let’s Learn About Beauty, they’re training both curious shoppers and aspiring creators to dive deeper into what they’re shopping for. Sephora hates to see them coming.

The SPF Authority: Ramón Pagán

Follow: @glowbyramon

Followers: 164K

All beauty misinformation is harmful, but dubious claims around sunscreen can be legitimately dangerous. Thankfully, we have Ramón Pagán to set the record straight. A cosmetic chemist and product developer, he dives deep into all types of formulas — but when it comes to SPF, he’s a true savant. To his 100,000-plus followers, he’s become the go-to source for authoritative, transparent sunscreen reviews, complete with his own rigorous testing frameworks: the six “Fs” (feel, finish, formulation, fragrance, filter, foundation compatibility) for chemical formulas, and the four “Bs” (beard, beading, beat, brown-skin friendliness) for mineral ones.

No matter what TikTok tells you, you still need to wear sunscreen every single day — and @glowbyramon will help you find the right one with actual science (and zero BS).

The Science Purist: Jen Novakovich

Follow: @theecowell

Followers: 121K

One of the beauty industry’s biggest issues is the fact that there’s no regulation around marketing terms like “clean” and “sustainable” — which is why we need someone like Jen Novakovich. A cosmetic scientist, educator, and founder of The Eco Well, Novakovich has built her career on separating fact from fiction. And with dual science degrees, a diploma in cosmetic chemistry, and now a Ph.D. in environmental sustainability underway, she has both the credentials and the clarity to call out BS when she sees it.

She helps shoppers understand the science behind their products while pushing brands to do better— encouraging actual, legitimate evidence instead of empty marketing buzzwords.

The Pillow Talk Derm: Dr. Shereene Idriss

Follow: @shereeneidriss

Followers: 1.4M

When Dr. Shereene Idriss, M.D., first started sharing skin care advice from her bed in 2018, #dermfluencing was still in its infancy. Known as the “Pillow Talk Derm,” she quickly stood out for her blend of deep expertise and refreshingly filter-free (and makeup-free) delivery — and in the years since, that authenticity has earned her nearly 1.5 million Instagram followers. Today, she’s a full-blown internet superstar, runs her own dermatology practice in midtown Manhattan, and has a namesake product line at Sephora — but that hasn’t stopped her from continuing to share her signature advice in pajamas and a messy bun.