Cassandra Bankson shared her acne ordeal on YouTube and had millions of viewers

Cassandra Bankson, a teenager from California, hoped that by sharing her problem with acne and how she has learnt make-up tricks to hide it would help at least one person going through the same ordeal, but she has actually reached out to millions thanks to bravely taking to the internet to show off her severe skin complaint.

Cassandra Bankson, 19, posted a video on YouTube showing her red and blemished skin before applying make-up – and how she managed to make her face look flawless in just ten minutes thanks to her beauty tricks.

The video has since had 7.6 million hits worldwide.

As a result of the success, Cassandra Bankson was asked to appeared on Good Morning America to share her story.

The teen explained how she was bullied at school for her acne but she learnt how to conceal it by practicing different make-up techniques. Her blemish-concealing make-up application became so expert that the teenager was able to become a model with her skin appearing flawless in her portfolio shots.

She eventually plucked up the courage to share her beauty tips via a YouTube video but she never expected the overwhelming response it received.

Cassandra Bankson explains: “I got my first pimple in the third grade and it progressively got worse, I had to work out how to deal with it.

“I filmed the video last November but it took me a month to post it, I thought I was going to get the same hate I got at school over my skin. But I thought if it could help one person, one girl or guy with the same condition, it would be worth it.”

Cassandra Bankson’s video went far beyond helping just one person as people clicked to view it in their millions. Viewers thanked her for sharing her story and urged her to share more of her tips on her You Tube channel “diamondsandheels14”.

Now Cassandra Bankson, who is studying to be a nurse, has uploaded other people beauty tips videos and writes her own blog. Her dream is to create her own skin care range.

She said the response to her first video was overwhelming.

“It was a real eye opener,” Cassandra Bankson told Good Morning America.

“It [acne] is such epidemic for adults as well as teens.”

At the start of her video, which was shot in her parent’s lounge, Cassandra Bankson is seen wearing full make-up and looking picture-perfect. It’s only as she starts stripping back the expert layers of primers, foundation, powders and setting sprays, that the true extent of her pimpled and blemished skin is revealed.

The teen, a horse-back riding and hiking fan, returns to the camera in a bathrobe at her ‘most insecure,’ with bare skin and looking a very different person.

“I feel really disgusting, this is probably the most nerve-wracking thing I could possibly do because it is my biggest insecurity… But this is my face.”

She goes to show the extent of the problem as the acne has spread to her neck, shoulders and back.

Cassandra Bankson admits: “The sad part is it’s a lot better than it used to be. I mean it’s still all over my chest, all over my back, it’s everywhere and you can see it goes down my neck, it’s all to the side, it even got on my ear. It’s gotten a lot better but it’s still really, really bad. It’s my biggest insecurity.”

It is a far cry from the modelling portfolio shots that can be seen on her YouTube channel, where the striking brunette lounges on car bonnets, takes to the catwalk and poses in cut-out swimsuits with flawless skin.

The teen, then takes viewers on a step-by-step lesson on how to achieve her look by applying foundation.

“I have extremely oily skin,” she says, giving tips about the primers and oil-reducing tricks.

Applying liberal amounts of cosmetics, Cassandra Bankson seems well ahead of her years, confident and knowledgeable about the complex potions upon which she relies.

She is frank, even wry, about her spots: “I always carry everything down my neck because, well, I have acne there.”

Cassandra Bankson has become something of a skin expert, with other videos explaining the physiology of skin and acne and the treatments that best target the skin condition.

By the end of the video, Cassandra Bankson is transformed – her flawless complexion giving no hint of the severe breakouts

“Voila! I have somewhat clear looking skin,” she tells the camera.

“I hope that you guys enjoy this. I hope you can have flawless skin too.”