When Scarlett Johansson isn’t busy working or walking the red carpet she’s reading about skincare. Seriously.

So obsessed is Johansson that she confessed to ELLE in the February issue that she really should have been a dermatologist. ‘When you help someone to heal their skin, it gives them a new lease of life. I mean, have you ever met anyone with a skin condition? I’m good with that,’ she said.

‘A while back I started researching natural skincare,’ she revealed.‘It's a nice way to treat your skin if you don't want to use all those harsh chemicals that a dermatologist would recommend.

‘Lemon juice is great for lightening. It can be a little bit stinging, so you can dilute it with water. It's a good trick and nice because it's natural’.

Another ingredient she swears by that can be found at your local supermarket is apple cider vinegar. ‘If your skin is problematic or you're having a lot of breakouts, it's really healing. It's a little bit stinky but if you're not sleeping over at your boyfriend's it's really effective!’

It’s not all natural for Johansson though – she is a fan of Kanebo, especially the Total Lip Treatment, £70, ‘it doesn't have any gloss and it's great for the winter’.

This obsession stems, in part, from the abuse her skin gets from multiple make-up changes at shoots, on film sets and for red carpet appearances. ‘I've found over time that my skin is so active, I've used too much make-up for my work and it's always different products. I find that the least aggressive skin regime seems to be the best for my skin. So I just use a very simple non-comedogenic cleanser’.

Fragrance is another passion for the star. When she’s not wearing Dolce & Gabbana Rose The One, ‘I like it for daytime. I like flowery smells. It's really nice,’ she likes to layer her fragrances. ‘Sometimes I'll get like the essence. There's a really great old perfumery called The Bourbon Street Perfume; it's an old Louisiana perfumery and they have all these essential floral fragrances and I like to mix them’.

Aside from skincare and fragrance, her role as the face Dolce & Gabbana Beauty has informed her about the world of make-up. Working with the brand’s Global Creative Advisor Pat McGrath she has picked up a few tips along the way. ‘I always thought that you had to pick an eye or a lip. But with Pat, she never follows those rules. It's more about what is complementing the whole look and so I realise that if you really want to wear a lot of make-up and have a dramatic look, it's okay as long as it's done tastefully and it's not overpowering your face. She never shies away from that and it's fun’.

While she may go dramatic on the red carpet, off-duty she keeps it simple. ‘Usually I use a tinted moisturiser. And then I've been using the new Dolce concealers that just came out and a mascara. There's a Dolce bronzer that's like a leopard printed one. It's called the Animalier. I use that all over and that's pretty much it’.

We all know Johansson has one of the most enviable pouts in Hollywood, so it’s no surprise she plays it up with lipstick. But right now she has toned it down. ‘I think for me, because I like to wear lipstick so much, it's nice to play with natural and brown. It gives a 90s touch; there was a natural eye that was nice in the 90s’ she muses.

See Scarlett Johansson’s make-up and skincare picks in the April issue of ELLE magazine on sale now…

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