Dermatologist to Angelina Jolie reveals the secrets to her flawless skin

We're so used to hearing about the bizarre facial treatments from celebrities – vampire facials, treatments using bee venom and sheep placentas, and even something called a "penis facial" – that we sometimes forget that you can have great skin without all that. While those that are fond of the eccentric kind of treatments like Kim Kardashian and Gwenyth Paltrow have incredible skin, so do celebrities who don't bother with all that fuss, such as Angelina Jolie.

The actor and humanitarian is 42, has six kids (three of whom are adopted) and has been divorced three times – most recently from Brad Pitt. Yet, she doesn't give any of that away in her flawless complexion. And finally, we know why. No, it's not thanks to anything weird (though she has admitted to smearing caviar body cream on herself while pregnant), but rather a long-term skincare regime that mainly involves a couple of simple lifestyle habits.

Revealing her exact routine is Angelina's trusted dermatologist, who she's been seeing for three decades of treatment. Angelina says she was introduced to Rhonda Rand at the age of 11 by her mother, who died in 2007.

"It’s who my mother [Marcheline Bertrand] brought me to [Dr Rand] when I was little with my first scar," she told InStyle. "To have somebody who is very encouraging of being as natural as possible has really helped me, I think."

Dr Rand not only has a natural focus on skincare, but she's also proven excellent at keeping their professional relationship secret. Never has Dr Rand spoken publicly about Angelina or her kids, who also get advice from the dermatologist.

"I take care of a lot of celebrities and part of the reason I think I do is that I don’t talk about it," Dr Rand told Refinery 29. "A lot of dermatologists will disclose famous patients and post it on Instagram. I’d never do that because it’s not me."

But now, with Angelina's blessing, Dr Rand has revealed all. Here are the 6 main things to learn about how to get skin as good as Angelina Jolie's.

1. Think ahead

Dr Rand says Angelina started young. "When [Jolie] knew she was going to have an acting career, she wanted to take care of her skin in the most sensible way," she said.

2. Nothing fancy, just good quality basics

"It was really just sunscreen, proper cleansing with a mild, gentle cleanser, antioxidants, sometimes glycolic [acids], and natural products," Dr Rand described of Angelina's skincare product arsenal. "Some alpha hydroxy [acids] are good too, and they’re very natural. She doesn’t need major scrubs or products with lots of chemicals."

3. Not too much makeup

"The thing about [Angelina] is she never wears makeup unless she’s working — it’s probably another reason her skin looks good," Dr Rand explained. "She’s also good about removing makeup. I know her makeup artist is super careful about what she puts on her skin and takes good care of it when she's working."

4. She doesn't slack off on her routine

"When she travels, she takes a good skin care regimen with her [including] alpha hydroxys or antioxidants," says Dr Rand. "There’s a product of mine that she loves [called] Dermbasics RR Perfection Cream. It’s a chemical-free antioxidant sunscreen and that’s a good thing to travel with."

5. She knows to be wary of the sun

"She’s olive skinned like her mom, but it’s not like she lets herself get dark," says Dr Rand. "She’s been so good about using sunscreen from such an early age to protect her skin. She knew that the sun is not good for skin in general — in terms of pigmentation problems and that sort of thing. She’s also good about wearing hats, which is so important. She hydrates a lot and does a lot of good moisturising, but again, it’s the sun protection that’s going to stop you from ageing more than anything."

6. She doesn't get many special treatments

"I basically try not to do too much. There’s a light laser resurfacing we like to use sometimes, but just once in a while. It’s used to improve your skin and give it a little bit of a glow, but it’s a little more than a facial," Dr Rand says. She emphasises that she looks so naturally young because it is all natural – and it comes down to good genes: "She doesn't have any kind of a plastic look because [she] doesn’t do anything drastic — she doesn’t need it. She has really good genes and gets more and more beautiful with time."

Doesn't sounds too hard, does it? While we might not be blessed with the same genes, there certainly are a few tips in there we could easily follow too. And I for one am glad that no vampire facials were mentioned...