I use blackhead eliminating stuff from Neutrogena. It has beads in it. I switched last year from a St Ives kind, and when I did a lot of the redness and irritation I had went away.
Also drink lots of water. It helps move the oils and bad toxins through your body.
And if you get bad zits that hurt when you touch them, put some neosporin on them before bed, or have a bandaid covering them while you're awake. I didn't think it'd work, but after trying it out for a few months off and on, the neosporin really helps with the painful ones.
As for makeup, I'd say look into the "Physician's Formula" makeup. Somewhere in their lineup, or around them in the store, is a moisturizer foundation that is pretty transparent, But it helps the skin while acting like make-up. And it layers easily to get more solid coverage