Ink marks and redness on face

[ArtGirl42]

Hello! I am relatively new here  - I retouched 5 or 6 photos last year and am now getting back into it. My current photo had lots of writing in ink on the back that has seeped onto the front, and maybe some water damage as well. I was able to get out most of the ink, but there are still some marks on the woman's face that I am struggling with. I tried the healing brush and clone stamp ,but her face lost all texture and looked like a mask.

Does anyone have a technique that would work with this? Thanks for any tips you can pass along! I am always looking to improve my retouching skills!

[Pat]

For the ink marks on her face try the spot healing brush set at 2px and content-aware while viewing the file at about 200%

Pat

[ArtGirl42]

Thanks, Pat! I was able to get rid of the ink marks, but am now left with blotchy skin. I've tried Cloning, but the skin looks very flat to me. How can I even out skin tone without flattening it? Due to discoloration there was not a lot of correct skin tone to clone from.

[JackR]

If it is kosher here you might find a good skin tone on another pic and clone that to your restore...