Stud tail/Acne on the Cheeks?

I called my veterinarian this morning to ask about this problem and he said he's never had a problem like this - no complaints or anything. He said he'd look in his books and get back with me in a few days. Since I can't take the waiting, I thought I'd ask about the problem here.

The problem is that my 9 y/o, spayed female has something similar to stud tail on her cheeks around the whisker area. It doesn't smell or anything, but when she rubs her face on my face, I end up getting pimples. I've been dealing with the problem for over 8 months and for the first several months, I thought it was my hormones or something. Then I tried doing several things differently and determined it's the cat causing the pimples. This didn't use to happen when she rubbed her face on my face. But when I comb her whisker area with a flea comb, there's this brown stuff almost identical to the brown stuff related to stud tail. The only difference is that the stuff on her face is drier than the stuff on her tail.

Does anyone know what this stuff is or what this disorder might be called? I've never heard of cats getting stud tail on their face, so there must be another name for it. Everything I can find about feline acne indicates that cats mostly get it on their chin.

And no, I am not using plastic dishes. Everything is either ceramic or stainless steel.

What really bugs me the most is that the cat is causing my face to break out in pimples, when she rubs her face on mine. So I can't let her rub her face on mine anymore. So now we're both upset about that.

do these pimples come immediately, or after some time?  How long time, roughly?

Guessing it's some type of dermatitis allergy.  I would collect the brown stuff, take it to your vet, and have him culture it.  (I developed a huge, water filled blister on my leg that was probably a reaction to chicken dandruff or garden fertilizer.  I could have charged people money to see it, it was that big.)

However, the symptoms don't really match that of a stud tail--stuff on the tail usually smells, blackheads, yellow to black waxy debris.  http://www.cat-world.com.au/stud-tail-in-cats.  I take it that's not present on your cat's face.

On the other hand, anything new in the apartment her face could be getting into that she then gets onto you, and which you are allergic to?

Has you cat been officially diagnosed with stud tail?

lilblu and ritz--did  you ever find out what was causing this issue with your cat? My tux kitty has been suffering from a combo of studtail/acne/crusty paw/and eye goo for nearly a year. Nothing we have done has helped yet (many, many vet trips.) Any ideas of how you treated your kitty would be most helpful! Thanks!