Our skin changes as we age, as do our concerns and needs. In your teens and 20s, you might have been fighting against acne or oily skin. Fast forward 25 years and you’re now battling wrinkles, age spots and dry skin.
Just as our concerns change with age, so do our needs to meet them. And just as our skin changes, so does the way makeup sits on it. You wouldn’t wear the same dress you wore on your 18th birthday, so why would you wear the same makeup?A Good Base
A good skin care routine and a healthy complexion are important to create a good base for your makeup. Moisturizing and exfoliation are crucial to create a primed canvas for makeup because makeup will grab on to any available dry skin to make itself appear heavy and obvious.Primer
After you allow a lightweight moisturizer to fully sink in, apply a quick absorbing primer to target your troubled areas. Primers even out skin tone, conceal large pores and fine lines, and hold your foundation in place. Don’t try too hard to create a perfect, wrinkle-free canvas since trying to hide your wrinkles ends up drawing more attention to them. Less is more when it comes to make up after 40.Start With The Eyes
You might be surprised to learn after all these years that you’ve probably been applying makeup in the wrong order. You actually want to start with the eyes, not foundation. It reduces the risk of any eyeshadow fallout that can create the appearance of dark circles and prevents any excess makeup from setting into your fine lines and wrinkles. As we get older, the skin around our eyes thins and our eyelids become slightly transparent, displaying some uneven tones of blues and reds. Use an anti-aging eyeshadow primer to even out the lid.Shadow
Begin eyeshadow application from the outer corner of the eye and work your way inwards so that the color gradually lightens as you approach the inner corner, lending you a more wide-eyed look. We want our eyes to appear as big and youthful as possible, and overdone eyes can make them seem weighed down and droopy. Don’t extend the shadow beyond the edge of the eye – it makes eyes look tired and accentuates saggy skin along the jawline. The eyelids can become hooded and droopy as we age, cheating the lids out of space and making them appear smaller. A fantastic trick (and my personal favorite) is to create a “faux” lifted crease by sweeping the contouring shadow slightly above your natural crease instead of directly on it. This creates an illusion to open the eyes, hiding the hood and making them look bigger. When it comes to choosing colors, steer clear of browns. Their yellow and red pigments can make the eyes look tired. Always opt for a matte shadow, not shimmery. Sparkly makeup on older, textured skin accentuates your wrinkles.Liner
As for eyeliner colors, many older women find that black liner looks harsher than it used to when they were younger. Brown is softer, or give navy blue a try – it makes the eyes look whiter. Liquid liner can come off a bit heavy on older eyes, and wrinkles can make it difficult to swipe liquid or gel liner smoothly across the lash line. Try dotting with a pencil liner between each lash to make your eyes pop – it won’t tug at the lids and provides a more natural and even line. Keep in mind that lining the bottom lid or waterline makes the eyes look smaller, so only do so if you wish. Or better yet, apply a white or cream colored liner to your waterline to make your eyes appear larger.Mascara
Just as skin changes with age, so do lashes. Your lashes can become brittle and thinner over time and mascara can become too clumpy for the fragile hairs. To avoid spiky spider lashes, opt for a lengthening mascara instead of a clumpy thickening formula.Brows
A thicker brow instantly makes you look younger. Some makeup artists prefer to do eyebrows before eye makeup. They give the eye a bigger frame to work with, and you might end up needing and applying less makeup on the eye. Eyebrows severely thin out as we age, so try to keep them as full as possible. Trim them instead of plucking (since they might not grow back) and make sure to fill them in for a more youthful appearance. Overdone brows come off as harsh and fake so apply a pencil in a natural shade with feather light strokes. If you have dark hair, choose a color one or two shades lighter and if you have blond or grey hair, choose one or two shades darker.
