Doing makeup over the age of 40 doesn’t have to be a battle. You can have beautiful skin and that youthful look you desire with a little knowledge and planning.
The information below will guide your makeup routine and help you avoid common makeup mistakes after 40. The best part is, you don’t need to buy professional makeup, or be a makeup artist, to bring out your natural beauty.
Challenges In The Makeup Game
First, familiarize yourself with the challenges that all women face as they get older.
Everyone experiences changes to their skin and face. Dark circles, redness, and wrinkles are a simple fact of life. Your skin regenerates cells and produces collagen at a slower pace than it did in your twenties.1
But, you have a lot of control over the extent to which these changes actually shape your appearance with your makeup application.
How To Win At Makeup Over 40
Let Your Skin Tone Guide Your Choices
One of the leading makeup mistakes in the post-40 game is overdoing it. Embrace this new stage of your makeup evolution. That means using subtlety to emphasize your skin type and tone.
Focus On Skin Care In Your Makeup Routine
Skin care increases in importance over the years. As you get older, your body produces less collagen and elastin, the proteins that help keep skin smooth and free of wrinkles.2
Nurture it and care for it before you start applying those first layers of blush.
Take a look at these products. They are crucial for maintaining healthy skin and helping to restore some of that youthful glow from your twenties.
Anti-Aging Products
A good anti-aging serum, particularly one with hyaluronic acid and other beneficial ingredients, works wonders on your skin. Skin that doesn’t receive enough moisture tends to look more wrinkled.
Studies have shown that using these products can help lock in moisture and minimize the appearance of fine lines.3
Hydrolyzed Collagen
Cosmetics and formulas that feature collagen are relative newcomers to the skincare and makeup market. Studies have shown that introducing collagen back to your body might have positive results for your skin.4
Face Creams And Moisturizers
Hydration is essential for skin health. Makeup also looks much better when applied to skin that is hydrated rather than skin that is dry and flakey. Look for a rich moisturizer that is specially-formulated with hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid and aloe vera.
Choosing A Cream Over A Face Powder
Opting for a cream over a powder can be beneficial if you have dry skin. That’s because powders can add unwanted accentuation to dry lines. The moisturizing properties of a cream can help provide a more dewy finish to your skin.
Translucent Powder
Brighten your look without adding unnecessary coloring. These sheer powders can help conceal while also bringing out your complexion’s natural glow. These can be particularly useful if you start to find dark circles under the eyes or extra redness in the skin.
The Do’s And Don’ts Of Eye And Lip Makeup
Remember that old saying that the eyes are the gateway to the soul? If that’s true, then a quality concealer, eye shadow, and eyeliner are the keys to that gateway. A little lip service goes a long way too.
Don’t do your long lashes the disservice of hiding them by overdoing it with eyeshadow. Ease off on heavy contouring, opt for lighter, neutral shadow shades, and accentuate the lashes with a flattering stroke of subtle mascara.
Do add a little volume to your lashes with a tiny bit of eyeliner under your top lash line. Keep those pencil lines light, though.
Do use your sophisticated sensibilities whenever applying beauty products to your eyes. The dark lines and contours that over-application can create do the opposite of making you look younger, so apply in moderation.
Don’t go too dark on the lip liner. It creates unflattering contrasts, especially if it’s darker than your lip gloss or lipstick.
Do choose a lip liner that is close to your natural color. Avoid the super dark tones.
Put Your Makeup Routine Into Action
At the end of the day, much of your success depends on your skin care routine.
The Importance Of Prep
As mentioned, you need to moisturize. Of course. You know that. It’s one of the most important things you can do to maintain healthy skin.5
You also need to apply a primer before putting on makeup.
A quality primer can help hydrate your skin. Moisture smooths out lines and wrinkles. This leaves a much nicer surface for you to apply your makeup.
Think of your skin as the canvas upon which you will add your deft and artistic brush strokes. If you let the canvas dry out, then no amount of paint will look good on it.
Proper Removal
Remove your makeup at the end of each day. Remembering to remove your makeup helps keep your skin healthy and allows it to breathe.
Sleeping in makeup can clog your pores and cause dryness.
After removing your makeup you might also use an exfoliating product to help slough away dead skin cells.
This keeps your skin healthy and prepares it better for the next day’s application. Look for a gentle polishing scrub or an acid peel product that is specially-formulated with glycolic or lactic acid.
Keep It Simple
Natural is beautiful. You don’t need to cover your whole face in foundation and powder. You’re not trying to hide behind your makeup. It is only there to help accentuate your natural beauty.
The Final Touch Up
Doing your makeup after 40 is only as scary as you let it be. You know who you are now, and that’s a beautiful thing. It’s time to let the whole world see that side of you. Don’t conceal when you can reveal.
Learn More:
6 Powerful Eye Makeup Tips For Women Over 60
The Most Common Makeup Mistakes That Age You Fast
Amazing Rose Water Skin Benefits
Sources
1 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6047276/
2 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3583892/
3 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5774901/
4 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30122200
5 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10086859