Makeup Tips for Women over 40

Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize.

Skin – One of the biggest problems with age is dryness. To brighten and plump up your skin, and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, apply a hydrating moisturizer with Hyaluronic Acid to your entire face.  Also dab a bit of eye cream around your eyes, both top lid and under your eye.  Hyaluronic acid is like the fountain of youth. It is created in your body naturally, and is a heavy contributor to keeping your skin supple and hydrated. Production tapers off as you age, so, too, does the firmness and radiance of your complexion. So use a hyaluronic moisturizer twice a day to replace your natural production and maximize the cosmetic effects of this product.

Eyebrows – Your eyebrows are the “frame” of your face, and a great set of full eyebrows gives you a youthful appearance. Clean up your brow-line, plucking away any stray or unruly hairs. But don’t go crazy. You want to create fullness. Use either a pencil, or shadow and wax, to fill-in and create fullness in the eyebrows. Don’t overarch your eyebrows as this gives your face a harsh look.

Now let’s create flawless skin!

Primer – A quality primer fills in all the little specks and spots and reduces the appearance of pores. A primer also minimizes the appearance of fine wrinkles and aids in flawless foundation application. Apply with a brush for even coverage.

Concealer – As your moisturizer and primer soak in, use a yellow-based concealer to brighten under eyes and act as a natural highlighter. Dot concealer under eyes and on any red spots on the face. Blend with a brush.

Foundation – Use a warm, yellow-based color. Use a tinted moisturizer, a hydrating crème, or liquid foundation. Mix your foundation with your moisturizer for a dewy look. Apply with a brush or sponge.

Let’s add some dimension!

Contour and Highlighter – Use a contour color or bronzer color a few shades darker than your foundation. Apply in the hollows of your cheeks, on the temple and along the jaw line. This will help define your face.

Add a warm highlighter along the tops of your cheekbones for a dewy glow.

Eyes – The secret to making up a mature face is to not go overboard. You don’t want to appear as if you are wearing a lot of makeup, so start light and add more if needed.

Start by lining your eyes with a flesh toned pencil to create brightness. Line both the upper and lower lids as well as the

waterline. This makes you look awake and takes years off your face.

If you want a natural, light eye, simply sweep a bright colored neutral matte shade over the entire lid. Apply a liner over the upper lashes, smudging so you don’t have a harsh line.

For a bolder look, apply a contour shadow in the eye crease. Stay away from frosted eye shadow. Instead use a light grey or brown matte shadow to create definition. If you feel like you need to use a frosted shadow, only use it in the inside corners of your eyes.

Eyeliner – Follow with a dark brown, plum or grey liner to give softness to your face. Only use black liner if you have darker skin.  Make a thin line close to your lash line to add fullness to your lashes and open up your eyes. Set with a matching shade of eye shadow by lightly brushing shadow over liner with a thin angled brush.  Avoid lining under the eyes. If you want to add depth under your eyes, use an eye shadow color a few shades lighter than your contour shadow.

Mascara – Use a brown/black or navy mascara to avoid harshness. Always apply two coats of mascara to achieve thick lush lashes.

Blush – Not everyone needs it, but if you chose to wear blush, add a crème or powder blush in a peach or pink tone, but only on the apples of your cheeks, to add warmth to your face.

Setting Your Makeup – Dewy skin equals youth. And once we hit a certain age, it is harder to get dewy skin naturally. I like to skip the powder when I do my makeup, but if you feel like you need to use it to set your makeup, use a colorless, translucent, light diffusing powder. Brush lightly all over the face at the end of your makeup routine, just before you apply lipstick. Avoid using powders with color as they can make the skin look dull and flat.

For women with dark under-eye circles, use a bright pink Under Eye Brightening Powder. This powder can also be used as a highlighter in the t-zone area, as an alternative to Finishing Powder. This is what I prefer.

I then set my makeup with a spray mist. This adds dewiness to the skin as well as setting your makeup in place. Try it, but don’t touch your makeup until after the fine mist is dry.

Lips – Lipstick can really make or break a look so use the following guidelines for perfect lips every time!

First line your lips with a flesh tone pencil. This will prevent feathering, and will visually increase the fullness of your lips.

Stick with matte lip shades for a fresh, youthful look. Add a gloss to the center of the lower lip for dimension, as well as to plump up your lips.

If you wear glasses, use a bright, bold lip color to balance out the heaviness of the frames.

Not sure which shade is best for you? The best natural lip shade will be just a shade or two darker than your natural lip color.

If you have fair skin, use either a nude shade in a slightly apricot hue, or use pinks and light corals.

Women with medium skin tone can go a bit darker. You look great in roses, mauves and berries.

Deep plum, chocolate or red is fabulous with dark or black skin.

If you’ve made up your eyes heavily, go for a light or nude lip.

I love a bold red lip, but if you are going to wear a bold lip, tone down the eye makeup. Keep the shadow neutral.

A classic smoky eye goes great with a nude lip.

Dark lipstick on a heavily made up face can look clownish, and also makes your teeth appear yellow. Frosted shades can make you look older, by reducing the appearance of the size of your lips, so try to avoid these mistakes!