The 5 Essential Rules of Make-up For Older Women Caroline Labouchere @carolinelabouchere Getting older is something everyone dreads, especially women. However, many older celebrities such as Helen Mirren and Meryl Streep are not only ageing gracefully, but looking better than ever before. For these ladies, the key to looking radiant and beautiful comes from adapting their make-up to suit their older skin. Here at Secret Spa we have compiled a comprehensive guide to help you avoid make-up mishaps and restore beauty to your ageing features. 1. Choosing the right foundation colour There is nothing worse at any age than having a foundation that does not match your face and neck. Opting for a foundation that is too light will make skin lifeless and be very obvious, whilst a darker shade will leave your features looking heavy and dull. Whether you are going too light or too dark, you are guaranteed to be adding years onto your face. To find the perfect foundation shade for you, firstly take a look at the veins on your wrist. If they are noticeably blue then you require a more cool/ pink toned foundation. If your veins are greener, then you require a more yellow based/warmer toned foundation. Nowadays as well as having an array of foundation shades, most make-up brands offer a set of cool and warm toned products which makes choosing the correct foundation much easier. If you are really unsure on what shade to purchase then brands such as Dior and No.7 offer a skin scanning service which perfectly picks up on which shade is best for you. 2. Choosing the right foundation finish On the whole, power foundations are used for a matte finish and suitable for oilier skin types whereas liquid foundations leave a dewier finish more suited to drier skin types. However, understanding which foundation product is best suited to your skin is a crucial part of your make-up routine. Matte products have a tendency to make older, drier skin appear lifeless and dull and can stick to the lightest of facial hair. Unfortunately, opting for a liquid foundation can be equally as unflattering as liquid can sink into fine lines and enhance areas we would rather cover. The best products for mature skin come in the form of tinted moisturisers, BB and CC creams. The reason why all of these products are better suited for older skin is that they are subtle in terms of both coverage and finish and can enhance your natural features without bringing imperfections to attention. A great tip is to invest in a primer or face mask which can be used before foundation in order to plump and smooth out the skin. Smoother, fuller skin makes for a much better base for make-up. For a quick and luxurious face mask we love Beauty Pro’s Collagen Brightening Vitamin C mask which is perfect for adding radiance to dull skin. 3. Defining your brows As we age and our hair thins so do our brows. Sparse brows are the ultimate giveaway as to a person’s age and can make many women look older than they actually are. For most, the idea of filling in your eyebrows to add definition can be daunting as it’s a fairly new concept for a lot of women. For those who have no idea where to begin with their eyebrows, it is best to invest in a powder product as it’s much more subtle than an eyebrow pencil. A really great product for brow beginners is the Fab Brows Kit as it contains everything you need for fool proof, perfect brows. There are five shades to choose from and each kit contains your chosen powder shade, a dual ended brush, mirror and six brow stencils. If you are stuck when choosing between two shades always opt for the lighter colour as it is better to build up a shade than to over define with a darker colour. 4. Adding colour and fullness to your lips Our hair is not the only thing that thins as we age and unfortunately once plump lips can become thinner and may seem unworthy of attention. To add colour and fullness to your lips, firstly opt for a lipstick no more than one or two shades darker than your natural lip colour and finish with a little lip gloss. Lip gloss has the ability to instantly plump up the appearance of lips. By sticking to a lipstick not too dark and not too light you will avoid your lipstick bleeding and highlighting any fine lines and wrinkles around your mouth. For a super versatile and reliable product we recommend Dr Paw Paw’s soothing balm. This vitamin rich, multipurpose balm can be used to add sheen to your lips and also colour to your cheeks. The balm comes in a variety of subtle colours and we love their tinted peach pink balm for more mature ladies. 5. Eyes – Less is more For older women, eyeshadow can be a bit of a nightmare, especially when trying to apply it to wrinkly eyelids. Eyeshadow will never be able to fix such wrinkles, but the right one can still beautifully enhance your eye colour. A neutral shadow swept across the lid is the simplest, most effective way to highlight the faces best feature. To bring out the brown in hazel eyes opt for brown/golden shades and to bring out any green in your eyes try a touch of purple or burgundy. For those with blue eyes nothing looks more beautiful than shimmery champagne shades. For a night time look, try a neutral based shade with a light dusting of MAC Pigment shadow on top for a little extra sparkle. — You can book London’s best make-up artists to your home. Book Now
