Any mothers, grannies or aunties of the bride that I have done have always looked slightly apprehensive and a little scared of the make-up brush. So, for any wedding guests that are doing their own wedding make up and are of a certain vintage, here are some tips:
Fab and Over Fifty
In my line of work, I regularly do the faces of many a mature lady; in fact it is one of my favourite things to do. Here are some good no nonsense tips about looking fab over fifty. Be brand aware. Know your brands and their age appropriateness. My fave over 50 brands are Shiseido, Elizabeth Arden, Chanel and Clarins. The consultants at these brands are expert in older and mature skins.
- Skincare
Love your skin use the best skincare you can afford, be religious in taking off your make up and applying moisturiser and eye cream.
- Get back to basics
As a rule, mature skin tends to be drier so opt for more radiant lustrous cover in a foundation rather than a longer wear option. You want and may need a good coverage but heavy is not always best.
So some good examples are Armani Luminous silk or Shiseido Radiant lifting. Conceal any problem areas with a concealer and then apply foundation only where you need it rather than like a mask on the face. If you can practice using a brush to apply your foundation, It will ensure you don’t overload your face with product and will give a nice even look and flawless finish…. Less is more.
- Blush
Regains your youth with a nice sweep of a cream or light powder blush. Use it on the apples (the highest point when you smile) of your cheeks and sweep outwards.
- Eyebrows
Keep them defined and as close to your natural shape as possible. An easy trick is to use an eyebrow pencil that has a little brush on the end of it. Blend blend blend. Our brows can become sparse as we get older however that doesn’t mean that we forget them. They frame the face.
- Eyes
This is probably the trickiest area to get right. I think that the aging eye needs definition. Use soft colours with nice pigment and no glitter, this sits in fine lines and highlights them. Use brown mascara if your hair is blonde or brown, this looks classy and more elegant. If you like a smoky eye, use bronzes and browns to achieve the look rather than navy or black. A cream eye shadow is great for blending if you are nervous about using eye shadow…
- Lovely Lips
Always use a liner to stop lipstick bleeding and stick to hydrating ones. I am a huge fan of Revlon. Matte ones look great and are very on trend at the moment. They sit well on a mature or thin lip. Don’t feel that you can’t wear a bright lip, a red or coral adds instant glamour, just make sure that you apply it correctly. You can buy a retractable lip brush to keep in your handbag and use this. Blot and check your teeth
- Bronzer
Warm it up with a little bronzer, again sticking to matte with no glitter or red undertones as these can look orange. Use a nice big brush to apply it on the forehead nose and chin where the sun would catch you naturally. Finally a good rule of thumb with make-up trends is…. If you wore it first time round skip it this time!
Stay Gorgeous Ladies!
Image via Flickr
