How to apply makeup to mature skin

As I begin writing this article, it suddenly dawns on me, what is mature skin? We live in a time when your chronological age does not determine the age of your skin. As we become more focused on trying to keep our youthfulness for longer, beauty industries have bombarded us with all kinds of technologies and products to assist us on this quest.

My mom is 55 years old and she maintains a skin age of someone that is in their late thirties. Call it great genes? Well, I hope so.

So before we go any further, lets begin with breaking down what mature skin is.

It is in your forties that you start seeing the first signs of ageing, and this is because it is at this time when the collagen production in your skin starts slowing down. As a result, the skin begins to lose elasticity and the start of fine lines and wrinkles slowly creeps in.

If you are not ritual with your facial routines and whatever supplements you take to help the skin regenerate, then the skin starts to quickly age. So from fine lines and wrinkles, you will quickly begin to start noticing that the wrinkles will deepen, the appearance of crows feet, and the skin will feel dehydrated.

When applying makeup to this type of skin, which is very wrinkled, sagging and dehydrated, one should move with caution. If makeup is applied incorrectly, you may stand the chance of looking older than you actually are.

Tips on how to apply makeup to mature skin.

• It is important to ensure that the skin is moisturised.
• Use a pre base that will have a tightening effect on the skin.
• Mature skin generally has the presence of hyper-pigmentation, if this is present I suggest you conceal with either a colour corrector or a concealer that is 2 shades lighter than the skin.
• When choosing a foundation, it is best to opt for one that has a moisturising effect to help with the dehydration.
• Apply powder sparingly. If too much powder is applied to the face, the powder will cling and settle into the wrinkles making the wrinkles appear deeper.
• When applying blusher, you may opt for a cream blusher, however if you are, then it is important to note that this should be applied before the powder.
• Blushers should be neutral, so stick to shades of browns, peach etc.
• When neatening out the eyebrows, opt for a shade as close to the natural brows, maybe 1 shade darker, keep them natural and avoid overly dramatic eyebrows.
• When working with the eyes, stick to matte shades, shimmer shades can enhance the wrinkles in the eyes. Again, stick to a neutral palette.
• When lining the eyes, keep the eyeliner as close to the lash line as possible, depending on the skin tone, you may want to choose a brown liner.
• As we get older, the skin around the mouth develops cracks, and this is worse if you are a smoker, so to avoid feathering of the lipstick, line the lips before applying lipstick. Nothing too dark, rather keep it subtle.