The aging eye can still look vital and sexy, but the application method has to be different than it was in our 20’s. Even skin tone, nicely framed brows, softly defined lashes and liner, along with soft blush and fuller lips makes for a vibrant, healthy makeup. People will be mesmerized by your personality and wisdom rather than stuck on looking at over or under done makeup.
1. Eye Shadow
The fast, easy and effective way to a great eye is to powder your entire lid with a dual finish powder (which also acts like a primer and prevents creasing) or a bisque coloured eyeshadow.
Use a slight shimmer bisque like MAC Naked Lunch on the inside corner of the eye more on the nose than the eyelid. This brightens it up without calling attention to lines.
With a taupe matte, eyeshadow place shadow along the lash line and at the outer corner of our eye lid. Then extend along the crease. For hooded eyes apply to the outer third of the lid blending upward and outward. Then with the same colour, apply softly along the lower lash line directly under the lashes with most of the weight on the outer corner and blend into the centre.
Next, apply a dark brown or black depending on your skin colour, along the lash line blending outward and slightly upward. Blending is very important here with the idea that most of the weight is along the lash line.
2. Blush
“Less is more” is the general rule of thumb these days and especially to achieve a natural and enhanced look. If you can see your blush before your face, then its probably too much and will give that “old lady trying too hard to hang on to a look from 30 years ago look”.
Use blush in the same colour tone as your lipcolour. Smile and apply blush with a dome brush on the apple of your cheek sweeping out and up along the cheek line. Then add another soft sweep across your entire eye for a little warmth and harmony.
Remember - too much blush looks like you're trying to hard - too little makes you look tired and worn.
3. Luscious Lips
Here's 2 approaches for the fine line dilemma.
1. Use a pencil liner and a clear wax pencil directly above your pencil line to stop bleeding. Fill in the lips with the pencil (which should be close in shade to your lipstick and then top off with lipstick, blot, powder and apply lipstick again. Add a touch of balm rather than gloss to the centre of your lips and well within the outside line.
2. I use Maybelline Superstay lip paint every day which comes with a lip balm.This long wearing lip colour makes it easier to line your lips to their fullest without fear of them running and it wears for hours - truly. As our lips shrink with age use shades that are a bit brighter - but not like a neon sign. The myth about avoiding dark lip colours is just that in my opinion. Too light a lip can make you look washed out and tired - which, let's face, isn't our best look. Even with a light lip colour, the trick is to put some weight behind it which is achieved with a darker colour underneath.
Tip - Its more about the tools and application techniques than the products.
Sharon Danley, Master Artist
416-361-9662 - info@brides-beautiful.com
