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Beauty Exclusives |
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from Paula Begoun, The Cosmetics Cop |
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Don't Let Makeup Age You!
How to Use Makeup to Look Years Younger
As you age, your makeup techniques and products should grow up, too. Wearing what you wore when you were 15 or 25 is rarely a great fashion statement at 40 or 50. Learning how to enhance certain features, such as your eyes and cheekbones, while downplaying others, such as crow's-feet or a slightly sagging jaw, can make you look dramatically younger, and it's easier than you think! Below we've listed the top concerns women struggle with as they age - plus solutions so you'll look better than ever!
Fine lines under or around the eye area:
Use a slightly creamy concealer, but be careful not to overdo it. Layering too much product draws attention to wrinkles and may look cakey. A concealer brush ensures expert application and also smoothes over fine lines so you can avoid creasing.
To help prevent concealer from slipping into lines around your eye, set it with a sheer, luminous (but not shiny) powder, and stop applying overly emollient moisturizers around your eye. Use those at night instead.
Concealers you'll love:
- Elizabeth Arden Flawless Finish Maximum Coverage Concealer ($18)
- M.A.C. Select Cover-Up ($16.50)
- Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Double Face Perfector ($7.49)
Sparse or thin eyelashes:
Pairing an eyelash growth enhancement product with fabulous mascara will work wonders for your lashes! Just be careful not to get taken by the misleading eyelash "boosting" products that do not work as claimed, and there are tons of them!
Eyelash growth products that really work:
- Latisse (prescription only; approx. $140)
- Peter Thomas Roth Lashes to Die for Platinum ($125)
- RapidLash Eyelash Renewal Serum ($49.95)
Stunning mascaras to give your lashes that extra oomph:
Drooping or sagging eyes:
If the outer corners of your eyes droop, make sure when applying eyeliner that you turn it upward ever-so-slightly at the corners. This will de-emphasize the downturned corners and create a more youthful look.
You also can experiment with applying a thin line on the inner corner of the lash line and make it gradually thicker toward the back third of the lid for an attractive, classic look. Avoid heavy eyeliner along the lower lash line, which closes up the eye and adds years to your face!
Check out these smear-free eyeliners:
- L'Oreal HIP Studio Secrets Color Truth Cream Eyeliner ($12)
- M.A.C. Fluidline ($15)
- Rimmel Exaggerate Full Color Eye Definer ($6.29)
Sparse or thin brows:
Brows that are obviously drawn on instantly age you, and can look severe! The key to pulling off natural-looking brows is to find a product that has a light texture and is easy to apply.
Paula's Choice Browlistic Long-Wearing Precision Brow Color ($9.95) is one of the best brow-enhancement products we've ever seen, especially when you finish it with Paula's Choice Brow/Hair Tint ($9.95).
Other good brow fillers in powder and pencil form:
- Anastasia of Beverly Hills Brow Powder Duo ($22)
- Maybelline New York Define-A-Brow Eyebrow Pencil ($5.99)
Wrinkly eyelids:
If you have wrinkly eyelids, one of the best things to do is avoid sparkly eyeshadows! They always make wrinkles more obvious. Eyeshadows with a hint of soft shimmer are OK, but it's best to apply them to the brow bone rather than on the eyelid itself.
Try these beautifully matte eyeshadows:
- Revlon Matte Powder Eyeshadow ($4.99; sold as singles)
- Physicians Formula Matte Collection Quad Eye Shadow ($6.75)
- Laura Mercier Matte Eye Colour ($22; sold as singles)
Dull or yellowish skin tone:
Want more radiant-looking skin? Don't wear heavy foundation because an obvious layer of foundation doesn't make anyone look young. Instead, try a lightweight, luminous foundation, but make sure it doesn't sparkle. And be sure your skin-care routine includes a good exfoliant - a surefire way to bring back a youthful glow almost overnight!
Check out these foundations for smooth results and a hint of radiance:
- Bobbi Brown Oil-Free Even Finish Compact Foundation ($40)
- Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation ($58)
- Estee Lauder Resilience Lift Extreme Radiant Lifting Foundation SPF 15 ($36.50)
- Maybelline New York Dream Liquid Mousse Airbrush Finish ($8.99)
For a sheer foundation with sun protection, consider these favorites:
For a luminous finish that enlivens your skin, try these powders:
- Estee Lauder Nutritious Vita-Mineral Loose Powder Makeup SPF 15 ($34)
- L'Oreal Translucide Naturally Luminous Powder ($11.99)
- Lorac Translucent Touch Up Powder ($32)
Thinning lips:
It's a fact: Lips turn inward as we get older, so using lipliner does help. But, don't make the mistake of drawing past your natural lip line; just accent it with a color that matches your lip color. Your lips will look more enhanced, but not overdone!
Lipliners that won't let you down:
- Sephora Waterproof Retractable Lip Liner ($12)
- Clinique Quickliner for Lips ($14)
- L'Oreal Infallible Never Fail Lipliner ($8.99)
Skin looking too pale:
Blush is the answer for perking up a complexion at any age, but especially as we get older and our circulation isn't as strong. Wearing blush adds a healthy flush to your skin - and you can do it without looking clownish! Sometimes it helps to wear more blush than you think you should - really! We know that advice sounds a little crazy, but if you can't see the blush, it's not doing anything for you. Just be sure to check it in daylight and blend well for soft edges.
Some of our favorite blushes:
- Boots No7 Cheek Tint ($9.99; cream-to-powder)
- Neutrogena Healthy Glow Blush & Bronzer ($12.40; powder blush and bronzer in one compact)
- Revlon Cream Blush ($8.79; cream-to-powder)
- JK Jemma Kidd Chic Cheeks Powder Blush ($18)
Final tips for makeup that makes you look younger:
Stick to neutral-tone eyeshadows. Forget about colors like blue or green or obvious colors of any kind - they'll only make you look older. Just because a 20-year-old model or actress is wearing it, doesn't mean you should. And, to tell the truth, those colors don't look all that great on her, either.
If you don't know how to make your eyeshadow design look like something you see in a fashion magazine, don't wear it. Keep it simple: lipstick, blush, concealer, foundation, brows (if needed), mascara, and a little powder.
Use products for your skin type! If you have oily skin, you can't use what someone with dry skin uses, no matter what it says on the label. Many "anti-aging" or "mature skin" products are formulated with dry skin in mind, but just because you're older doesn't necessarily mean you have dry skin.
Apply powder lightly. Powder often comes with a powder puff, but using a brush instead distributes the powder much better and gives you a more natural look.
Always use professional quality brushes to apply makeup. You'll get better, smoother results with less effort, not to mention that the best brushes feel exquisite as you're enhancing your appearance. |
Paula's Online Radio Show
This Week's Topic: Look Younger Without Surgery: Special Guest Dr. Brandith Irwin
LIVE Every Thursday at 6pm PT, 8pm CT, 9pm ET
This was one of our most popular shows, and we are sharing it with you again! Nationally recognized dermatologist Dr. Brandith Irwin, author of The Surgery-Free Makeover, shares her non-surgical solutions for sagging skin. You won't want to miss this opportunity to get expert advice from Dr. Irwin and The Paula's Choice Team!
Listen Online (previous shows available too!). To listen live and ask Paula questions, call 347.426.3783.
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Paula's Product Pick
 NEUTROGENA Eye Makeup Remover Lotion-Hydrating ($6.99 for 3 fl. oz.). This is a standard, but effective, fragrance-free eye-makeup remover. If you prefer a makeup remover with a lotion texture rather than a liquid texture, this is absolutely worth considering.
It is suitable for all skin types (including sensitive), and deserves our top rating due to its mildness and the good range of skin-conditioning ingredients (some of which also help remove makeup). This product is suitable for taking off waterproof or long-wearing makeup, too.
For the latest new product reviews, reference Beautypedia.com - now FREE for everyone, all the time. Beautypedia features over 45,000 detailed product reviews and is the expanded, online version of my best-selling book Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me.
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Dear Paula
Dear Paula,
I was looking at the list of ingredients (as I do with every product now) in a Biotherm serum I'm considering and the fourth ingredient is plain alcohol. I thought cosmetic companies weren't allowed to use plain alcohol in their products, so my question is: are they now using the word "alcohol" in replacement of "alcohol denat"? Or does this product contain straight alcohol?
Susie, via email
Dear Susie,
Although it may be surprising, plain alcohol is allowed in cosmetics, but there is a difference between the types of alcohol in, say, a bottle of vodka versus what's used in skin-care products. The vodka contains pure alcohol (ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol) while the skin-care product typically contains a denatured form of the same ingredient. It is denatured (made to taste bad) so people won't want to drink the product (really).
On a cosmetic ingredient label, companies can list plain alcohol as "Alcohol", "Alcohol Denat.", "Alcohol Denatured" or it may be represented by initials and a number (such as "SD Alcohol 39-C"). All of these are examples of the denatured alcohols that show up in skin-care products.
Regardless of how it is listed, pure alcohol in skin-care products is a source of dryness, irritation, and free-radical damage. Even if you cannot see the damage taking place, it is happening and hurting your skin's ability to heal and produce healthy collagen. That's why my team and I typically advise against using skin-care products that contain alcohol. Note that ingredients such as cetyl and stearyl alcohol are not the types of alcohol we advise against. Despite the "alcohol" portion of the name, these ingredients are not harmful to your skin.
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Ingredient Spotlight
Mexoryl SX. Also called ecamsule (technical name terephthalylidine dicamphor sulfonic acid), Mexoryl SX is a synthetic sunscreen agent developed and patented by L'Oreal and used in the company's sunscreen products sold outside the United States since 1993 (first approved for use in Europe in 1991). In July 2006, the FDA approved the use of Mexoryl SX in the United States, but only in a single sunscreen product, La Roche-Posay's Anthelios SX SPF 15 (L'Oreal owns La Roche-Posay). The FDA did not approve Mexoryl SX for use in any other sunscreen; only in that one specific product. Anthelios SX will list Mexoryl SX as ecamsule on the label along with the other actives avobenzone and octocrylene (both of these sunscreen ingredients have been approved for use in the United States for years).
L'Oreal blitzed the media with press releases about this approval, touting Mexoryl SX's improved stability when compared with avobenzone, or intimating that it is the best UVA sunscreen available. According to sunscreen expert Ken Klein, president of Cosmetech Labs, who also teaches sunscreen formulation classes for the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, although Mexoryl SX does not degrade after hours of sun exposure at the same rate as avobenzone, it does indeed break down, losing 40% of its protective properties. Studies have shown that after controlled doses of UV exposure, avobenzone breaks down at a rate of 65%, so Mexoryl SX does have a slight stability edge. However, avobenzone can be made more stable by combining it with other active ingredients, specifically octocrylene (Source: International Journal of Pharmaceutics, January 13, 2006, pages 123–128). Outside the United States, Tinosorb (another sunscreen active) is often used to enhance the stability of avobenzone (Source: Photochemistry and Photobiology, September 2001, pages 401–406). It is also important to note that all sunscreen ingredients break down to some extent when exposed to sunlight, which is why reapplication of sunscreen is critical to maintaining protection.
Interestingly, the press releases touting Mexoryl SX's superiority as a UVA-protecting sunscreen ingredient don't mention the active ingredients titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, which have long been available worldwide in sunscreen formulations, and that offer protection across a greater range of wavelengths with almost no possible risk of irritation, which is a pervasive problem with synthetic sunscreen agents such as Mexoryl SX. Regarding protection, UVA rays have a range of 320–400 nanometers. Although Mexoryl SX protects within this range, titanium dioxide and zinc oxide protect across the entire UVA and UVB spectrum, from 230 to 700 nanometers. Mexoryl SX is an effective UVA sunscreen agent, but it is by no means the only or absolute best one to look for.
Have you checked out our NEW Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary? It is now organized so you can search from over 1,600 ingredients by category and rating. Find out which ingredients are worth looking for, which are controversial, and which are a problem for all skin types!
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