Makeup Mistakes That Older Women Make

You can likely think of a couple of makeup mistakes you make, but not all of them are so obvious. The fact is that as your body ages, it goes through a whole lot. Your skin will have different needs in your 50s than it had when you were a teen. It becomes less oily and more prone to looking flat. Facial features tend to thin and lose fullness. Fine lines and wrinkles develop.

Plus, personal style changes throughout the seasons and stages of our lives. What we wear in high school is much different from what we wear later on in life (goodbye, low-rise jeans). The same can be said for our makeup. All of these changes mean that your makeup needs to adapt as well.

However, without the right beauty knowledge, many older women will continue to make a litany of mistakes when applying their makeup. Elise Marquam Jahns, a makeup artist who works with women over 40, told Byrdie that "information on makeup for women over 40 is definitely needed." That's where we come in. Here are the most common beauty blunders by mature women and how to fix them.

If you usually stick with just one shade of foundation, you might be making a makeup mistake. Makeup artist Sandy Linter advised choosing a base that's a shade or two darker than your skin tone. Start there and mix in lighter or darker shades as you need. "Even if you have ivory skin, you need to go a little bit warmer as you get older," Linter told Allure. Linter explained that warmer tones make skin look younger. The key is to avoid making the skin look ashy, especially since older skin gets dehydrated more easily.

When testing foundation shades, you'll want to use your jawline, not your arm or hand, for the most accurate color match. Kyriaki Savrani, makeup artist, told Women's Health, "The less obvious it is, the younger the result will be." Savrani suggested buying a foundation that reflects light to give you a fresh glow. The goal is to look natural and healthy, rather than like you're wearing a mask.

Famous makeup artist Bobbi Brown believes thick foundation is the number one makeup mistake made by older women. "It makes the skin look drier, and I think it makes them look even older," Brown explained to Yahoo.

Foundation that's applied to thickly will settle into wrinkles and can make your skin look flat. Makeup artist Frances Hathaway told Oprah.com, "Only use foundation where you need it to even out discoloration." You don't have to apply it to your whole face, but instead, use a sheer formula to avoid a cakey look. Alternatively, you can use a tinted moisturizer for a natural look.

When speaking with Allure, makeup artist Sandy Linter advised mature women to use a buildable foundation. That way, it's easier to control how much you're wearing. Chrisanne Davis provided Allure with another trick to keep foundation out of fine lines. Davis dampens a makeup sponge and presses it over wrinkles to catch any extra foundation that might settle there. Brilliant!

Omitting lip liner is a common mistake for women over 40. Lip liner can be really flattering, though. It makes your lips look fuller and defines your lip shape, Health explained. In addition, it "works as primer to prevent feathering." You don't want your lipstick smudging and wandering outside the line of your mouth, right? Lip liner prevents that by helping your lipstick stay in place.

If you're still scarred by the dramatic dark lip liner of the '90s, you can reach for a clear formula. Makeup artist Kari Bauce told HuffPost, "If you don't like the look or idea of liner, but still want your lipstick/gloss to stay in place, opt for a clear, mattifying pencil that will keep your makeup in place without adding extra color."

Now that you're convinced that lip liner is a must-have, what kind should you be looking for? We recommend using a creamy lip liner to make application easily. Plus, a creamy formula will prevent the makeup from highlighting dry patches on your lips.

Our skin is less oily as we age, so we don't really need powder anymore. Teenage you would be rejoicing to know that they wouldn't always be shiny by lunchtime. Young skin reflects light (thanks to all that oil), which powder prevents. Putting powder on skin that isn't oily just looks too matte and unnatural. It can also dry your skin out further.

"Look for one that's silky — not drying," Makeup artist Nick Barose suggested in an interview with Allure. In addition to being drying, makeup artist Stephanie Koutikas told Byrdie, "Most face powders tend to magnify lines in the skin, aging us." Not good. If you're set on using setting powder, though, Koutikas advised "switching to a sheer translucent powder or a mineral-based one." But, only use it on your chin and nose.

In case your skin does get oily, reach for some blotting tissues to soak it up. The same idea applies to blush. Opt for a cream formula to avoid having powder blush settle into fine lines and highlight dry skin.

Many of us applied liner on our lower lids in our high school years and it became a habit. However, this is actually a mistake among older women. The darkness of the liner can point out fine lines. Instead, we recommended lining your top lids a lighter-than-black eyeliner shade, like a soft navy or brown.

Using eyeliner on your lower eyelid is like an arrow pointing to your dark circles. In addition, putting eyeliner on your lower lid makes your eyes look smaller, according to Huda Beauty. As if you needed that many reasons to convince you not to use liner on your lower lid.

But, if you still want to use eyeliner on your lower eyelid, use a white eyeliner on your waterline. This will make your eyes look bigger instead of narrower. Be sure to curl your eyelashes and apply mascara to make your eyes look bright.

YouTube is full of vloggers who love to blend some eye shadow. Not everyone is watching makeup tutorials online, however. Mature women aren't featured in many makeup tutorials, Elise Marquam Jahns, a makeup artist who specializes in makeup for older women, revealed to Byrdie. And it's likely they aren't watching them either. As such, they may not share the same passion for blending, or have the knowledge to do it.

There's no such thing as too much blending. For powder eye shadow, Huda Beauty suggests using a windshield wiper motion to blend. Makeup artist Giselle Ali told Allure to reserve an eye shadow brush that's just for blending. Don't use this brush for applying eye shadow — use a different brush to put color on first. Then, use your blending brush to soften the color.

For cream shadows, just use your fingertips. Tap your finger in the eye shadow and then tap the color onto your lids. Don't pull on your skin as you blend, though, since this is a delicate area.

Lip liner can be aging if it isn't applied well. Lip liner can draw attention to fine lines around the mouth. To avoid this makeup mistake, it's critical that it's done in a way that looks natural.

It's best to choose a lip liner that is the same color as your lips, rather than matching it to the color of your lipstick. This will give you the most natural effect. If you can't find a good match to your natural lip color, choose a lip liner that has the same general undertones as your lipstick.

Makeup artist Melanie Inglessis told HuffPost to use a pencil that's slightly dull; a lip liner that's too pointy will create a more harsh line. MAC Cosmetics senior artist Keri Blair further recommended, "Wrap the tip of the pencil in a tissue and squeeze the pencil into a flat tip, turning your lip liner into a carpenter's pencil." You'll get an accurate line that's still soft.

Blush can make you look younger if applied correctly, which is why mature women gravitate to it, despite sometimes overdoing it. When it's done incorrectly, blush can look severe. To avoid this common mistake, we recommend using a sheer blush in a hue that is flattering for your skin tone. Rosy pinks and peaches are flattering for women with fair and medium skin tones, while coral and berry shades look beautiful on darker skin tones.

Scott Barnes, makeup artist for Jennifer Lopez, suggested the "blush sandwich." Barnes explained, telling Huda Beauty, "One of the best ways to appear as if you have a really natural color is to apply strong blush and color over your initial layer of foundation, then go back over it again with the same foundation and brush you used earlier." As far as placement, Barnes advises putting blush on the apples of the cheeks under the eyes. Barnes told the brand, "Applying blush on the sides, or stretching it out really far like it's some sort of blush contour, will make you look older or outdated."

In an effort to cover up dark under-eye circles, older women often turn to heavy, pale concealer. This isn't a good idea since concealer has a tendency to settle into fine lines. Instead, makeup artist Nick Barose, gave Allure his recommendation: a thin liquid concealer that reflects light. 

It's also a good idea to use concealer on the inner half of your under-eye only. This way, you'll keep the concealer away from any fine lines or wrinkles, makeup artist Sandy Linter explained to Good Housekeeping. Alternatively, you could use a highlighter pen on the area to brighten it. Jennifer Lopez's makeup artist, Scott Barnes, revealed a similar recommendation when speaking to Huda Beauty. "All you need is a lighter shade of foundation that you may not instinctually pick. It's all about brightness, not about coverage," Barnes explained.

Don't forget to blend. Carol Shaw, makeup artist, gave HuffPost this tip: "I like to use my finger to melt the concealer into the skin." This will be even easier if you choose a lightweight concealer.

Ladies from the '80s might have a hard time with this one. As fun as it can be to wear colorful eyeshadow, the reality is that it draws attention to eyelid creases. In addition to highlighting wrinkles, bright eyeshadow was in style decades ago. Wearing it years later can make you seem out of touch with the latest makeup trends.

For a more flattering and on-trend alternative, choose a neutral, matte shadow. Carol Shaw, celebrity makeup artist, explained to HuffPost that "matte eye shadows are very wearable without accentuating any fine lines or wrinkles." 

Elise Marquam Jahns, a makeup artist who works with women over 40, is a big believer of natural-looking shadows. Jahns told Byrdie, "Our eyelid area changes [as we age], but we can open up our eyes by using lighter ... [shades] on the lid and under the arch of the brow. This will lift the eye area."

Bella Hadid is not a fan of wearing mascara on her lower lashes, the model's makeup artist, Vincent Oquendo, admitted to Allure. It turns out that Hadid may have good reason for being against it.

Wearing mascara on your lower lashes draws attention to dark under-eye circles and crow's-feet wrinkles. Instead, you'll want to use black mascara on just your upper lashes. Our eyelashes naturally become drier as we age, just like our skin, so a thick formula isn't a good choice. You don't want heavy mascara weighing down your lashes, as that could make your eyes appear saggy.

Makeup artist Chrisanne Davis told Allure, "Curling your lashes is the easiest thing you can do to make your eyes look bigger — and therefore younger." Focus on your top lashes instead of applying mascara on the bottom lashes.

Lips tend to thinner as we get older and dark lipstick can accentuate that change. Instead, we recommended pink and red tones. These lighter shades will make you look more youthful and give you a more natural look.

Makeup artist Sandy Linter told Good Housekeeping, "Anything that's severe — a lipstick or hairdo — will age you." According to the expert, sheer lip colors are more flattering. Beauty blogger and makeup artist Jennifer Duvall is a fan of using creamy, glossy lip products to make lips appear fuller. Duvall explained that matte formulas can be aging. Plus, dark lipstick has a way of gathering in the lines of the lips, which is aging in and of itself.

Eyebrow mistakes are so common and, unfortunately, they can make or break your look. Dark, overly drawn eyebrows can make you look like a cartoon. Ignoring them all together is a mistake as well, especially because eyebrows can become thinner with age.

Celebrity makeup artist Rachel Wood told Bustle that it's most flattering to use an eyebrow pencil that is slightly lighter than your natural brow color. "Using a brow pencil that's as dark as your natural brow will make it look too heavy or intense," Wood explained. Use an eyebrow pencil to make short strokes at the bottom of your brows and then blend upward with an eyebrow brush. This way, you avoid using too much product and it's easier to blend.

Makeup artist JoAnn Solomon agrees. The expert told Reader's Digest the best way to get a natural eyebrow look is to build the product up slowly and then use a spooley to blend. Finish with a clear brow gel to keep it in place.

Wearing the same look that you wore in high school can quickly age you because, chances are, that trend is out. It's tempting to stick with what you know, but you run the risk of missing out on great products. Older women commonly fall into this trap.

"We don't keep the same clothes or wear the same thing every day. The same thing goes for skincare and makeup," celebrity makeup artist Jamie Greenberg told Who What Wear. "If it's old, throw it out," Greenberg said of expired makeup. The expert continued, "Not only is that unsanitary, but it also looks bad on the skin."

It can be intimidating to use new products when you're not sure if something different would work for you, but you don't need to make major changes, just little tweaks. Use liquid liner instead of a pencil eyeliner, for instance, or try lipstick that's a little pinker than your current shade.