How to update your makeup routine as you age

  • By Andrea Brown, Herald Writer
  • Wednesday, February 20, 2013 8:32pm
  • Life

Face it.

There are lines on your forehead, dark circles under your eyes, and your cheeks, well, they aren’t so rosy.

But you’re still beautiful. You might just need a boost to get your beauty on.

There are hundreds of products promising to turn back time and revitalize your youthful appearance.

You don’t need hundreds of products. Six will suffice. Three will do the trick.

“As long as you touch on each feature it still looks like you are put together,” said Allyson Brator, premium makeup manager at the Alderwood ULTA store.

She said the basic six items are eye cream, blush, lip balm, mascara, concealer and foundation.

Many women keep using the same stuff they’ve been using for years. It might be time for a cosmetic bag makeover. After all, you’ve changed your clothing styles over the years … right?

Let’s start with lipstick: “Something that will stay on and is hydrating,” Brator said. “Your lips do dry out and you see fine lines when going into the aging process.”

As for color: “Any color. As long as it’s matching your cheeks you can pull off any color. If you match the color of the lips to your cheeks, it looks cohesive. Bright lips, bright cheeks.”

It’s OK to use those shimmering blushes, she said.

Is it OK to wear the cliche blue eye shadow?

“I’d do more of a blue eyeliner,” she said.

But that’s not a “no.”

“Wear whatever as long as you have the technique down, as long as it is done right,” she said.

For dark circles, pair concealer with a brightener. It counteracts the color and looks bright.

For foundation, Brator suggests BB cream. BB stands for “beauty balm” or “blemish balm.”

“It is skin care in makeup,” she said. “It gives coverage like a foundation but doesn’t have that cakey or makeup-y look. It’s good for pores and fine lines. It blurs and smooths it out.”

She suggests sampling different products at cosmetic counters. It’s like a wine tasting: Try it before you buy it.

Also, mix different brands in your cosmetic bag. As with your wardrobe, chances are your favorite jeans are not the same brand as the shoes you wear all the time.

Like many women, Dafna Shalev, 52, a Bothell real estate agent with three sons, doesn’t have a lot of time to spend perched in front of a mirror. And that suits her just fine.

“They say when you start having wrinkles, ‘Less is more,’” she said. “You want to do more toned down. More natural.”

Shalev’s mainstays: Foaming face wash and daily moisturizer by Aveeno. Benefit’s They’re Real mascara and Stay Don’t Stray eye primer. L’Oreal Colour Riche Lipstick.

Her foundation: Max Factor.

“They don’t sell it at the drugstore anymore so I get it online,” she said.

Shalev has a drawer of stuff she doesn’t use.

“I buy all this stuff and go back to my crap,” she said.

One thing that hasn’t changed.

“Five minutes,” she said, “and I’m out the door.”

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