We earn commission on sales tracked from our links and codes. Thank you for your support! We earn commission from affiliate links/codes. Thank you!
Do you think you’ll change the way you wear makeup as you get older? Why/why not?
Yes, definitely. I expect that as my skin changes, life events happen, and the like, that my makeup routine will reflect certain changes and preferences. You won’t see me giving up anything just because my age has reached a certain number, though.
Thanks to Divya for today’s question! Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.
We're here to help you make better beauty purchases that you'll enjoy and love! We recommend signing up to take advantage of personalized features like tracking products you own, viewing dupes that you already have, and more!
Here are some useful resources for you:
Curious how two shades compare to each other? Type in the shades below to get instant side-by-side swatches!
Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!
Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).
We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!
We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!
Huh? What kind of question is that? I am already old. I didnt even consider eyeshadow with glitter until few years ago. If you look at Christine’s old photos, her makeup style is not even the same compare to now…on some pictures, her brows are more arched than then now….and they are all beautiful pics…..makeup style changes with fashion and what is available also.
The question says “as you get older” not “once you’re old and that’s it” I’m sure you have more room to get older, right? No one gets old and then….stops. Anyway, I do agree with the rest of your comment about Christine’s make up style changing. I’m always changing the way i wear my make up. I get bored easily with the same ole thing.
Ditto! Like you, Stacey, I’m also “older” (or just plain OLD) but in the last few years, I’ve fallen in love with eye shadows with sheen and even glitter (if it stays on my eyes!). I like to think I look presentable rather than freakish (no yellow or blue lipstick, for example) but there’s no way that anything is “off limits” because of my age. There are looks I simply don’t like or that don’t flatter me (a nude lip, for example) and I avoid them but I’d avoid them even if I were 20 years younger.
One can still look “presentable” in yellow, blue, etc lipstick; it’s not “freakish”. As long as ones makeup is congruent to the given environment, why not wear it. As a nearly-40 year old woman, I *still* rock red eyeshadow & black lipstick, although I wouldn’t wear it in a conservative office setting, or to a PTA meeting. However, if I’m going to a club, concert, party, or hanging out with friends, why not? I’m probably the most conservative person I know when it comes to values, morals, etc, but if I can have fun with my appearance, I see no problem.
I think it’s a great question, actually (I didn’t write it). I think everyone’s still will change or has changed as they’ve gotten older, be it by five, ten, fifteen, or more years. The difference you found in Christine’s pictures shows that! I think that not only do age and trends and fashions play a role in makeup, but sometimes they change such that people feel more comfortable wearing things they once though were reserved for younger generations – brights, bold lipstick, etc. – as age becomes less of a defining characteristic. There are so many inspirational women of all ages now, we’d be hard-pressed not to find fashionable ladies of all ages with looks we would like to emulate.
I certainly hope I will change my makeup as time passes. It’s so awful when you see someone who has worn the same dated hairstyle for 20 – 30 years. I think it’s the same with makeup. So change is necessary and positive! I used to be anti-makeup. Now I love it and all the different looks I can create. Urban Decay has upped the fun I have with my makeup.
If I change anything, I figure it’ll be base products–right now I don’t want much coverage, so I stick to tinted moisturizers and American BB creams. As I get older I may want more coverage and move toward foundations with medium to full coverage. It’s also possible (probable, really) that my skin type will change–I might get dry skin, or normal skin, or something, and that will also change the products I use.
But color-wise? No, no way. My general makeup look now is pretty neutral and subtle, and I don’t see that changing all that much. Unless I get the courage to wear screaming red lipstick out in public!
Well said. My thoughts exactly.
Yes! Esp in my area (Ecology, working on camp, field practices, rain, rivers, out door and extreme weather) I hardly ever can wear makeup except when I go out and I gotta love my brights! I will wear them as long as age lets me LOL
For it to change, I’d need to stick to a set routine first! 😛
Christine, I’m 50 years old and I read your blog everyday. My skin has changed more in the past 3 years or so than it had during my entire life. I have found that the aging process isn’t so much about wrinkles, for me it’s about just looking tired and my skin isn’t as firm as it used to be. The only changes I’ve made are in my skincare and foundation choices. I make sure to use either a luminous foundation or add a luminzer to a foundation. Up until about 3 years ago I had to use oil controlling foundations. I no longer use powder or finishing powders all over my face. I use them only on my T-zone. I’ve also had to modify the way I apply certain products because of mature skin issues, especially the eyelid area but I haven’t changed the products I use or colors. I still wear shimmer, glitter…etc. I even use bright colors, orange, hot pink, shocking blue—but I reinterpret looks using those types of colors because to be honest, I personally, do not look good with a bold and bright eye.
I’m so happy to have you here, Katherine 🙂 I love the diversity of our readership!
Well, I’ll be 58 in October and I’ve noticed that you can’t wear powders anymore because it makes all of those lines/wrinkles, crevices show up a LOT more.
The lips become wrinkled and lipsticks don’t look so hot so I think gloss may be the the way too go but not sure. I have never worn lipsticks too much so I’m experimenting. 🙂
Susie in northern NY
Hi Susie…I wear glosses and can achieve a sheer or very saturated look. But, I was never a lipstick person so that is just me. I use Urban Decay’s clear lip liner if I’m using up a gloss that feathers. I’ve tried Mally’s lip fence which is the same as UD’s product but find it too waxy. I’ve been exploring different textures and found a lot that don’t fall into lip cracks/lip lines. One thing that makes it challenging is the same exact product may be thinner or something in one shade but glide on top of lip lines in another shade. I have good luck with Nars Velvet Gloss Lip Pencils but you do have to sharpen then which is a pain…it’s worth it to me since it avoids the other problems. Hope that helps. 🙂
Kelly B.
Thanks for your reply. I’ve never been into lip sticks much either but I do like to have it on once in a great while and don’t want to look crackie. 🙂
I’ve never ever even seen or bought a UD or Nars product. I’m still in the 60’s. LOL.
Thanks for the advice. Maybe I’ll try some.
Susie
I absolutely love Nars Velvet Gloss Lip Pencils!
Sure! I plan to be the old lady with purple hair, blue lips and pink eyes. Just waiting for my hair to turn white… ;-).
I *love* this comment sooo much! When I was in my teens & 20s, I was often asked when I planned to take on a more “normal” aesthetic. I always figured I would when I was 30, then it was 35, and now that I’m months away from 40, I realize I have no plans to stop. As long as my appearance provides no obstacles in finding employment, or causes me or my family any harm, why stop?
I’m letting my gray hairs (platinums, I call them) grow in for just that reason. Hot pink and bright red dyes go burgundy on my dark hair, but I’m hoping the platinums will take the color full strength so I get funky colored highlights throughout! There’s not enough of them for it to show up yet, though.
It makes me sad when I see people say they can’t wear a certain color or finish due to their age, especially since they’re inevitably way younger than me (I’m 39).
Yes, I already did.
Not so much as I get older but how I age.
So yeah, probably, but I’ll work it 🙂
Hi,
I’m fifty one summers young and my makeup sure is different from say thirty years ago. Now i like the more natural, neutral colors with only one exception and that is lipstick, which is mostly a coral color because it really gives that extra pop! i also find that when you get older you actually need less makeup as it looks so much better!
Warm greetings from Greece!
Like Stacey, I’m also at the age (past the age) where “they” say women should give up frost and glitter! HA! Not bloody likely! I find that eye shadows with a sheen to them actually make my eyes look brighter and fresher than matte shadows. And I love makeup. I like to think that what I wear is “age appropriate”, whatever the heck that means, but to be honest, while products have improved since I was in my 20’s (before eye primer even existed!), my tastes in makeup generally (mostly neutrals with lip and cheek colours that mimic my own natural colouring) haven’t really changed. And I will NEVER give up things like the MAC Veluxe Pearl eye shadow finish or their Strobe Cream. If I look a bit like mutton dressed as lamb when I hit my 80’s, so what? I’ll still keep on truckin’ and if other people don’t like it, well, at THAT age, I like to think I’ll have earned the right to look exactly how I want to look!
I LOVE this answer!!! Well said!!!
I’m in my mid-40’s and I have also started favoring the brighter shimmery eye shadows over mattes, as well as teal and gold eyeliners. As far as makeup goes, I will continue to wear what I feel comfortable with.
Me too, love it! More power to you Mariella! =D
Lol – “mutton dressed as lamb” – love that phrase! Ditto your comments. As I get older, I’m into my makeup more than ever! My makeup was always matte and neutral as a young’un. Now I’m more likely to wear bolder colors – it’s about application and technique. My emphasis is the “undergarments”: moisturizers, primers, foundations and concealers. If its still around, I will keep wearing Nars Taj Mahal blush on my chocolate cheeks when I’m 90!
I guess it will change a bit, because we always try to learn what work better for us. I use pretty much neutral eyeshadows, and I love purple colors once in a while, I hope as I age, I can still pull it off, but I think, we always change something all the time, acording to what work best for us at the moment.
This is the kind of thing that’s hard to predict until you’re there. I’ve been wearing makeup since my teens, and my style has certainly changed since then.
Makeup trends evolve; I certainly don’t wear eyeshadow or blush the way I did in the 80s. It would look ridiculous now. I’m also not the student I used to be; I’m a businesswoman in a conservative industry. My look has changed both as a result of my tastes and skin maturing as well as my professional environment. What looks great on an edgy 18 year-old isn’t what looks good on her 40-something lawyer mother, much less her 70 year-old grandmother. That’s true in clothing, and it’s true in makeup.
Women are beautiful at every age, but I think we look best when we don’t chase lost youth. As I’ve aged, I’ve found that a lighter hand is more flattering. I also avoid some of the more shimmery products that just serve to highlight fine lines. The reality is that what looks good on us changes over time, even when we don’t think it will.
Yeah I think so, but it’ll be a natural process. My preferences have certainly changed with time, and I imagine they will keep evolving!
Absolutely! Considering all the changes in make-up since I started wearing it in the 70’s, it’s inevitable. I like the trend of multi-purpose make-up – like the original bb creams, and dream of the day that a single eyeshadow product will take the place of lifting gel, primer, and color.
This is what I have discovered; using anything above my eyelids tends to make the skin in that area look textured. I also don’t use any makeup products below, or beside, my eyes-it settles in the creases. That said, I never used glitter or glittery eyeliner when I was younger, but I adore it now-in moderation of course. Bright colors also look great on my older skin. I would say, if anything, my sense of what looks good on me has improved as I have aged. It’s all about learning what works and what doesn’t. I’m fortunate that my parents gave me good genes, because my skin is aging a lot better than I expected. 🙂
Since I’ve already matured (physically more than mentally) a bit, I can say that the changes have chiefly involved treating my skin better rather than anything to do with changes in colour. Also, I’ve learned more and better techniques. But I don’t imagine that I’ll ever really change the way I choose and incorporate colours.
My style has evolved to include softer lip colors, blush and eye shadow. I am 45.
Most likely. As I get older, not only does my looks but my personality or preferences change as well. I’m a big fan of bright lip colours and I like eyeliner, but maybe I won’t like either and they might not look as good on me as they used to. That’s what is fun about makeup! you can change it up. 🙂
‘Age appropriate’ is a construct of your own mind. At almost 50, I’m not wearing green, blue, black lipstick, for example, but that’s just not me and probably never was. If I am wearing brighter or more saturated tones, I tend to focus the colour on one feature–lips or eyes–but again, that is my personal preference. The one thing that has changed: I spend more time on skin prep and my base layers, but that’s it.
I would have never guessed! You look great
Being one of your “older” readers (that LoVe your blog), what i have experienced is that the “natural” look gives a younger more youthful, more current look without looking like i’m trying too hard.
My skin regimen hasn’t changed much (been using eye cream and moisturizer since my 20’s) but the ingredients (lifting, brightening,etc) have intensified.
Don’t get me wrong, i love a strong lip (and a naked eye), i just won’t engage in the trendy stuff but enjoy to engage in a fun trend.
Thank you 🙂
Yes, I think so. Everything changes with the times, what is in style/looking good today probably won’t be in 5 years, and is different for all age groups.
Yes, I definitely will and have changed my makeup application as I get older. I go more for the natural look daily.
That is great that this blog has so many older readers! I myself am 43. One thing is that I can’t do a proper cat eye with liner – the line goes in a funky direction due to the shape (wrinkle!?!) of my eye lid, so I have to modify it a bit…
Me,too!!
I can’t figure out how to do a thin cat eye or flick…how did you modify? Is it possible to use pencil liner on a brush…I don’t have any gel but I have probably 30 quality and fun pencil liners and can’t afford gel now. So glad you figured out what works for you instead of giving up!!!
Me too and even if I modify it, it still looks a bit off. I have deep set, hooded kind of eyes so I am thinking that ship may have sailed!!! lol
I change my makeup style and likes, dislikes and so on every few months. I suppose that I will naturally adjust my makeup to what I want as I age. Not necessarily due to the year I am, but, to what I like. I don’t think my age has much to do with how I wear my makeup. My skill is improving and tastes change so I hope that is reflected in how I wear my makeup.
I’m 52 and read your blog and watch your video’s regularly. You might find that your mature readers are not aging in the way you would think. My generation was the fittest of it’s time and remains that to this day. I just spent 30 minutes on my makeup and have about 300 e/s to choose from in a compact, visible, easy to reach for system. My hair is also now silver/gray, but cut in a long Edward Scissorhands fashion. Aging is natural, peaceful and at the same time exciting as you develop your sense of style. The best is yet to be.
Curious
Actually one of my biggest fears in life is that I DON’T change my makeup as I age, therefore becoming one of “those” ladies LOL!
Hey Slick…super easy antidote: Best Friend…female who is honest yet compassionate and gets YOUR style. Then, do what you want with the information…if she says something that doesn’t resonate with you, just thank her and do your own thing.
You’ll know if you are one of “those ladies”. Honestly I’m at that age and every one of “those ladies” I’ve spoken with in the bathroom, etc. (no friends like that) who are piling on layers are making critical comments about themselves and then walk out of the bathroom and strut like they are on a runway. Sometimes people use smoke & mirrors to hide insecurities so since you are aware, it won’t happen to you. Sorry if you were just joking and I rambled on.
Absolutely. Because I am 60 years old, I feel I have been there and done that as far as makeup goes. I regret not having taken better care of my skin up until now. Where I used to be obsessed with having every new type of makeup that came out, now I am much more choosy and spend most of my beauty dollars on skin care. That being said, I still love my Chanel, Burberry, Dior and YSL but try to be restrained in my purchases. Can’t say no to Burberry lipsticks, eyeshadows and blush. My weakness. I don’t wear much shimmer anymore and have softened the shades of lipstick and eyeshadow but still wear makeup every day.
The older I get, the more expensive products I can afford to buy. That’s one positive change at least 😉
I’m already older and my eyes are getting crepey and the hood is definitely getting more prominent. I don’t do cateyes anymore…at least not the ones that extend beyond the eye corner because with a hood, it looks silly. Also, I do more contouring in the crease to give the illusion of a smaller hood. And I have to adjust how I apply my eyeliner because the skin is not smooth and taut the way it used to be.
On the other hand, I rarely have to worry about acne and I feel more confident about wearing brighter colors.
Christine, at 53 I have definitely changed my whole beauty routine. Must haves are Retin a and eyelash treatments. I love beauty oils. I am religious about using toner to balance my skin PH. Also brighteners around eyes, nose and mouth perks things up. I love all eye colors but but they no longer love me. Warm tones are my friend. My blues and purples and greys always make me look tired after a few hours. They look ok at first but when I look in the mirror mid day I never like what I see. So all the fun brights are used as liners only. Also, I might not mess with my hair much but will always do my foundation routine of bb cream, brighteners and mineral powder. I never have powder in my lines cause I use a beauty oil before my bb cream and that eliminates problems for me. And a 12x magnification is essential for my 50 plus eyes. It’s not scary to me; scary is having chin hairs! Lol.
I turn 50 this summer, and I LOVE shimmery eyeshadows, glitter nail polishes ….. and red lipstick, which I wear every day, whether I’m at work, going to the pub, doing the ironing, whatever. I feel comfortable enough in my own skin to wear the sorts of colours/makeup others would consider ‘daring’. As for my mu changing as I grow older, well, yes, I’m sure it will – more concealer probably!!
I would say that in the year and a half since I’ve really become a makeup enthusiast, and even the few years before that, my preferences have really changed. I used to use powder foundation and now I prefer liquids/creams. I prefer more muted blush colors also. I’ve also gotten more adventurous with eyeshadows. I don’t know if these changes are because I’ve gotten older, but I think it shows that changes are inevitable whether or not age is a factor.
Although I’m nudging 69, I am still very much engaged with life. I’m healthy and active and that’s the way I want to look. Over the decades, I’ve seen countless trends come and go. Nothing stays the same for long. Therefore, I think it is important to keep my looks modern and fresh so that I look as good as I feel and not like some old broad caught in a time warp! LOL. That doesn’t mean; however, being unrelatistic about the changes in my skin and features that aging has wrought. As cosmetic fashion evolves, I need to be honest about what looks good, what I can adapt, and what I should let pass by. My mantra is fashionable but not foolish, stylish but not silly, trendy but not trying too hard. We can be beautiful, arresting, elegant, stunning at any age, but we need to evolve if we want to look relevant.
Love that answer! =)
Love, love, love. Every point is also valid for people at all ages as we progress from first time we were allowed to wear makeup to last breath. Well said Eileen!!!
I guess I will, in order to adjust it to what suits me best. I already cannot get away with wearing any foundation – my skin has become pickier in that sense. But I really don´t have a very edgy taste, so I believe that the colors I wear will not change that much. I sometimes feel afraid that I won’t be able to wear this or that product in a few years time, but I guess that will depend on the condition of my skin.
Definitely. I’m a student, so I can still get away with wearing bright colors and glitter. When I eventually start my career, however, I’ll be required to wear more natural-looking makeup.
I have TOTALLY changed my make up now that I’m “older” (I’m 39). Less is definitely more these days. I still wear my red lipsticks…that will never go away!
It very likely will, for two reasons:
1.) The profession I’m studying for (pharmacy) can lend itself to a more conservative environment, so I’ll likely tone it down after I graduated. Granted, this depends on where I wind up placing – the workplace I’m in now is actually pretty laid back as far as makeup and hair goes.
2.) I have hooded eyes, which are likely to become increasingly hooded as I age, so it’ll likely get to a point where I can’t wear traditional look anymore. It will be sad day when I have to give up the cat eye, and I will cry sad tears.
I don’t really think of changes in makeup as related to age. I’ve had to change my routine over the years because my teenage oiliness went away, because I moved to a much less humid climate, because I started using Differin, etc. I guess the first one is related to age, but it’s not like, “I’m 22 now – time to stop using oily skin foundations!”
I don’t believe there are any hard and fast rules to do with age because you never know how aging and life events are going to affect YOU. You have to adjust to what you need, not what “people of a certain age” supposedly need. For example, some people over 50 really do benefit by sticking to matte eyeshadow, but it depends on your eye shape and where you’re wrinkling. The rules can be a good start when you know something needs changing but you’re not sure what, but no rule applies to everybody.
I am knocking on 50 yrs old and I think I am willing to take more risks with my makeup now than when I was in my 20’s-go figure. Am I making adjustments to my application style- you bet and that is ok. My skin care regime is changing though I still suffer from blackheads- again… go figure…
As for my makeup style, I run the gamut – neutral one day bold blue lipstick, or shimmery e/s the next.
At the end of the day guys its “how you feeling” on the inside that translate onto the outside. Besides… its only makeup you can always wash it off.
I am loving this thread! Great question and wonderful responses!
Absolutely! I’ve entered the fourth decade of my life at 31 and it has changed. I’ve grown more comfortable wearing bright (lip) colors that I *want to wear. I don’t do much else; eye make-up is very neutral so I make up for it with skin and lips.
I’m excited to hit 40, just to see where I will be in life and with that comes a challenge for myself how much I would have learned by then about make-up. There’s just so many beautiful products out there! I hope to wear more eye make-up and nude lips. I was never the brave one when it comes to bright eye shadows though. If anything, my wish as I become more mature and wiser, is that my make-up become more elegant, one way or another.
I see myself, in the future, changing more of my preference in councealer and foundation, since skin tends to get drier as you get older. Right now I’m extremely oily, so I stick with Chanel Mat Lumiere!
Great question!! In four minutes I will be 47 years old and I think about my age a lot (probably too much) when it comes to makeup and fashion. How old is too old to wear XYZ??? I just want to be the best representation of myself, whatever my age.
My biggest problem is that during my entire teen years and most of my twenties I suffered from horrible acne. So I never really got to enjoy my “young” skin and thought of makeup as mainly covering up all my problems. I never thought of accenting anything because I couldn’t see past the acne to notice anything good about my face.
Flash forward to today. Acne is gone and this is the best my skin has ever been but……now it’s aging which is a cruel joke, but true. I follow this blog religiously and read all comments so I can learn as much as possible about what might work for me as I am now. My biggest change with makeup as I am aging is the eye area. Meaning not emphasizing wrinkles but still bringing out my blue eyes. Like life, it’s a journey and I am learning all the time.
Happy Birthday Yesterday Terri!!! I only got part way thru answers before an appointment yesterday so this is belated…I hope you got to do something special.
I missed the timing, this was a question I wanted to answer but don’t know if people will come back to it so will wait for another time.
Absolutely, but at the same time, I’m only 17. I have plenty of time for my tastes to change as I mature, and as my skin matures. Luckily, the women in my family get very few wrinkles. (We still have acne, but mine is quite manageable.)
Most definitely. What works in my 30s will surely not work in my 50s… As we age and lose the natural contours in our faces, makeup will become more a question of adding/creating definition. I honestly don’t see myself wearing my most favorite deep dark navy smokey eyes 20 years from now :). That might be a bit scary lol.