3 Preventable Eyeshadow Mistakes Women Over 50 Make on Repeat

Prevent 3 typical eyeshadow mistakes easily with the following tips:

Applying makeup was a breeze when I was younger.  I have always loved makeup, learning how to apply it and keeping up with the latest products.  I am guilty, however, of making many classic mistakes from not blending my makeup well to just plain wearing too much.  

As I’ve matured, makeup has become trickier and my old trick just haven’t worked as well between my dryer and lighter skin, texture, dark spots and dark circles, and generally lax skin.

I’m not ready to give up, I love makeup and am embracing the challenge of making up my “new” face.  So I thought I’d share a few of my issues and how I’ve solved them in case you are in search of a solution.  Also, I’d love it if you share a great tip for us; I love when we can learn from each other.

The first sign of aging for me was developing dark circles.  

I began noticing I needed concealer in my late forties but was at a loss as to what kind to buy and how to apply it. I tried drugstore products that never seemed to set, a highly touted luxury brand that didn’t conceal at all, a dry product I could barely scrape from it’s pot. 

I read countless articles about which consistency was right and watched women in YouTube videos applying huge white triangles below their eyes, deep into the center of their faces.  I learned about “baking” a technique which involves applying concealer then covering it with a huge patch of powder.  You allow the powder to sit, and theoretically sink into the skin before dusting it off exposing an air brushed finish.  

Only, none of it seemed to work very well.  My under eye area became the most labor intensive part of my makeup routine,  trying to cover the dark circles, while avoiding looking “cakey” and crinkly or “patchy”. There’s even a thing called “sharks teeth” I know cause I’ve had them.  

Come to find out, there is a simple technique which takes just a minute:  You simply cover just the dark area with color corrector (if you use it) and concealer and nothing more.  No big triangle, no half moon,  just a swipe of color corrector at the inner corner of the eye covering the very darkest area, pat into place, followed by a swipe of concealer patted into place.  Wow.  So so simple and effective.

I have a friend who looks like she has two black eyes.  

She takes her blue eye shadow and circles each eye almost up to the brow, and under her bottom lashes.  I bet that when she was young, it made her beautiful big brown eyes look amazing.  Now it looks smudgy and messy.  It never looks blended or even.

She needs a magnifying mirror and better lighting, preferably a magnifying, lighted makeup mirror.  She’s still trying to put her makeup on squinting at herself in the bathroom mirror.  I know this because I was doing the same thing.  I’d put my makeup on standing in front of the bathroom mirror; later, I’d catch a glimpse of myself in the car mirror.  It was then I noticed foundation in my eyebrows, and around my nose; blotchy poorly blended eyeshadow and other make up sins.  Getting a make up mirror with massive magnification was scary, but it has made a huge difference in my makeup game.

I could pack for a trip abroad with the bags under my eyes!

Yes, another under eye problem.  Eye bags.  I thought I would have to have surgery to remove them until an esthetician gave me a lymphatic massage.  When I got up from her table and looked in the mirror, the first thing I notice was that my eye bags were gone.  She explained that the massage she had given me had drained excess fluids  that were collecting under my eyes and elsewhere apparently.  My breathing and mood improved too.  Having a stuffy nose all the time can make one irritable.  I have learned to give myself a similar massage, and I myst say I look and feel better.  Who knew!?!  Here is a link to a couple of YouTube videos that I used to learn how from.

Does your eye liner still work for you?

I used to love eye liner pencils but now, no matter how creamy they are propertied to be, I still struggle to get a smooth nice line.  I switched to liquid liner but it looked so harsh and if you make a mistake… it’s a major bummer.  

I like the definition liner gives but I simply could not get my eyes to look the way I wanted them to.  Recently I threw out a whole box of liner pencils that didn’t work for me; and have turned to eyeshadow and a fine brush I use to blend and soften the lines.  

In addition to liners kind of skipping and sticking on mature lids, liner can make hooded eyes look smaller.  Dusting a bit of grey, dark blue or brown shadow as close to the lash line as possible and blending it slightly will give you the definition and brightness you are after without looking harsh or making your eyes look smaller.  (Keep liner to the outer third of the lower lash line, it will define your eye without closing it in and making your eyes look small.  

Every so often I take inventory to see what’s working and what’s not. I look at my face in different light, from a distance and how I look in pictures. Often that’s were we get clues as to how we look from a distance. It’s a good idea to update your look, either by watching YouTube tutorials or getting a makeover.

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