Eye makeup can be a trusty companion in your pursuit of a more radiant, lifted and supple look. With the right techniques and effective products, you can accentuate your natural beauty and make fine lines around the eyes “less noticeable.” To help you achieve a more lifted appearance after 40, we consulted expert and celebrity makeup artists who have offered eight straightforward tips on using mascara, eyeshadow, and concealer.
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8 Clever Makeup Hacks From The Pros For A More Lifted Look Over 40
1. Wiggle and Lift Your Mascara Wand
When applying mascara, Natasha Moor, professional makeup artist and founder of Natasha Moor Cosmetics, has a clever trick to help give your eyes a noticeable lift, and to make your lashes look more voluminous. She explains that after you’ve curled your lashes, you should "look down and apply mascara as close to your waterline as possible" for your top and bottom lashes. "Wiggle the wand and lift. Repeat," she advises.
It’s important to note that you should also ensure you’re choosing a mascara with the right kind of wand. Moor suggests a slightly tapered one. Using this wand, she says you should "lift the lashes on the inner and outer corners of your eyes to give the illusion of a lifted face," as this "helps your face to look more chiseled as it lifts the eye."
2. Heat Your Eyelash Curler Before Using It
If you're used to curling your lashes (or if you want to start now), Vivi Mintara, CEO of Eye Makeup Lab shares a helpful hack for opening up your eyes and drawing attention to your lashes rather than fine lines and wrinkles. She also stresses the importance of choosing a waterproof mascara for a smudge-free look.
"The worst thing that contributes to an aging effect when it comes to mascara is when it starts running onto your eyelids and into wrinkles," She points out. "To avoid this, you should make an effort to use waterproof mascara, and you should always heat your eyelash curlers before using them."
This little step, Mintara says, will hold the curl in place for much longer, and it will reduce the risk of transference from your lashes to your skin. "However, you should wait for the eyelashes to cool a bit before applying the mascara, or you will heat up the product and cause it to have a runnier consistency," she recommends.
Using a blow dryer is a quick way to add heat to your metal curler, and this can have a 'curling iron'-like effect on your eyelashes, which will then be emphasized by the waterproof mascara.
3. Try The 3-Dot Concealer Lifting Trick
When it comes to actually applying your concealer for a facelift effect, one MUA recently went viral with her quick and simple hack. Concealer continues to be an effective and well-established cosmetic tool as it provides a way to give your face a makeover without having to go through any surgery.
To prove this point, celebrity makeup artist Mary Phillips shared an instructional Instagram video for her sizable 2.2 million following. The video goes over the technique of putting three well-placed spots of concealer to attain a facelift-like or eye-lifting result.
Phillips explains that the first dot should be applied beside your nose and blended with a beauty blender, then the second one should go to the inner corner of the eye and the third should go to the outer corner.
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These steps, as Phillips points out, can quickly bring life to your skin if it looks worn out or saggy. In her video uploaded on July 6, 2023, Phillips (who often creates epic makeup looks for A-listers like Kendall Jenner and Jennifer Lopez) tells viewers how to get an “instant” eye lift.
“First, I put a dot [of concealer] at the corner of my nose and one under the inner corner of my eye and another under the outer corner of my eye. Then, I go in and blend.”
She continues: “Starting at the nose and working my way up out towards the temple. It’s a full coverage concealer and doesn’t crease and that’s it. You don’t need a ton of product. All it takes is three dots.” In the clip, Phillips uses the L’Oreal Paris Infallible Concealer in the shade, Cashmere 360.
4. Choose A Color-Correcting/ Neutralizing Concealer For Your Under-Eyes
Celebrity makeup artist Margina Dennis tells us that a lot of melasma and under-eye dark spots on the skin over 40 are "different hues of brown," so you need a "salmon or cool orange color corrector to neutralize them." Neutralizing them will "keep them from looking grey under the foundation," she points out, and this will also "eliminate the need to wear a full coverage foundation."
She notes that you can either "neutralize the dark spots first, and then stipple foundation over the correction to keep from disturbing it," or neutralizer "after you put your foundation on." When you use the correct color neutralizer on top of the foundation, it will just "correct the discoloration and it will look like nothing is there," she concludes.
5. Opt For Satin Finish Shadows
When it comes to the type of shadow to look out for, satin finish eyeshadows boast a subtle hint of radiance, lending a dimension that is neither completely flat like matte nor too flashy like shimmer. As a result, they are an excellent choice for women above the age of 40, who desire a moisturized and smooth appearance.
Oscar Velasquez, professional makeup artist and beauty expert notes that when it comes to eyeshadow colors for mature beauties, looking at your natural eye color and then finding "shades on the opposite side of the color wheel" is a great place to start.
As Kerrin Jackson, celebrity, film and television makeup artist and creator of The Makeup Refinery blog stresses, skipping red colors and anything that is too shimmery is essential, as these could inadvertently highlight wrinkles and fine lines.
6. Try Neutral Matte Shadows
Since metallic or sparkly shadows can "cause lines and wrinkles to look more pronounced" than they actually are, Jackson says that the best bet for mature beauties is to "avoid these products and stick with neutral colors and matte eyeshadow types instead."
"If you must use a shimmer eye shadow, try a cream-based product that you can blend in softly," she advises. This will be "far more flattering and flexible on your skin" than a powdery metallic or shimmery eyeshadow.
7. Contour Eyes with Shadow Just Like Your Cheekbones
While you may typically associate contour makeup with accentuating the cheekbones, it's important to note that the same principle can be applied to enhancing the appearance of the eyes. "To put it simply, the contour trick means creating the illusion of depth on a part of your eyelid that doesn’t naturally have depth. ie. your hooded eyelid," Jackson explains.
"By using the right product and the right brush," she adds, "you can very quickly and easily create this look on your own hooded eyelids." According to Jackson, contouring hooded eyelids can aid in achieving a youthful appearance through enhancing the definition and form of your eye shape.
Additionally, it can help in reducing the impact of loose skin that often leads to the formation of hooded and/ or aging eyelids. "By using a shade that’s slightly darker than the skin on your eyelid, you can help make that skin recede," Jackson notes. Good to know!
8. Always Prime Your Eyelids Before Applying Shadow
Before even applying eyeshadow at all, Gargi Patel, celebrity makeup artist at Vashanti Cosmetics, explains that it is essential to use a primer on your eyelids.
This, she says, will prevent smudging and smearing throughout the day as primers are designed to lock in your eyeliner in place.
"The goal is to always keep the eyeliner in places you want it to stay," she says. In order to prevent looking older with a smudged look, Patel stresses that you should always "start with preparation of the eye area."
The Bottom Line
Using a good primer "suitable for the eye area," she explains, will "help to keep not only your eyeliner in place, but also your eyeshadow."
She shares that your primer "should also hydrate the eye area so liquid eyeliners will not dry out, causing pieces to land in places that will not give a clean look."
