Some makeup mistakes don’t look like mistakes at all. You’ve done them the same way for years, they feel normal, and they’re quietly adding a few years to your face. I’m talking about small habits, and almost every one of them can be fixed in roughly two minutes.
None of this is about being bad at makeup. Most of the women I talk to are really good at it, they’ve just been following the same routine for years, and a routine that worked at 35 can start working against you later. The same handful of habits come up again and again, which is why I’ve kept this list short and why every fix is quick.
1. Too much powder, especially under your eyes!
Powder looks harmless, but it soaks up the little moisture your skin has left and settles straight into fine lines, and it’s usually why you hear mature women talking about why they can’t use too much powder. Under the eyes is where it shows the most. A thick layer there looks dry and creased within an hour, and it makes your whole eye area look older. As we age, we lose hydration and our skin becomes drier, so adding something already dry makes it even worse.
The 2 minute fix: Only powder where you actually get shiny, which is usually your forehead, nose and chin. If you want to set under your eyes, use the tiniest amount on a small brush and press it in instead of sweeping it on. Then mist your face lightly with a hydrating spray, which melts everything together so it looks like skin and not powder. I personally love the Anua Blue Dewy spray. It’s a game changer for mature skin!
2. Concealer that’s too light or too thick
A concealer that’s much lighter than your skin leaves a pale patch under your eyes, and a heavy layer sits in every crease. Together they pull attention to the exact spot you were trying to hide, and that’s one of the quickest ways to look more tired.
The 2 minute fix: Pick a shade that’s close to your skin tone, half a shade lighter at most, with a slightly warm undertone. Put a thin layer on the inner corner and the darkest part, then pat it in with your ring finger until you can’t see where it starts. If you need more brightness, wait a minute and add tiny dot of a lighter one to the inner under eye corner and pat it out.
3. Brows that are too dark or too sharp
Brows that are a shade or two darker than your hair, with a hard edge and a sharp tail, look severe. They drag your face down and make everything else look heavier. Our hair gets softer and lighter as we get older, and our brows should follow it.
The 2 minute fix: Go for a shade that matches the lighter, softer part of your brow, or even half a shade lighter. Fill in just the gaps with tiny hair-like strokes and keep most of the color toward the middle. Finish by brushing through with a clean brow brush so the edges blur.
“None of these are skill problems. They’re habits nobody told you to update.”
The next four are the ones I’d put money on you doing without realizing, including the one that adds the most years of all. Those are tucked in below the break for paid subscribers!
