Surgery and injectables in pursuit of beauty and more youthful skin aren’t everybody’s cup of tea. You may not have any interest whatsoever in changing your appearance permanently, but playing with makeup to achieve a more radiant glow and polished look may be right up your alley.
As we mature, our makeup techniques should ideally mature with us. The eyeliner and blush looks we ran out the door wearing at 20 may darken our eyes or create a hallowed-out look that no longer serves us at 50. Luckily, Makeup Artist Glam Girl Gabi is a wiz at mature makeup techniques has a few amazing makeup contour tips for older women that she is generous about sharing — she considers the effect a “facelift” without the facelift.
Gabi’s philosophy is that makeup should be “plastic surgery, but without the surgery part.” Here are five of her top contour tips you’ll want to try today.
1. Use Bronzer as Eyeshadow
Believe it or not, spending hours perfecting your eyeshadow techniques may not even be necessary. If you want to work smarter, not harder, one of the best ways you can warm up your eyes and call attention to them is by applying a bronzer into the crease of your eye using a fluffy crease brush. Don’t round your bronzer out too much — instead use your brush to sweep the bronzer upward and outward.
Next, take a lighter, shimmery shadow shade and stamp it out along the lid to open up this area.
2. Stretch Out Your Eyeliner
A creamy eyeliner is going to be a key product for this look. Using an angled brush to stretch the eyeliner out and up along the outer corner of your eye. This automatically gives your eyes a more open and lifted look.
3. Curl Your Lashes
Gabi calls this next step — curling your lashes with a lash curler — an “essential” one if you want a lifted-eye look. Curl your lashes and then apply a few coats of mascara to look more refreshed and radiant.
4. Use Concealer to Brighten Areas
After completing your eye makeup, apply foundation in a shade and formula that will even out your complexion. While you might ordinarily then apply concealer under your eyes, Gabi recommends also using concealer to brighten areas of your face that you want to look lifted. Concealer can work magic along the sides of your eyes, around the mouth, down the center of the nose, and from the mouth upwards toward the ear.
Don't forget to set your makeup with a translucent powder.
5. Apply Blush — But Higher on the Face
What’s the big deal about blush, you may be wondering — especially if you’ve been using this product for years to warm up your face. Try applying your blush just a bit higher on your cheeks that you normally do and you might be amazed at the difference. Gabi recommends playing it “two finger widths” away from the nose, right up high on your cheekbone, for a more lifted effect.
