If you’re going through the effort of applying your makeup each morning, it’s a safe bet that you want your products to help you to look better, not worse. When used correctly, makeup can be a great tool for enhancing your natural beauty and even smoothing your complexion to create a youthful appearance that defies age. However, certain application mistakes may be causing the inverse effect, aging your face significantly and drawing attention to areas you may otherwise wish to hide.
To get the most your of your makeup and achieve the most flattering application at any age, we spoke with Kim Baker, Makeup Artist and Founder of GLAMAZON Beauty for her comprehensive guide to the mistakes makeup dimming your natural beauty and failing to enhance your appearance.
A Skincare Routine That’s Lacking
Before we even get to makeup, it’s no secret that an ironclad skincare routine is one of the most important steps for boosting your appearance, particularly in the case of anti-aging. “It important to have a great skincare routine to cleanse and prevent clogged pores,” notes Baker. “Make sure you have a great moisturizer and eye cream as well. We can't say this enough: hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.” Starting out with a well moisturized complexion will ensure that face makeup doesn’t stick to dry patches, creating a cakey appearance that will hardly flatter your skin at any age.
Shimmery Eyeshadow
While shimmering glitter shades may seem tempting in the pan, they’re not the best choice when you’re hoping to smooth your lids and create a younger appearance. “Shimmery eyeshadows are great when your 20 or 30 but as we mature so does our eye area,” explains Baker. “The last thing we want to do is add shimmery shadows into our lines.” With this, matte shadows are going to be your best bet for smoothing over any fine lines and wrinkles to create a seamless look that without large pieces of glitter to highlight the areas you would otherwise hope to hide.
Skipping The Brows
As you get older your brows may begin to grow sparser and failing to fill them in will only unnecessarily age your appearance. “The key is to fill them in with soft upward strokes of your favorite brow product whether that be brow powder, pomade or pencil,” Baker suggests. “Filling them in a bit will take at least 5 years off and give you that bright eyed and bushy tailed youthful look.” Overdoing it on the brows will still overwhelm your appearance even when we’re working to turn back the clock, so the normal rules apply but it’s vital to give this area a little extra attention to fight off signs of aging
The Wrong Shade Of Foundation
Foundation can make or break your entire appearance, and shade matching is one of the most important parts of ensuring a flawless finish. “The wrong color foundation can really age us. If a foundation is too light, it looks masky and if it's too dark or ashy it can make skin appear muddy, dull, and dry looking,” warns Baker. To make sure this doesn’t happen, heading into a Sephora or Ulta for a shade match test can make all the difference in getting a foundation that fits both your skin tone and texture. Making sure to blend properly and carry the product down onto your neck will also help to streamline your appearance and hide signs of aging effortlessly.
The Wrong Shade Of Blush
Blush is a great tool for adding color back into your face after applying foundation, but it’s all about where you’re applying your color and what shade you’re opting for that can make all the difference. Picking a natural color is going to enhance your appearance, rather than age you prematurely, but choosing a garishly bright shade may have the opposite result. “The key is choosing the correct shades,” says Baker. “You can do this by picking a shade that would be as close to what skin would look like if you ran a mile.” She suggests trying Glamazon Beauty's Cheek-N-Lip in "CocoRose" as the perfect natural rosy blush to add a hint of color back into your face without looking overdone. For deeper skin tones, Baker suggests the shade “Trophy.” Another trick for tying your look together is using the same color you used for blush on your lips as well for an effortless and uniform glow.
