Make-Up For All Ages:15-to-60 in 50 Seconds

Everyone can enjoy wearing make-up, at ANY age. Here’s how. 

Everyone can enjoy wearing make-up, at ANY age. Here’s how. 

Makeup isn’t ageist, well at least it shouldn’t be. A carefully crafted winged liner and a spot of highlighting works a treat whether you’re 15 or 50. Makeup should be celebrated and the age-old rule of accentuating your best features - normally your eyes and mouth – stands true no matter how many years you’ve clocked up. Watch this video - these makeup transformations are seriously impressive and just go to show that age really is nothing but a number. While anything goes when you’re younger – smooth and radiant skin is more forgiving – with age it’s important to harness a few clever beauty hacks to enjoy wearing make-up as much as possible – and of course, get the most out of it. Hack One: Be strategic with your highlighting. If you have lines around your eyes or mouth avoid placing anything reflective there or you’ll draw more attention to them (unless of course that’s your aim!) USE: Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Oil, £28 for 30ml and Burberry Fresh Glow Pen, £25

Hack Two: Opt for a sheer under-eye concealer and try a BB cream. Heavy products will only settle in creases and emphasis them.USE: YSL Touche Éclat, £25, and Smashbox Camera Ready BB Water SPF30, £29 30ml

Hack Three: Older skin tends to be drier so steer away from drying, powdery formulas. Choose creamy blushers, highlighters and bronzers that will keep your skin fresh and dewy, and keep the colour higher up on your cheeks were it looks most healthy.USE: Smashbox L.A. Lights Blendable Lip and Cheek Color in Silver Lake Sunset, £25 and Guerlain Terracotta Sunless Tinted Self-Tanning Gel, £37.50

Hack Four: The eye area loses definition with age. Use a matte powder a shade-or-two darker than your skin tone through your crease to restore it, then subtly enhance your brows. USE: Lancôme Ombre Hypnôse Mono in Cuban Light, £19, and Smashbox Brow Tech Gloss Stick in Taupe, £16.50

Hack Five: As we age our hair growth cycle slows and our lashes become less bountiful. Short of getting extensions try giving your lashes a curl before applying mascara and sketch a waterproof brown or black eye pencil along your upper waterline to make them appear fuller. USE: Smashbox Always Sharp Waterproof Kohl Liner in Penny Lane, £16, Smashbox Photo Finish Lash Primer, £17, and Smashbox X-Rated Mascara, £19.50

Hack Six: Lastly, restore lost definition around your lip area with a lip pencil a shade darker than your natural colouring. Don’t be tempted to overdraw (nothing looks worse - regardless of age), but use the pencil to correct any asymmetry that’s made an appearance in recent years. Pop your velvet-textured lipstick on top. USE: Smashbox Always Sharp Lip Liner in Figgy, £15.50, and Estée Lauder Pure Color Envy Matte in Irrepressible, £25

Lisa Oxenham

An award-winning health and beauty writer, stylist and creative director, Lisa Oxenham is one of the UK’s top beauty editors and the Beauty and Style Director at Marie Claire UK. With 20 years of editorial experience Lisa is a brand partnership expert, and a popular speaker, panelist and interviewer on a range of topics from sustainability to the future of beauty in the digital world. She recently spoke at Cognition X and Beauty Tech Live and is on the Advisory Board for the British Beauty Council’s Sustainable Beauty Coalition.

A well-respected creative director she works on celebrity, model and influencer shoots with the highest calibre of photographers, filmmakers, make-up artists and hairstylists to create timeless images, attention-grabbing videos, digital events and masterclasses. Most recently Lisa has directed covers such as Lily Cole and Jameela Jamil, films such as Save The Arts featuring Francesca Hayward and sustainable fashion shoots such as Be The Change. Supporting the beauty industry over the pandemic has been a top focus, directing the British Beauty Council’s six inspirational short biographical films for their Bring Back Beauty campaign.

Lisa is a wellbeing and beauty influencer with a focus on mental health and a large and engaged audience on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.