50- Do I have to wear makeup to look good?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I also have good skin these days and never wear foundation, but i look dramatically better with a tiny bit of mascara, eyeliner, a quick swipe of Jones Road Miracle Balm as blush, and lip balm. Like, SO MUCH better. I look awake and happy (20 years ago I could skip all of these and still look awake).

The one day that I skipped this routine, one of the neighborhood dads texted because he was worried that I looked "unusually sad" and he wanted to make sure everything was OK.

lol lol. That’s too funny! But he seems like a nice person 😄

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You definitely look better with it than without it.

Your call as to whether or not the situation is important enough to you to bother with it.

+1

If you wanted to spruce yourself slightly, you don’t have to do a full beat or anything crazy. You could play up one feature or use a gentle and non sparkly highlighter to play up your skin. Or a foundation to even your skin slightly. But in general we expect women to look pretty and makeup makes us look prettier. If I didn’t have black circles under my eyes I probably wouldn’t bother with anything expect a punchy lipstick.

[Anonymous]

I'm 53 and I haven't worn full makeup since my early college years 30+ years ago. I use a little bit of eyeliner and I curl my eyelashes and I wear lip gloss. On rare occasion for a wedding or other special event I have used a bit more - tinted lip gloss, a little blusher, maybe some eye shadow or mascara - only because it looks a bit better in photos.

I don't believe my eschewing makeup has hurt me either socially of professionally. Many men have told me that they appreciate my natural look and especially the absence of foundation. I've been very successful in my professional career despite using no makeup, but I'm a lawyer not a retail manager so maybe that makes a difference as I'm sure some jobs care more about the image you present.

I wore a lot of makeup in HS and into early college, because I thought it was normal and required for adult women. I always hated the feeling of my skin suffocating under all the stuff, and the staining on clothes etc. I think it was a combination of taking women's studies and rethinking the requirements of womanhood and also just not wanting to spend the time every morning painting my face that made me quit, but I've never regretted it and I'm sure I've saved many hundreds over the years by not wearing all that crap.

I especially think that many older women who wear makeup do not look as good as they probably think they do. Makeup is one thing on young fresh faces, but I've seen few aging women who carry it well - with the exception of a few actors I can think of and they get theirs done professionally which is a very different thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, if done correctly. Plus botox.

You’re on the wrong thread, baby

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This post sounds like a humblebrag. OP sounds like she’s really proud of how she looks in her 50s and wants to gloat about it and feel good about herself. Not sure what advice you are looking for here. No one knows what you look like so obviously we can’t tell you if you “need” make up or can get by without. Clearly you are implying that you can get by without so what is the point of the post? Obviously most people look better with the right make up. The issue is whether they want to wear make up and whether they know which make up makes them look better and how to apply it.

Interesting take……

[Anonymous]

I cannot wear foundation; it makes me look like a clown. At 45, I have good skin and high coloring, but I do look best with lip stick (or tinted balm) and my eyelashes curled with a little mascara.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I cannot wear foundation; it makes me look like a clown. At 45, I have good skin and high coloring, but I do look best with lip stick (or tinted balm) and my eyelashes curled with a little mascara.

22:22 here. Although I'm older than you, I have no doubt we were both taught to apply foundation the same way and, yes, we look like clowns now. TikTok has taught me so much about makeup for older women.
-We usually need a shade darker than what we wore in our youth or even what currently 'matches' our jaw/neck/etc.
-We shouldn't apply the same color all over our faces - our skin tone is supposed to vary and different parts of the face need a different 'treatment'.
-Blush/contour, if you wear it, needs to go higher on our cheeks than it used to
-Undereye concealer shouldn't be as light as it used to be (draws more attention to the bags/circles)
-Application of products is SO much different know. I never used a brush or sponge in my youth!

It's no wonder I always thought I looked artificial wearing makeup. I pick and choose where on my face I apply foundation and like how it looks a lot better now.

[Anonymous]

I don't know guys, I'm 50 and feel like this is the first year I'm looking "older". My skin is patchy from melasma, I've got the beginnings of jowls, nasolabial folds, and my 11s are starting to etch. I feel like I still look pretty good when I'm semi-made up and in photos, but when I look in the mirror on a regular day? Oof.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm 53 and I haven't worn full makeup since my early college years 30+ years ago. I use a little bit of eyeliner and I curl my eyelashes and I wear lip gloss. On rare occasion for a wedding or other special event I have used a bit more - tinted lip gloss, a little blusher, maybe some eye shadow or mascara - only because it looks a bit better in photos.

I don't believe my eschewing makeup has hurt me either socially of professionally. Many men have told me that they appreciate my natural look and especially the absence of foundation. I've been very successful in my professional career despite using no makeup, but I'm a lawyer not a retail manager so maybe that makes a difference as I'm sure some jobs care more about the image you present.

I wore a lot of makeup in HS and into early college, because I thought it was normal and required for adult women. I always hated the feeling of my skin suffocating under all the stuff, and the staining on clothes etc. I think it was a combination of taking women's studies and rethinking the requirements of womanhood and also just not wanting to spend the time every morning painting my face that made me quit, but I've never regretted it and I'm sure I've saved many hundreds over the years by not wearing all that crap.

I especially think that many older women who wear makeup do not look as good as they probably think they do. Makeup is one thing on young fresh faces, but I've seen few aging women who carry it well - with the exception of a few actors I can think of and they get theirs done professionally which is a very different thing.

This is a very strange and inappropriate thing to say, unless said men were intimately involved with you.

[Anonymous]

I don't think you should crowd source this. Yes, you will look better. But since you "hate" makeup, only you can decide if it is that important. I'm 53 and happily beyond my vanity years. My sister is 49 and still needs/enjoys the boost she gets from looking in the mirror. She is careful about her appearance; I am relaxed. Everyone is different.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think I look any better with makeup. I naturally have color contrast: black hair, green eyes, olive skin. My skin is clear, and my brows and lashes are both full. I’m not sure what I would even do or what difference it would make.