Simple Facelift Makeup Techniques for Women Over 50

Today’s facelift makeup techniques really boil down to a real estate truism coined by Englishman Harold Samuel in 1944: location, location, location. This is because where we apply our makeup really matters… especially for our mature skin.

As beauty expert and author Andrea Q. Robinson once aptly wrote, “The cheeks we were born with aren’t the same cheeks we see in the mirror once we’re over fifty. And, like a host of other body parts, they tend to move south as our birthdays move north.” So, where we apply that blush – as well as where we apply a number of other makeup products – is game-changing.

In the video I’ll be demonstrating techniques on one side of my face that make our faces look more downturned, and on the other side I’ll demonstrate those techniques which can help our face look more lifted.

In this article I’ll focus just on the techniques that lift our face. My goal is to give you a variety of facelifting makeup techniques so you can determine which – if any of them – will work best for you.

Techniques That Lift the Brows Help Lift Our Face

Lifting our eyebrows definitely helps lift our face. First, apply eye primer that matches your skin tone or is slightly lighter over the entire eyelid area. This makes the whole lid area appear lighter and brighter and keeps eyeshadow in place.

Then, apply a brow color that matches the brows or is slightly lighter. Be sure to fill in the brow tail only to the edge of the eye and not below since bringing it down too far can create the look of a droopy eye.

Next, add just a slight upward arch to this brow with a brow pencil. And the operative word here is slight since too much of an arch will make us look like one of those Evil Disney characters like the stepmother in Cinderella! Adding the upward arch to the brow lifts it which makes the whole eye area look more lifted.

Then take a brow spoolie and brush the brow hairs upward. Also consider applying a clear brow gel to keep the brow hairs going upward which also helps the brow look more lifted.

To help lift the whole eye area, take an eyeshadow color that is slightly lighter than your skintone and apply it just under the arch of the brow making sure not to carry the color any lower. Then feather it out. It’s amazing how just the small touch of a lighter color just under the brow arch can lift the brows which helps lift the face.

The last thing we can do to our eyebrows to create a more upturned look is to carefully apply a very small amount of concealer to outline right above the top and bottom of the brow to create a crisper, more defined upward angle and then carefully blend it out so it’s not obvious.

Several Techniques to Lift Our Eyes

First, apply a light color on the eyelid to make the eyes look bigger. Next, place a mid-tone color in the crease and above it and carry it straight across the lid toward the ear. Next apply some of the mid-toned color to the outer third of the lid and then bring the lid color up to meet the crease color to create the look of a backward 7.

Now comes blending and it’s very important to blend upward to lift the eye. To create an evening or special occasion look, deepen the outer 1/3 of the lid and outer crease area on this eye and blend upward.

To help lift the eye with eyeliner, use brown eyeshadow rather than black eyeliner since the brown color is not quite so harsh. Instead of following the shape of the eye downward to the outer edge of the eye, begin lifting the eyeshadow upward toward the temple at the point where the eye starts to curve downward.

Under the eye use a lighter brown eyeshadow just on the outer 1/3 of the eye to further delineate the eye area. And to create no obvious start and stop points, be sure to feather out the color.

At the very end of the right eye bottom lash line, go upward following that natural curve of the bottom lash line and just pat the outer end of the line to soften it.

Be sure to check out Elise’s YouTube channel which specifically focuses on makeup tips, techniques, and product reviews for those of us 50+. Don’t forget to subscribe!

How We Clean Up Eyeshadow Fallout Makes a Difference

Since we almost always experience some eyeshadow fallout under our eyes after using powder eyeshadow, it’s important to clean up the fallout with a Q tip dipped in moisturizer or a makeup wipe. Be sure to carry the wipe in the natural upward motion toward the end of the eyebrow created by the upward line of the bottom lash line. Eyeshadow below this area creates a more downturned look.

Lift Those Lashes!

After curling the lashes, apply a lash primer first, wait a few seconds and then apply two coats of mascara. This application process will keep the lashes curled and lifted.

Also, apply mascara to the bottom lashes to make your eyes look bigger by increasing the entire footprint of the eye. Apply just a touch to the inner section of the bottom eyelashes and more to the outer part of the eyelashes.

A Facelifting Technique with Concealer

After applying foundation, dot on a slightly lighter concealer in an upward arc from the outer part of the under eye up toward the temple. This subtle upward motion with the slightly lighter concealer helps lift the face.

Contour Technique Makes a Difference

Apply contour just slightly below the cheekbone and keep it a minimum of two finger widths away from the nose. Be sure to blend the contour upward.

Blush Placement Is Especially Crucial

Application of our blush is key since there is no other single piece of makeup that is more useful in creating the illusion of youth than blush – when it’s applied well.

Apply the blush in the middle of the cheekbone staying a minimum of two finger widths from the nose and blending upward.

But it’s the next blush step that is quite different. Tap a little bit of blush up toward the temple and slightly up over the eye and blend. This not only makes the whole face look a little more cohesive, but it also lifts the face.

Use Highlighter to Lift the Face

Dot highlighter on the upper part of the cheekbones and tap lightly with fingers or a dampened makeup sponge to blend. This blending method prevents the foundation underneath from being disturbed. Also dot and blend a little of the highlighter above the blush which is over the eyebrows.

A Great Technique to Lift Lips

Lips come next. As we get older, our lips naturally become more downturned. To lift our lips, we want to use concealer and lip liner to make our bottom lip line on both sides of our lips go up toward our upper lip sooner. So the first step is to apply concealer just to the very top part of the bottom lip. Then apply lip liner and bring it up before reaching the natural lip line.

All of these techniques contribute to creating a subtle, lovely lift to the face.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Do you use any techniques now that help lift your face? If so, what techniques do you use? Which of the techniques outlined in this article would you be interested in trying?