Makeup for the Coastal Grandmother

The Coastal Grandmother is all about understated. It is about natural, so what about makeup. Since you have taken the color quiz and the personal style quiz, you already have a head start on colors and style i.e. soft or bold etc.

The trend these days seems to go toward minimal makeup, and if that is your preference, and you can get away with it, I would say, “go for it”. However, if you are like me and need more coverage and color, I will make some suggestions.

Good Skincare Comes First

The first thing I would emphasize is, start with good skin care. When your skin is clean, clear and fresh, anything you put on top is only going to enhance it. I have personally used Merle Norman skin care products since I was in my early twenties. Fortunately, one of the first ingredients in their Powder Base is zinc oxide which, as we know, is the white stuff life guards put on their nose to keep from getting sunburned! I wore Powder Base for years so I had a sunscreen built in long before sunscreen became popular.

There are numerous good skin care products on the market today, and I will not take up time and space trying to cover all of them. Choose what works best for you, and use it religiously. I am experimenting with several more modern skincare lines and with cover those in a later blog.

Foundation

Most women need a cream or liquid makeup base as they age. There are a lot of very good anti-aging foundations on the market. I personally wear Merle Norman Timeless Illuminating Makeup with SPF 30. I use Merle Norman Expert Finish Makeup with SPF 25 for touch up.

First, apply a good moisturizer (and, I also use a makeup primer from Arbonne)) and then your foundation. The key to appearing natural is to blend, blend, blend! There should not be lines anywhere. If you need concealer, you can apply it at this point. You should use only one shade lighter than your foundation. Concealer should be dotted on lightly and patted into place (do not rub). Concealer goes next to the nose and under the dark circle. If you cover the dark circle with concealer, it will come through grey and show up even more. Lastly, pat a small amount of your foundation over the concealer.

Eye Shadows

Next, you can add eye shadows. I recommend a light matte shade over the entire eyelid, from lashes to brow. This give a base for shadows with more color and keeps them from grabbing. My favorite for Summers and Winters is Infinity by Ilia at Sephora in Kohl’s. It is a lovely very light pinkish neutral matte shade. Springs and Autumns can use any light matte beige.

If you are over fifty, I would advise staying away from loose powder, shimmery eye shadows and liquid eyeliner.

Note: I particularly like Ilia because it is a very clean line. Their shadows do not contain talc which I need since my eyes are very sensitive. They have a cool nude compact for Summers and Winters and a warm nude for Springs and Autumns.

This is where it comes to preference as to how much makeup you are comfortable with. I personally add a second shadow from lashes to the crease. I use a brownish burgundy matte shade in the Ilia compact which is flattering to blue eyes and is very neutral. Next, you can use a darker color i.e. brown, charcoal etc. in the crease only. Again, blend, blend, blend! I use a good blending brush and blend all the shadows together. It comes out very natural looking.

Note: If you apply your shadows in this order; light, medium, dark, the medium glides on the light and the darkest shade has two shadows to glide on so it does not grab and come out too harsh. The secret to good makeup application is good brushes! I highly recommend investing in a good set of brushes. I wash mine about once a month.

Makeup - No.2

Eye Pencil and Mascara

Next, you can apply eye pencil if you like. I use an eye pencil under the lower lashes only because as we age, it is harder to get a smooth line on the top lashes. That is the main reason I don’t recommend liquid liner as the eyes begin to age. I would recommend taupe, gray or charcoal for Summers, brown for Springs and Autumns and black for Winters only! You can use colors like teal, green, navy etc., but what I prefer is to use a neutral pencil and then “set” it with a shadow color that flatters your eye color. You will need a slanted eye shadow brush for this application.

Next, you are ready for mascara. Again, I recommend brown for all seasons except Winters, and they can use black. You can use your preference as to brand and apply from the base of the lash to the tip, using smooth upward strokes.

Note: The reason you are advised to buy new mascara every three months is because it can grow bacteria. The same goes for liquid eyeliner. Powder products don’t tend to grow bacteria.

Brows

If you need more definition or to shape your brows, you can use pencil or powder. As a general rule, it should be somewhat the same shade as your hair. I prefer powder as it does not get slick like a pencil and seems to stay put longer. I use Granite by Anastasia at Ulta. It is equal shades of grey and black. If I take the brush across both shades, it keeps the black from being too harsh. I love the brow brush from Ulta. It has a stiff slanted edge on one end and a mascara wand type on the other end to brush through and soften the brow color. The brush is stiff enough to add volume to the brow and extend it if you need to. Just fill in with the color and brush through to blend.

Blush

Next, you are ready to apply blush. You can use cream or powder. I personally prefer powder since, as we age, the skin seems to absorb cream. If you are a Summer, I would recommend a muted shade of pink or rose (nothing too bright or dark). If you are Spring, a peach or coral shade works well (warm red is nice for summertime). If you are Autumn, you can use a tawny peach or brick red. Winters can use brighter and deeper shades of rose, red and burgundy.

I personally use two shades of blush. The first one is neutral, Teakwood by Merle Norman. It gives me a slight tanned look, and also, provides a base for my brighter shade, Rock Candy by Merle Norman, so it doesn’t grab and go on too bright. Again, apply with a good blush brush and blend, blend, blend! I use a large cotton ball to blend all the edges and pick up any excess.

Lip Color

And, lastly, you are ready to apply lipstick. This can get tricky depending on the amount of natural color in the lips. As a rule, I would recommend a soft muted pink or rose for Summer, a peach or coral shade for Spring ( warm red is nice for summertime) and a tawny peach or brick red for Autumns. Winters can generally get away with brighter or deeper shades of burgundy, rose and red. Again, if you are over fifty, I would stay away from glossy lip colors. The more gloss, the more “bleeding” into the lines around the mouth. I always recommend a lip liner pencil close to the shade of your lipstick and then a crème shade of lipstick.

Tip, If you need your lipstick to last longer, apply one coat, blot with a tissue, lightly powder through the tissue with loose powder and then apply a second coat.

Note: I do like “Boom” by Cindy Johnson (at Amazon) for going to the beach or first thing in the morning if I am not ready to apply my regular makeup for the day. It is just enough to keep from looking washed out.