Fabulous Over Forty – Where Beauty Is Ageless

The newest addition to the Giorgio Armani Beauty line of foundations is this Lasting Silk Compact Foundation with SPF 35, not to be confused with the Luminous Silk Powder that I recently spoke about.    I was anxious to see this when Nicole called to tell me it was in at Nordstrom.   She knows how oily I get in the summertime and thought this would be a perfect foundation.

Well, it is a beautiful foundation.  Of course it is, it’s Armani!  

First she applied a little foundation on an area with a dry sponge and it melded beautifully with my skin.  Then on another area she took a slightly damp sponge and smoothed it on, as it can be used either way.   Again, it is an incredibly flawless application.   I loved the feel and look.  I was thrilled!  However, my only difficulty is the shade colors available.   It’s like I’m right in between two shades.  The 4 is too dark yellow for me, the 3.5 is almost right, but not quite and the 3 is too pink.   I was so disappointed that I couldn’t find a shade to work on me because it would be perfect for me in the summer with my oily skin.  

If you like the ease of a powder foundation, but don’t like a heavy, powdery look, you may want to give this a try.   You’ll be amazed at the silky smooth look your skin has. 

This compact is a fabulous addition to my foundation wardrobe.   Many foundation compacts are powder and not really made for skin over 40.  They can be drying and in order for the powder to give enough coverage, they can look cakey and settle into fine lines.   Not attractive.  

But this Chanel Teint Innocence works perfectly for me – especially in the summertime when I tend to be a bit oilier.  It’s not mattifying, but has smooth coverage and finish.  I don’t like to use the sponge that is included unless doing a touch-up.  I prefer using a foundation brush as it gives a little lighter coverage than using the sponge.  Teint Innocence extends the time before the oiliness creeps thru onto the surface of my skin during the day without looking matte.  Yet when I use it in the winter when my skin is drier it still keeps my skin smooth looking.   

I love the ease and simplicity of Teint Innocence and have purchased this over and over again.   It’s so easy to take along in your bag for touch-ups or when you want to quickly apply a foundation without taking so much time in your beauty routine in the mornings.   It’s one of my Fab Over 40 picks!

Sandy Linter, Lancome’s Beauty at Every Age Expert offers her summertime makeup essentials.

I love hearing any kind of beauty tip from Sandy Linter, so when she speaks, Fab Over 40 listens! 

Now that Memorial weekend is behind us, bring on the summer!    Here she offers us some of her melt-free makeup must-haves from Lancome. 

Ageless Minérale Blush - it’s new and it delivers the thinnest, sheerest amount of color to the skin.   It’s a powder, so it looks great in the summer but it’s soft and sheer enough for all ages.

Teint Idole Fresh Wear Foundation - it evens out the skin tone and then disappears, like you’re not wearing a foundation. Makeup should look effortless, especially in the casual summer months. Fresh Wear is perfect for this effortless look. It also happens to feel great on the skin.   (This sounds like a fabulous summer-time foundation and will have to check it out!)

Définicils Waterproof – Wearing sunglasses can heat up the skin around the eye area. This can smudge eye makeup, but not when you’re wearing waterproof mascara. My go-to has always been Définicils Waterproof.

Sounds like a quick 1, 2, 3 summer beauty must to me!

Estee Lauder has a new foundation called Resilience Lift Extreme and this foundation is perfectly suited for those of us over 40!  

The first thing I do when testing a foundation is to apply a dab on the back of my hand.   Not because of color matching – that should only be done on the face.   I do it to see what the texture is like, what depth of coverage it has and especially to see if it smooths over wrinkles.   I have a lot of fine wrinkles on the back of my hands and if a foundation exacerbates the wrinkles, it will only do that on the face – and who wants a foundation that makes wrinkles look worse on your face!

This foundation blends in smoothly, glides over any fine lines, is buildable in coverage and very moisturizing.   If you have oily skin, this may be too much in moisturizing for you, but it works great on dry skin.   If you feel your skin is normal, you might even want to skip your moisturizer for the day if using this as it might be moisturizing enough.   The foundation is combined with Estee Lauder’s #1 anti-aging moisturizer, Resilience Lift Extreme for a lifting appearance and all day moisture release.  Plus you can’t beat the fact that it has SPF 15 – always a plus in my book.

Find a shade that matches you online with their iMatch Foundation Finder.

The title of this Lorac “Breakthrough Performance” sounds more like a new car than a foundation for your face!

All joking aside, if you’re looking for a oil-free foundation, that is moisturizing, has SPF, contains additional anti-aging properties, then this Lorac foundation may be one you like.

When I was younger I was extremely oily and was thrilled when I discovered the Lorac Cosmetics line.   Created by Carol Shaw (Carol spelled backwards is Lorac) a makeup artist to many celebrities, had a difficult time finding makeup to use that was oil-free, yet not drying.    So she created her own line with oil-free being the focus.   Her foundation was all I used for years.   Then after several years, I moved on.   It wasn’t because I didn’t like the line, I just expanded my horizons, and for some odd reason didn’t go back.

Now ladies, you may think “I need moisture so this isn’t for me”.   Wrong!   Yes, you do need moisture, but just because it’s oil-free doesn’t mean that you aren’t getting moisture.   This contains peptides, vitamin A and vitamin E and SMS complex – a complex created to aid in cell turnover (which keeps your skin young looking). 

I love the twist-pop lid on this – it keeps the pump clean and clump free.  I recommend using a primer underneath – primers create a smooth barrier on your face to help hide imperfections.  I found this applies best after warming it up a bit and applying with your fingers.  It truly glides on and creates very smooth, soft looking skin with medium flawless coverage.  I’m a shade 3.  $38

Lorac, I’m back.

When Lancome originally came out with their Oscillation Mascara I laughed!   I declared it ridiculous!  Nonsense!  No woman over 40 could use a vibrating wand with our bad eyes – it would inflict pain!   Then I tried it.  I was amazed and hooked.   Not only does it find the teeny tiniest lashes and makes them appear in detail, it actually is harmless.  I now keep one in my mascara wardrobe at all times.

When Lancome sent me their newest vibrating product to try I wondered if it would it be as sensational as the mascara.  Oscillation Powerfoundation is a mineral powder foundation with SPF 21 encased in a jar with a soft sponge/powder puff tipped vibrating handle that has 7,000 micro-vibrations per minute.  Does one really need a vibrating foundation?

After the hesitation of the vibrating applicator, my next hesitation was with the mineral foundation itself.   I have not succombed to the mineral craze like many have.   I typically do not like mineral powder foundations as they leave this weird shine on my face and they discolor after a few hours.   Obviously I was concerned this would happen again.

I have to admit I had trouble learning how to use the applicator.   I tend to get a splotch  on the first laydown of the puff – which I go back and smooth out after most of the foundation is used up on the applicator.  But after more practice and use I feel like I have the technique down.   Because the applicator vibrates you don’t need to rub and rub to get it to apply evenly on your face like you need to do when using a brush.  And there is virtually no mess; it all stays within the container so your countertop stays clean.

So how does the mineral foundation work?   The mineral powder foundation is the only mineral powder foundation I’ve tried that doesn’t discolor on me, doesn’t give my face a weird shine, hides the redness on my face without looking like I’ve caked on foundation.   My skin actually looks fabulous when I wear this – which lately has been nearly every day.   I don’t know if it lasts 14 hours – but on me it lasts at least 8 hours and it gives my skin a very soft, smooth appearance. 

Someone recently said to me that “women of a certain age shouldn’t use mineral foundation”.   Maybe that’s true – but maybe they haven’t tried this foundation either.