How I knocked a DECADE off my age with the anti-ageing make-up tricks experts swear by, from the jowl-busting trick to what really hides lines – and no you HAVEN'T heard of these before

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For most of my life, my make-up routine has been a reliable, go-to formula: bold, black eyeliner, lashings of black mascara, well-lined lips and lots of blusher and concealer. My thinking had always been: why fix what isn’t broken?

But now 52, I realise I’ve created pretty much the same look since I was 20. Yet my features have drooped and lost definition, while my lashes, brows and lips have all grown thinner.

Could it be that this once fail-safe routine now simply adds years to my appearance?

I have a teenage daughter who bombards me daily with the latest cosmetics trends, ‘facts’ and ‘expert’ advice from social media. I’ve always been sceptical, but now, reluctantly, I took a peek myself . . . only to stumble upon a treasure trove of YouTube videos, Insta reels and TikTok posts dedicated to the art of mature make-up application.

Intrigued, I decided to try them out – with the help of celebrity make-up artist Oonagh Connor, on hand to give her expert opinion.

The results will surprise you as much as they did me . . .

1. DITCH THE BLACK LINER

BEFORE: I’ve always rather liked my eyes as they are quite large and greenish, so I try to define them as much as possible using a black eyeliner pen. You just draw it on top and bottom, no? I have to admit it’s harder to apply now that my lids are wrinkled.

TIKTOK TIP: Mimiknowsmakeup’s Eyeliner Tips Over 50 reel has had 10.6 million views on TikTok. US-based Mimi, a cosmetologist, says to throw away the black liner: ‘We’re not wearing black eyeliner ladies, we’re too old for that’. Oh.

Rather, she recommends using two soft shades of eyeliner, such as plum and chocolate, and a very soft-textured waterproof pencil. Drag the chocolate along the eye, smudge with the finger – this is news to me – and then repeat. Then use plum along the waterline, both top and bottom.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘This technique works well. You want definition, but not strong lines, and the more you use a smoky look, the softer the eye looks. I’d say you can still wear black, but take it down a notch; it’s less harsh if you just draw it along the top water line of the eye (inside the upper lid) to define and brown kohl on the eyeline to soften.’

CONCLUSION: Plum on my eyes? What nonsense. Or so I thought. In fact, the before shot looks like an ageing rocker, and the after shot makes my eyes look brighter, fresher and younger; the purple hue also makes them look more green.

TRY: The wonderfully soft Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner Glide-On Eye Pencil or Estée Lauder Double Wear Infinite Waterproof Eyeliner , which has a soft smudge tip and built-in sharpener and comes in four shades, including Deep Plum.

2. RELAX THE LIP LINER

BEFORE: Every day I draw a line all the way around the fading line of my lips, going outside the line a little to try to make them appear plumper. I have developed bar code lines –wrinkles along my upper lip – and the liner makes these less obvious. I then slap on lip gloss or lipstick.

TIKTOP TIP: Make-up artist (MUA) Erica Taylor has 2.2 million followers on TikTok and her reel, called ‘common mistakes that age the face’, has 9.9 million views. Here, she recommend going a little over the top lip rather than staying within the lip line – as I already do. But, crucially, she then says to stop the drawn line before the end of the lip, otherwise it drags the lip down.

She also goes a little under the bottom lip to increase fullness. Her reel shows the difference – the partially lined lip looks subtly younger.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘Be careful not to take the line too far outside the lip, or it will look obvious. Add a swish of lip gloss in the middle of the bottom lip to create a fuller look. To further define the lip, put a little dab of concealer above the cupid’s bow.’

CONCLUSION: Mouths start to draw downwards as we age; I try to remember to smile slightly to counteract my increasingly obvious resting b**** face. This technique means I look less grumpy and focuses the eye on the middle of the lower lip – the only bit that still has decent volume. Concealer over the cupid’s bow is genius.

TRY: Jones Road The Lip Pencil is delightfully soft and deeply pigmented – by make-up artist Bobbi Brown, who created the brand. And I love Clarins Natural Lip Perfector.

3. BIN EXCESS BLUSHER

BEFORE: I always apply powder blusher liberally in a blob on the apple of my cheek with a brush. The more, the better, right? I want to look healthy, as though I’ve been for a bracing walk along a cliff top.

TIKTOK TIP: MUA Ruby Hammer MBE has had 329,000 views of her brilliant menopause-approved beauty tips on YouTube. She recommends applying blusher to the apple of your cheek and then sweeping upwards and outwards, which gives the impression of volume.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘We call this “the snatch” – where you apply and lift upwards from the cheek. Blusher application has changed. We used to apply loads just to the apple, and now we say apply to the top of the apple and work upwards.’

CONCLUSION: Brushing product upwards makes a huge difference. My face looks somehow lifted and naturally glowing rather than Victorian-consumption flushed.

TRY: Ruby Hammer Cheek Colour (£24) for a sure-fire buildable and natural-looking cream blusher.

4. LESS CONCEALER, MORE EFFECT

BEFORE: There’s so much I’m keen to cover up these days that I pretty much use as much concealer as I do foundation; great swoops under and around the eyes, as well as liberal application around lip lines and pigmentation on my cheeks.

TIKTOK TIP: MUA Vincent Ford has almost half a million followers on TikTok, and his concealer tips for all ages have had an incredible 7.9 million views. If you have mature skin, he recommends mixing the concealer with a hydrating primer to get more moisture under the eyes.

He recommends using two shades – one that matches your skin tone exactly and one shade brighter, which you dab on the skin and blend together for a more natural look.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘My top tip is don’t take concealer up to the eye-line, just below the eye. I tend to just do three dots a bit lower along that bone beneath the eye in a shade lighter than your base and dab in. Ford’s tips are amazing for shoots, but possibly too complicated for everyday use. Most women will only use one concealer.’

CONCLUSION: This all seems a lot to remember, but Oonagh’s tip transforms my look, and I use a serum concealer, rather than mixing products, to save time.

TRY: Maybelline Instant Anti-Age Eraser Concealer, NYX Professional Makeup Can’t Stop Won’t Stop Contour Concealer or No7 Lift & Luminate Serum Concealer.

5. CONSTRUCT YOUR EYESHADOW

BEFORE: I always apply light shadow on the entire lid, then a ‘v’ of darker shadow at the far corner of the eye – along the lid and then in the crease of the eye socket, which I blend dark to light at the nose end. The classic smoky eye technique. Sometimes, I put a splodge of glitter in the middle for parties. But it transpires I’ve been doing it all wrong.

TIKTOK TRICK: Erica Taylor’s TikTok about how to apply eyeshadow on mature skin has had 7.3 million views. She says don’t do the ‘v’ as it’s ageing. Instead, dot creamy concealer in the middle of the lid and blend all over so the shadow will stick. Using a small brush at the outer edge of the eye apply eyeshadow up in a diagonal line to just above the eyelid crease – but not along the crease – to lift, then blend. Use a warmer colour below the brow to further lift. Instead of a brush, rely on the moisture from your finger tip to press glitter or shimmer into the eyelid.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘This is all easy to do. The ‘v’ is indubitably ageing – it’s dragging the eye down rather than upwards. Bringing the eyeshadow up at the edges of the eye and blended upwards to the brow is as good as a facelift – almost!

CONCLUSION: I am astonished at how badly I’ve been doing my eyeshadow – as literally every tip is a transformation.

TRY: Kiko Milano Eyeshadow Palette, or L’Oréal Paris Le Shadow Stick Eyeshadow 230 Magnetic Bronze.

6. BUILD THE FOUNDATION

BEFORE: I usually slap on a blob of thick foundation, smoothing evenly with my fingers. It doesn’t last all day and I quite often end up reapplying in the afternoon.

TIKTOK TRICK: US make-up artist Glam Girl Gabi has 632,000 subscribers on YouTube and 450,000 views of her everyday make-up for mature skin. She recommends using moisturiser and sunscreen – she mentions Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen SPF30 (£36.50, boots.com) – which acts as a great primer. Then use a foundation brush in a stippling motion (basically dabbing) to gradually build up coverage, especially where you have a lot of pigmentation or darkness under eyes.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘Primer is essential. I like No7 Pro Artist Base Perfecting Primer (£19.95, no7beauty.com), which has a bit of a glow. You don’t want matte shades with mature skin. You might also try liquid foundation that you can build up easily without looking heavy on skin. Dot on the cheek, forehead and chin then blend –adding more on areas of concern. Avoid the under-eye till the end, and then do a quick sweep with the almost empty brush.’

CONCLUSION: Using more, but a lighter texture, makes all the difference, giving me a natural and make-up free look.

TRY: Heliocare 360 Oil Free Gel Sunscreen SPF50 is tinted and works as a brilliant primer. Oonagh’s favourite is Delilah Time Frame Future Resist Foundation Broad Spectrum SPF20 (£39).

7. FALL IN LOVE WITH NO-GLUE LASHES

BEFORE: I use buckets of black mascara. False lashes always feel heavy on my eyes and one always ends up hanging half off, so I look as though I have a demented spider on my face. I also have a fear of those ridiculously exaggerated lashes that are so fashionable.

TIKTOK TRICK: Home-grown experts Jo Jones and Nadine Baggott – The Beauty Hags – did an Instagram video recommending no-glue Bonded lashes, which got over 100,000 views.

These go under rather than over your own lashes and last two to three days. A little pair of tweezers is used to apply them, avoiding the losing battle between lashes and fingers.

OONAGH SAYS: ‘The tweezers are hugely useful. You do need a steady hand, but eliminating the glue application is highly effective. My tip is to put mascara on your own lashes before applying the little lashes.’

CONCLUSION: These look fabulous and far better than my daily gloopy mascara application. They are still false lashes and an effort to apply (I do not understand people wearing these every day), but they are natural-looking.

TRY: Bonded Natural No-Glue Lashes.