Looking Good in Later Life 2
                                               2001

Anyone who has looked after her (or his) appearance over the years has the edge in later life compared to ravers who burned all their candles at both ends. But skin, hair, eyes, lips, silhouette still show the years after fifty. Extra skin dryness, puffy eye areas, sagging around the chin, wrinkles – they all can benefit from special treatments.

A vast industry is out there to help with all and every beauty concern. In this column every month laterlife.com will visit one of the great cosmetic houses or one of the up-and-coming beauty collections that are just breaking into the market with new ideas and products. The practical results of everything from creamy cleansers to mud baths will be brought to you. All with the focus on maturity of course.

Sheer habit and unfamiliarity with new products are the main reasons why people stick to old products, but sometimes the fact is that nothing can beat them. So look out below for the ultimate test…The Test of Time

This month (January 2001) Maureen visits Clarins for laterlife.com

The French cosmetic house of Clarins has risen to fame with a series of products and treatments based on plant extracts.................

Latest Tips

Although skin care and general repair come first, make-up can make an enormous difference to mature faces, overcoming that loss of radiance and disguising minor blemishes like broken veins. Some newer colours and textures work very well on older skin, and nothing is more unflattering than clinging to favourite shades and techniques that may have looked good fifteen years ago but no longer lend enchantment. So watch the space below for latest tips and make-up secrets all with that mature slant.

When you need reading glasses, putting on eye make-up can be a bit of a dilemma. Glasses get in the way but if you try without you can't see what you are doing. The answer is a good quality enlarging mirror. The standard shaving mirror with extendable arm is useful in bathrooms - the arm can be moved for the mirror to catch the best light. A small portable mirror on a stand is even better. Check the enlarging power - mirrors do vary. Look out for suitable ones in big chemists or department stores.

Previous Tips

Boost for eyelashes

They definitely get skimpy - eyelashes on older faces. Mascara helps, but for best effect try Eyelash Filaments, produced in Denmark by Mastell Cosmetics. The process is to apply a layer of mascara and while wet apply the filaments, which is done with a small wand. Do one eye at a time so that the mascara is really fresh and wet when you apply the filaments. Then re-apply another layer of mascara. Thick and luscious lashes are yours! Unfortunately they are not suitable for use with contact lenses. Available in London, England from Lisa at Stephen , David and Joseph 11a Hay Hill, London W1X 7LF price £15. Telephone 020 7499 3680. Also available from Denmark from Mastell Cosmetics via email on john@mastell.dk

Skin specialists are now warning of the possible dangers of creams containing AHA’s (Alpha Hydroxy Acids). Creams with AHA’s minimise wrinkles by removing part of the outer layer of the skin. But Professor Nick Lowe, clinical professor at the University of California and Los Angeles has now warned "this can mean the skin is unprotected and more sensitive to the sun". Since sun is the primary agent in skin ageing, this warning applies particularly to older skins. The US Food and Drug Administration is investigating, and so is the European Commission which could limit the quantity of these acids used in skin creams. Salons have always used products with higher AHA content, but the warning applies to over-the-counter versions too.

The Test of Time

Products with true staying power, recognised as the best in their field

Since its launch in 1992, the Yves Saint Laurent wand, Touche Eclat or Radiant Touch, has made its home in the  make-up bag of thousands of women who appreciate its light touch in every sense. Applied gently to any dark area of the face, dark patches in the eye area, a dark line from nose to mouth, or even any part of the face that needs party sparkle , such as cheekbones, Touche Eclat is a light-reflecting liquid to add lightness and brightness to any skin that needs touching up.
December's Vogue magazine, lists Touche Eclat as one of its Smash Hits , "a permanent feature in millions of make-up bags". £20 for 1 fluid oz or 2.5 ml

Visible Difference Eight Hour cream skin protectant from Elizabeth Arden launched in 1935 remains in the top ten list of every model and mature beauty expert. It was rumoured that E. Arden used the product on her horses’ ankles (she was a great race horse owner in her day), but those without horses will find that it is a soothing, transparent unction that calms skin problems, sunburn or ski burn or wind chapping, dry skin or lesions, and it doubles as an excellent lip gloss too. It costs £17 for a 50ml tube that should last about a year.

Boots Aqueous cream is another old favourite, and a great budget item as a cleanser. For £2.50 you get a HUGE pot. I know one salon that uses it to cleanse hands and feet before manicure and pedicures, and it’s good for face and neck too.
www.boots.co.uk

Do you have any all-time favourites? If so, share them with us on laterlife.com, by sending an email to maureen@laterlife.com

Don't forget to take a look at the rest of the features sections of laterlife.com:

laterlife interest containing a variety of articles of interest for visitors to laterlife.com written by a number of experienced and new journalists.

It includes both one off articles and also regular columns of a more specialist nature such as healthwise  and talkback

Also don't forget to take a look at our regular IT question and answer section called YoucandoIT by IT trainer and author Jackie Sherman.

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