Frequently asked questions
What ingredients should you look for when shopping for lipstick for older women?
Hydration is the name of the game. Pro makeup artist Andi Ellerby recommends looking for shea butter and vitamin E to moisturize, plus fruit seed oils and argan oil to lock everything in. To help prevent feathering—a common concern around a maturing mouth—she suggests choosing formulas with candelilla wax, lanolin wax, or beeswax, which create a cushiony base that keeps pigment from migrating. “For older women, you want to look for hydrating and long-lasting, which helps prevent slipping and feathering,” she explains. “If you’re not into liquid lipstick, look for something with beeswax because it has a nice base and the wax keeps it from bleeding.”
Should older women wear darker or lighter lipstick?
It depends on your skin tone and undertones, according to Ellerby. Her rule of thumb is to avoid extremes. Very deep shades can make lips look smaller, and ultra-pale nudes may wash you out. “Mature women who have had a loss of collagen in their lips may have lost volume, which would cause them to appear thinner and result in more dryness. They should avoid overly dark shades of lipstick. Stick with something more in the medium range,” she says, like berries and plums.
Should older women wear glossy or matte lipstick?
If you’re navigating fine lines, Ellerby has one hard no: “Avoid super dried-down mattes at all costs! They can make the lines pronounced, and as you age, you naturally just dry out, and so you want to avoid anything that will add to the dryness. Mattes are [known] for that.” If you don’t already have pronounced lines on and around your lips, you may be able to pull off mattifying lipstick. As for gloss? Use it strategically. “A little gloss under the Cupid’s bow is nice; it gives a youthful appearance—but that depends on the size of your lips,” she says. “If you have superthin lips, stay away from gloss.” She recommends sticking to satin finishes instead.
Are there any colors of lipstick that can make you look younger?
Yes—anything that adds warmth, life, and dimension. Ellerby suggests corals, berries, plums, and other medium-range shades. “Red lipstick is timeless,” she adds. “Red is that girl who transcends it all.”
How do you prevent feathering?
Lipstick is more likely to migrate when lips are dry and the skin around them isn’t prepped. Puckey says the trick is to hydrate and gently exfoliate the lips, then create a barrier around the lip line before applying color. “Set the lip line with loose powder before applying lip liner, and build lipstick over a well-prepared base,” he says. “Those small steps make the biggest difference in keeping lipstick exactly where you want it.”
What lip product is best for older lips?
Look for formulas that glide on easily and add moisture without settling into fine lines. “I love balmy lipsticks and rich classic lipstick formulas,” Puckey says. He also looks for beauty products with conditioning ingredients like argan oil, ceramides, squalane, shea butter, and hyaluronic acid, which can help support the skin barrier and improve comfort.
On the other hand, “I would recommend avoiding flat matte finishes,” says makeup expert and Laura Kay London founder of Laura Kay. “Overly matte formulas can make the lips appear thinner and draw attention to fine lines because they tend to cling to dry areas and settle into the natural texture or cracks of the lips. They can also make lips look drier and less plump, while their lack of light reflection makes texture and lip lines appear more noticeable.”
How do you make mature lips look fuller?
The easiest way to make thinner lips appear fuller? Choose shades and finishes that reflect light. “For thinner lips, I usually avoid very dark shades because they make the lips look smaller,” Puckey says. Instead, he recommends lighter or mid-tone colors and more transparent, balmy formulas that let the lips’ natural dimension show through.
What’s the best way to apply lipstick on older women?
A little extra prep can make lipstick look smoother and stay put longer. Puckey recommends keeping lips moisturized, using a nourishing balm overnight, and exfoliating regularly. Before applying lip liner, he presses a small amount of loose powder around the lip line to create a barrier against feathering. For maximum longevity, he takes it a step further: concealer, loose powder, lip liner, another light dusting of powder, then lipstick.
To make your search easier (and way less expensive), Glamour spoke to makeup pros about the lipstick shades, textures, and finishes that truly flatter a maturing mouth. Then our editors tested a wide range of reader- and expert-loved tubes to find the formulas that actually deliver on hydration, color, volume, and fine-line blurring—all without feathering.
