The Best Blush for Mature Skin:
A Complete Guide
Makeup artists share the best products, application tips, and colors.
Updated: Apr 5, 2024
LAURA GELLER
The Best Blush for Mature Skin:
A Complete Guide
Makeup artists share the best products, application tips, and colors.
Updated: Apr 5, 2024
LAURA GELLER
A touch of blush is the easiest and quickest way to take your entire complexion from dull and tired to radiant and alive. But, especially as skin ages, it can come with a few pitfalls. Some of the biggest concerns about applying blush on mature skin are that it can settle into fine lines, emphasize uneven texture, or look too obvious and unnatural. The excellent news: It's very easy to avoid these negatives. Follow this expert guidance on the best blushes for mature skin, the right way to apply them, and the colors that will make your complexion pop.
How to apply blush on mature skin
The number one tip per makeup artists: Bring your blush up higher than where you used to put it. "As we get older, skin begins to sag a bit. To counteract that, apply blush higher up. Blend from the apple of the cheek to up under the eyes and then out toward your temples," says RaeDawn Johnson, Gayle King's go-to makeup artist. Rose-Marie Swift, makeup artist and founder of RMS Beauty agrees: "I never go below the line of the nostrils for blush because it pulls the face down and looks dated." Another trick to try: Consider applying cream blush (read more about creams, below!) with your fingers. Johnson says the warmth of your fingers will help to diffuse the color into your skin and make it look seamless and natural. "Then the product looks like part of your skin rather than floating on top of it," adds Jeanine Lobell, makeup artist and founder of Neen.
What to look for in a blush for mature skin
The right formula and shade are key for making blush look radiant, healthy, and natural. If your concerns are signs of aging, then there's no question you'll want to reach for a cream formula. "Cream cheek products are always my preference for mature skin because they blend easily into the skin, often offer color-correcting qualities, brighten the skin...they're just downright pretty," says Lobell. At this age, powders can be harder to work with and blend into fine lines and uneven texture. (Cream-to-powder formulas are the exception; they blend into skin as a cream and then dry to a long-wear powder.) Either way, avoid any formula that contains glitter, shimmer, or a lot of light-reflecting flecks. "Those will only make fine lines and wrinkles more pronounced," says Johnson.
What color blush should you choose for mature skin?
This is not the time for a barely there, match-your-skin shade. Pick a color that pops against your complexion. You're going to appear much more lively than when your makeup is monochromatic, says Swift. Adds Lobell: "As we get older, our hair tends to become a bit lighter or more gray, and skin can appear a bit more sallow; a pink shade, for example, will counteract those changes perfectly," says Lobell. "Also, if you have a lot of dark spots, then a plum or blue-based shade may emphasize the hyperpigmentation. Instead, try a soft rose or a more neutral, warm tone." Keep reading for expert-approved options.
The experts:
RaeDawn Johnson, celebrity makeup artist
Rose-Marie Swift, makeup artist and founder of RMS Beauty
Jeanine Lobell, makeup artist and founder of Neen
BEST SHEER WASH OF COLOR
Laura Geller Serum Blush Tint
PROS
Dewy finish
Contains hydrating skincare
Available in seven shades
CONS
If you like a lot of pigment, you may not like this sheer wash of color
This is not the time for a barely there, match-your-skin shade. Pick a color that pops against your complexion. You're going to appear much more lively than when your makeup is monochromatic, says Swift. Adds Lobell: "As we get older, our hair tends to become a bit lighter or more gray, and skin can appear a bit more sallow; a pink shade, for example, will counteract those changes perfectly," says Lobell. "Also, if you have a lot of dark spots, then a plum or blue-based shade may emphasize the hyperpigmentation. Instead, try a soft rose or a more neutral, warm tone." Keep reading for expert-approved options.
Key ingredients:
Hyaluronic acid and polysaccharide
Shades:
7
