Why your make-up isn’t working with winter skin – and what to use instead
In this regular series, Ageless Beauty, The Telegraph’s beauty experts Annabel Jones and Lisa Armstrong tackle the conundrums they’ve been searching for answers to, and share their favourite tips and tricks.
This week, they discuss how to prime winter skin for make-up. Ask them your questions below...
Alas, it’s dry skin season. I’m not necessarily referring to the year-round dryness that many women “over a certain age” can relate to, though if it is your everyday then this column will serve you well. I’m talking about winter-tight skin. The kind that feels like an overcooked turkey, scaly in patches and desperately lacking in moisture. I’m no derm but it’s standard thinking that this is due to the jarring nature of switching between brisk cold outdoor weather and indoor central heating. Neither does the complexion any favours. Both concurrently is a PR disaster.
The obvious solution is to throw a rich cream at the problem. But often this isn’t enough to quell a rough patch. You need to tackle cold weather skin with a layering approach. And plenty of patience.
The first clue that your skin is thirsty is that your make-up stops working. A medium coverage base that sat on the surface like freshly laundered satin two months ago now looks like it’s been borrowed from the 80s; i.e. flat and patchy. Of course, it’s not the product that’s the issue, it’s the underlay.
Good news is you don’t have to buy a different formulation – though it can be a good excuse to invest in a newbie (if you choose this route, I’d suggest something lighter and dewier than usual) – you can redress things by tweaking your application method. I’ve spent the past month working out how best to sort my own make-up conundrum – here’s what works for me.
First off I cleanse with a balmy cleanser and a cloth or flannel which helps to exfoliate lips and dry areas of the face without leeching moisture (I have plenty of good recommendations in past columns). Then I’ll apply whatever serum I’m using onto damp just-showered skin, extending all products down onto my neck and decolletage. Skincare should end at your nipples, according to super facialist Joanna Czech.
Now I layer. Beginning with a rich moisturiser – right now I’m using Augustinus Bader’s Rich Soothing Cream for hydration, lubrication and anti-redness but you needn’t spend this much – Avene and La Roche Posay have excellent ranges for dry inflamed skin.
The Ultimate Soothing Cream, £230, Augustinus Bader
I apply more than is necessary and massage it in well. You’ll need to wait until it’s sunk in properly or you’ll be met with a slippery slide that doesn’t bode well for a seamless make-up application. Once it’s been absorbed, I go back in with a priming moisturiser – one that is less greasy but adds an extra surge of hydration while priming the skin for make-up. For this I find Charlotte Tilbury’s Magic Cream is unbeatable. I wait for this to sink in (again, patience) then I apply a layer of SPF; one that’s light and ungreasy. I flip between Supergoop Every Single Face, Mecca Cosmetica To Save Face, Murad City Skin Age Defense and Ultra Violette Supreme Screen or Daydream Screen Tinted Veil (hint: Aussies do the most impressive formulations for obvious reasons).
Magic Cream, £52, Charlotte Tilbury
Every Single Face SPF50, £29, Supergoop
This may seem like a lot of moisturiser – it is. But if you are upwards of 40, your ceramides (lipids that prevent moisture from escaping) are far gone and so are your collagen and hyaluronic acid stores. Thus, in the dead of winter, so long as you wait for each application to be fully absorbed, you really can’t use too much. The bonus of SPF, by the way, is that it gives the complexion a beamy finish that acts like a glowy primer – which you can apply next, should this be part of your routine. I don’t.
Next, base. It doesn’t really matter which way you go about it but I apply concealer first. And here’s why: when we get older there’s less light bouncing off the contours. Less light on the skin – coupled with less sunlight in the sky – equates to a dull lacklustre face if you cover it up completely.
Therefore, using a concealer stick (you can use any concealer you like), I apply a healthy amount to the back of my hand, spreading it out thinly like paint on a palette. Next, using a fluffy brush I’ll gather a small amount from the back of my hand and buff it gently into the areas of my face that are showing darkness or redness. Often that’s around the nose, under the eyes and the chin. When it comes to under eyes, I am sparing, making sure to apply the concealer lower down where the orbital bone is, buffing in circular motions moving upwards with less and less product on the brush. You will need to go back for more concealer every so often as you assess areas on the face that need touching up, but don’t be overzealous. A little goes a long way if you blend consciously in the right places.
Once you’ve completed this process you’ll be surprised how much brighter and more even your skin looks – without a drop of foundation. I should add that I believe in using a shade closest to your natural skin, not a lighter one as is the trend on social media, but each to their own. If you suffer terribly with dark circles, a peachy under eye corrector underneath your concealer will give a more natural look than piling on a thicker layer of concealer.
I usually leave things there but on occasion I will apply a smidgen of foundation around the cheek area which is where redness and imperfections settle on me (always apply foundation from the centre of your face outwards). I use the same method as I do with concealer, applying a pump to the back of my hand that I spread out in a fine layer to avoid picking up too much base in one go. You can use a ring finger. I prefer a beauty blender or foundation brush. Once that’s on, I’ll buff it into the skin with a clean buffing brush to ensure no foundation is visible in pores or any dry or oily patches. I barely use any foundation in winter which may seem counter-intuitive but, fun fact; the less you can get away with the better and younger your skin will look.
I’m a blush girl, so I tend to skip contour for a liquid or cream blush that I’ll dot high on the cheeks and blend to oblivion. I take a ring finger to a balmy highlighter which I’ll dot onto the tip of my nose, cupid’s bow and high high on the cheeks. Don’t overblend this – a patting motion with a stippling brush or finger works best.
Makeup lovers often tell me they prefer powder blushes and bronzers for the pigment pay-off but I’d take a pop of luminosity that needs reapplying every couple of hours over a matte finish all day long.
Eyes need no more than a delicate contour with a non-shimmery bronzing cream or liquid eyeshadow (if you use bronzer double up on eyes), again blend well, then either a pencil or liquid eyeliner (an option, not a necessity) and a good long lasting mascara (one that doesn’t smudge or flake beneath the eyes) that’s highly pigmented and lengthens – Estee Lauder’s Double Wear, Tower 28’s Makewaves and Clinque’s Power Lash are always in my top three. Maybelline Sky High and Max Factor Masterpiece are two budget options that are just as good. I sometimes dot highlighter onto the eyelids for evening.
For lips, currently I line them with a matte rosy coloured lip pencil (choose the shade that’s as close to your lips as possible) using it to fill the entire mouth, followed by a reflective clear or nude-y pink balm or gloss to reflect yet more light. If I need to I’ll use a small powder brush with translucent powder to go over areas that get shiny (around the nose, chin and between the brows) but honestly, I’ve found greater solace in a fixing spray – there’s a difference between fixing and setting FYI. I prefer the latter. Kind of like hairspray for your make-up, it gives it staying power without decimating every ounce of glow with powder. You’re welcome.
Annabel’s picks
Haloscope Dew Effect Highlighter, £22, Glossier
Infallible 3 Second Fixing Spray, £9.99, L’Oreal Paris
Wet Lip Oil Gloss in Jellyfish, £19, Kosas
Luminous Silk Cheek Tint, £36, Armani
Beauté Concealer Stick, £59, Clé de Peau
Hannh Martin x Ciate London Professional Brush Base Kit, £59, Ciate
If you don’t heat your bathroom to a constant temperature 24/7, it stands to reason that your make-up can change its texture and composition depending on the weather. Eye crayons and lipsticks can harden so I seek out softer, waxier ones (the Victoria Beckham Kajals).
Satin Kajal Liner, £32, Victoria Beckham
Probably the biggest switch for me is foundation. I don’t use much but when it’s cold I eliminate it completely. I don’t like how cold it feels on the skin, or the fact it thickens slightly. A few dabs of concealer around my nose and eyes do the job – I love RMS’s organic Un-cover. I’ve just discovered Etal, a vegan, responsibly produced line with refillable compacts: their Complexion-Gow brick comes in five different palettes, is gorgeous for eyes, contouring cheeks or as blusher, and contains aloe vera and vitamin E.
One winter dividend is that I spend more time on my skincare, hunkering down on my sofa with my skin oils and massage gizmos (If you don’t like greasy oils, try Moi’s Golden Lustre which is also wonderful for smoothing frizzy, static hair, As retinol can be drying, switching to de Mamiel’s Gravity Fix could be a good call. With retinAL and a host of other ingredients to (gently) brighten skin, smooth lines, boost the skin barrier it increases the body’s production of hyaluronic acid.
Gravity Fix Serum, £140, De Mamiel
No question. Gua sha improves the integrity of both the skin and its tone (by releasing tension and draining away lymph) it enables muscles to do their job better. If it’s not for you, there are a couple of gadgets worth considering. Dr Levy’s Contour Pro, a hand held micro current tool whose dinkiness belies its efficacy. The first time I tried it I could see the difference. The worked side looked perceptibly more lifted. Not that has a permanent effect. At this low level, the micro current will “only” target the skin cells just below your epidermis, making them more active and enhancing their production of collagen and elastin. A face lift this is not.
The Contour Pro, £249, Dr. Levy Switzerland
The Face Gym’s Pro is another £400 plus, but more powerful – you can see your muscles twitching on the higher settings. If you’ve been deterred from doing facial exercises because you worry you might end up increasing your wrinkles, this could be worthwhile, but at £633 you need to be honest with yourself: will you use it?
The second device is a good light mask. There’s so much data now showing the positive benefits of red and near infra red light on skin health (less data on blue, green and yellow light, so unless you have acne, save your money, and focus on red and near infra-red). The optimum frequency for treating fine lines and stimulating healing is 633 nm for red light and 830 nm for near infrared Enter the Omnilux. For the ten minutes you lie down with it on, winter turns to summer.
