I have always had a love-hate relationship with mascara. I mostly hate it, to be perfectly honest. Of all my cosmetics, it’s the one thing I dread putting on. I was thrilled when Dior signed off on the no-mascara look, and I plan to take advantage of it.
Disclaimer: I will use mascara from time to time, especially for photos, but only when absolutely necessary.
Watch my video about why I gave up wearing mascara
Why do men have such gorgeous eyelashes?
For one thing, they don’t wear mascara. Their lashes do not break and fall off because they are left alone. Women glop on layers of mascara to make their lashes look longer or glue on false lashes that pull off their natural lashes. It’s a conspiracy to keep us buying that gunk!
What is in mascara?
Pure and simple, it’s tar, like in the La Brea Tar Pits. Mascara is sticky, hard, gooey, and hard to get off. Some mascara brands claim to have natural ingredients, but they still put crud on your lashes.
Waterproof mascara requires a strong eye makeup remover to dissolve it, and non-waterproof mascara flakes and gets in your eyes.
The no-mascara look is catching on
A little mascara may look nice, but too much looks fake and gunky. Think of Tammy Faye Baker. Our eyelashes thin out as we age, and our eyes water. When our eyes get drippy, our mascara melts into our wrinkles, and no one wants to look like they were punched in the eye.
Heavy eyeliner looks equally awful on aging eyes. The current trend of adding a little loop at the end, like we did in the 70s, doesn’t work if you have crow’s feet.
Prime Prometics makes eyeliner specifically for mature women, and I love using it. It glides on and stays put for hours. I use it to give the illusion of wearing mascara by adding a thin line on my top lid and then smudging it. I never apply eyeliner to my bottom lid because it makes my eyes look like slits. Another option is to use a dark creamy eyeshadow on your top lid for the same effect.
I avoid wearing eye shadow except for a matte nude base color to brighten my eyes and accentuate my eyebrows. Julep Desert Matte is my favorite cream-to-powder stick because it never dries out and acts as a primer for my eyeliner.
Focus on defining your eyebrows to frame your face
Some older women are blessed with well-defined eyebrows. I am NOT one of them. My eyebrows disappear at the ends, and one side is lopsided. A brow lift would help, but it isn’t in my budget.
Overplucking our eyebrows in the nineties took a toll on many women’s brows, and they never recovered.
I have tried all sorts of eyebrow products, including powders and gels, but found that a good eyebrow pencil is all I need. I considered getting my brows tattooed, but I worry they would look too harsh or fake. The last thing I want is to have eyebrows that look painted on.
I’ve tried many eyebrow pencils, and my favorite is Anastasia Beverly Hills. It has a fine tip that outlines my brows so I can fill them in. Defining my eyebrows is challenging because I need reading glasses to see them up close, and my glasses get in the way.
My results from saying goodbye to wearing mascara
When I wore mascara, my eyes were always dry and itchy. Occasionally, I would get an eye infection. The itchiness caused me to rub my eyes, increasing my wrinkles. Once I stopped, all that went away. My eyes no longer water all the time unless I slice an onion.
I never have to spend time removing my mascara at night. A quick wash is all I need.
Now that I’m in my seventies, I’m never going back to wearing mascara. How about you?
Do you have tips to make your eyes look fabulous? Please leave a comment below.
I must admit, I love mascara, and have been wearing it since 9th grade! I also have the disappearing brow problem. I always have to build on my brows these days. Oh well.
It’s great that you love it Laurie. More power to you! And the brows. People are telling me to tattoo them but I just can’t go there.
Thanks for all your info. Everyone of us is different when it comes to eyes makeup. I had my brows DONE, when I liked in CA. That means
they shave off what you do have, not much for me, and then cut into the skin to create a brow. It heals an you have brows. Over time you need to redo this part, but
now I have a great outline to follow, and I just use a brow pencil. So easy. I also use shadow which I apply with my finer. Eyelashes? GONE BABY!
I stopped wearing mascara on a regular basis after I retired.
Glad to hear I’m not alone. LOL
I have blepharitis which twists my menopausal lashes, and causes dry eyes. I try and try with mascara, use a primer and an expensive mascara, all for naught. It receives little lift from these products, and what I am left with are stubby and clumpy lashes from the mascara. Is it really worth the effort to look like a fool?
With all the eye issues we tend to get as we get older, I am enjoying not wearing mascara. It’s so much easier to deal with cleaning up at night. I use a little eye liner on my upper lid instead. I love Prime Prometics Glide eyeliner made for mature women. They also make a mascara.