What types of foundation make your wrinkles look deeper

While you may have struggled with acne or oily skin in your twenties, dark spots, wrinkles, and fine lines are more common in your 50s, 60s, and beyond. While you want to cover up the signs of ageing, you also don't want your complexion to look cakey or fake.

A liquid or cream foundation, or a hybrid foundation stick rather than a powder foundation, is preferable for older skin. Powder types have a tendency to settle into fine lines and wrinkles, leaving a visible film on the skin. Liquid foundations contain light-reflecting chemicals that level out the shadows on your face. Because cream-based formulations are radiant without looking oily or shiny, they produce similar results.

However, before you go shopping, we asked for advice from some of the industry's best makeup artists, Ruby Hammer and Fiona Stiles, to compile a comprehensive guide to the best foundations for mature skin.

But first, let's start with science…

Our skin, like our bodies, ages with us as we get older. The skin on our face and hands is the first to exhibit signs of age. Our skin cells shrink in size, quality, and quantity as the years pass.

Over time your skin loses its capacity to regulate temperature, sebum (oil) production, vitamin absorption, hyaluronic acid generation, and skin cell turnover, making it less effective as a protective barrier. The healing process significantly slows as a result.

To make matters worse, our skin's support system - collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid - gradually depletes over time, making our skin increasingly fragile, sagging, thin, and then wrinkled. In fact, up to a third of collagen production can dip as you get older.

Sun exposure is the primary cause of collagen breakdown. It breaks down collagen fibres within the skin and decreases natural antioxidant levels by 50%. These statistics make it imperative that we protect our skin from the sun with sunscreen every day.

Ultraviolet (UV) emitted by the sun daily is responsible for 80 to 90% of ageing symptoms such as wrinkles, pigmentation, sunspots, suppleness, and collagen loss. Free radical generation due to solar exposure causes 50% of UV damage, and 50% of UV damage causes direct cell trauma and DNA damage.

Sun damage is the fact that you cannot deny it, and with global warming, it is only going to get worse.

For these reasons, invest in a decent sunscreen that protects against both UVA and UVB radiation. UVA is an acronym for ultraviolet A, which stands for ageing. This form of light is available all year and may pass through clouds and glass and reflect off surfaces like sidewalks. UVB stands for ultraviolet B, and these rays are at their most potent in the summer.

That's not all. Smoking, air pollution, and excessive alcohol consumption also accelerate collagen breakdown in skin cells, while stress increases cortisol production, which destroys elastin and accelerates wrinkling. Chronic dehydration results in weaker tissue structures by pulling water molecules from our body's cellular matrix leaving behind waste debris and sagging skin and wrinkles.

It is advisable to consult a professional dermatologist if you want specific medical advice about facial products and medications known to cause wrinkles rather than go by what makeup brands say they can do.

Your personality reflects the type of wrinkles you have. If you're always smiling, you'll develop laughter lines, but if you're always furious, you'll get frown lines.

The more expressive you are, the more information about your personality your wrinkles convey; this is both good and bad news. However, there are methods for delaying ageing symptoms. Exfoliation is a great place to start.

"Skin particles embedded deep within creases make them appear more pronounced," says Stiles. By removing dead cells, you will allow for smoother application of pencils or loose powder on your lids without having to push deep into skin folds, which can create an unwanted effect.

You might need to visit several counters and test several foundations before finding the right one. Make sure the shade you chose is perfect, not too warm or too ashy. Also, keep in mind that if your undertone leans warm/yellow, you must select a shade with equal yellow undertones; if your undertone leans cool/purple, then match it up with an equivalent tone.

Choosing the right tones is difficult and takes time, trial, and error, but the best advice we have received is to patch test the foundation on the inside of your wrist where the skin is least affected by outside influences like sun damage and general wear and tear.

Also, finding the perfect foundation takes time. You might even have to mix a few shades to get the right match, so be patient. 

To ensure you're using the best foundation application methods, wet your makeup sponge and squeeze out all excess water before each use. "Apply foundation with a damp sponge, which allows for better blending," says Hammer.

A flat-top brush provides fuller coverage in fewer strokes than a traditional makeup sponge because it doesn't require much product to cover your entire face.

Using brushes also results in less buildup on your skin since they are washed regularly after each application compared to sponges which go untouched every day.

So now we know the facts. Let's look at the do's and don't when purchasing foundations.

Choose lightweight formulas such as moisturizing or satin-finish liquid foundations when your hormone levels drop and your skin becomes drier. Ruby Hammer, a makeup artist based in New York and Los Angeles, recommends using a water-based solution with hydrating elements like moisturizing glycerin or hyaluronic acid.

According to the experts at Allure magazine, "women who are concerned about creases and wrinkles should use foundations with sheer coverage and a dewy, radiant finish." Thicker, matte foundations are typically meant to provide deeper coverage, which means they're packed with pigment that can become cakey over time and "settle into fine creases and wrinkles, making them appear more prominent."

So the answer to our question is the matte foundation with heavy coverage is not your friend if you have mature skin with wrinkles or fine lines. Choose lightweight formulas that enhance your looks, not detract from them and do all you can to look after your skin as, after all, prevention is better than the cause.

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