While adding color to your hair can often make you appear younger, especially if you’re covering up grays, applying the wrong color or over-processing your hair can have the opposite effect. “Unless you are 20, ashy gray or white will add 10-20 years to your look,” warns Anna Guanche, MD, dermatologist, beauty expert and founder of the Bella Skin Institute. “And over-processing your hair or being too blonde can result in an aged look, because your hair is then frizzy and dry, reminiscent of grey hair texture.” Instead, she recommends adding highlights or toning it back to your original color to smooth the hair and add shine, which ultimately provides a more youthful look.
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A little goes a long way when it comes to eyeshadow, especially as you age. “Too much glitter eyeshadow or too much matte eyeshadow can augment wrinkles by getting stuck in skin folds,” warns Dr. Guanche. “The powdery eyeshadows may also irritate some individuals' eyes, causing puffiness that is recurrent daily and leads to fine lines in the skin around the eyes.” Instead, she recommends opting for cream eyeshadow, like Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow, $30, which can help hydrate dry skin throughout the day.
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Makeup tattoos are often an attempt to make an individual look younger, but they can also have the opposite effect as the pigment fades and becomes too red, ashy, orange or blue-grey. “When the tattoo is outside the normal hair growth area, it’s a dead giveaway that you have had a tattoo,” says Guanche. Instead, she recommends eyebrow tinting, so the individual hairs can be seen and not harsh lines of color. “The thicker hairs leave the eyebrows with a more youthful look,” she adds.
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While a healthier alternative to real tanning, spray tans can be quite drying and can augment loose skin, making it appear more wrinkled and crepey. In addition, Guanche says that spray tans can darken barnacle-like growths (seborrheic keratoses) often found on the legs and arms, leaving the body with more visible dark spots. If you use a spray tan, she recommends applying a high-quality body lotion or butter afterwards to make sure your skin looks plumped and moisturized.
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More and more women and men are turning to topical injections like Botox to reduce fine lines. While injections have been proven effective, they should be performed by a skillful professional—ideally a dermatologist. Otherwise, Guanche warns that the top of your face could be left motionless while the bottom of your face can still move. In addition, if you have harsh lines down below but no movement at the top, this could be a dead giveaway and an aging look. Instead, she recommends opting for more naturally placed Botox balanced with filler in the lower face to soften fine lines and wrinkles.
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