Getting older (or ‘growing up,’ as we call it) should be liberating, even fun, so we refuse to let little things like lines - which show how much we’ve smiled in our lives - bother us.
Nevertheless some signs of age are less agreeable and we don’t intend to go down without a fight. Lips, for example, tend to flatten and lose fullness, not to mention softness and suppleness, while teeth become longer as the gums recede (hence the expression, ‘long in the tooth’) and also yellower. So here are a few nifty tricks to help rejuvenate your smile.
* Start with the condition of your lips. Gentle exfoliation clears away all the dead dry skin cells that suck up (and waste) all those pricy moisturisers you apply. You can use your usual facial scrub over your lips, or simply mix one teaspoon of honey with one teaspoon of sugar, massage in gently, then rinse off with lukewarm water. Result: smoother lips in seconds.
* Follow with moisturiser. One of my favourite lip treatments is a thick layer of good old Nivea Creme. I slather it over my lips like a mask, letting it sink in slowly, and reapplying until no more moisture is absorbed.
* Tackle lines around your mouth with a temporary wrinkle filler. Formulations containing hyaluronic acid, such as Soap & Glory The Fill Monty Dab-On Instant Wrinkle Filler, £10 hold water in the skin for a plumping effect, while those with dimethicone (a kind of silicone), such as B.Flawless Targeted Wrinkle Filler, £9.99 sit on the skin surface to literally fill in the crease. Both types work particularly well under foundation.
* Always apply foundation over your lips. By smoothing skin texture as well as colour, it provides a perfect canvas for lipstick, and also helps you to achieve a crisper, more youthful definition to your lipline, which tends to fade and blur with age. Lipliner pencil helps, too, and it also acts as a barrier to prevent lipstick from ‘bleeding’. Choose a shade that matches either your lipstick or your lips, start at the cupid’s bow and use short, smooth strokes to draw the line towards the outer corners. Line the lower lip by, again, drawing outwards from the centre.
* Make your lips look fuller by applying a fine line of highlighter around the outside edge of your lipline, fading it away to nothing before the outer corners. it should only suggest a hint of swell, so make sure it doesn’t look like a white ‘milk’ rim by softening the entire line with face powder. Try MAC Studio Conceal & Correct Chromagraphic Pencil in shade no. NC15/NW20, £14.
* Fill in with your favourite lipcolour, but beware shades with a yellow undertone. Although coral and peachy colours are in fashion this season, yellowish shades can emphasise the yellowness of ageing teeth. Pink and rose colours are more forgiving. You can, of course, remove superficial staining (from daily coffee, tea, red wine and curry) with whitening toothpastes such as Oral-B 3D White Luxe Glamorous Shine toothpaste, £3.99, or Colgate MaxWhite One Optic whitening toothpaste, £2.24. However, harder-to-shift staining may need professional whitening, so ask your dentist for advice.
Soap & Glory The Fill Monty Dab-On Instant Wrinkle Filler, £10; B.Flawless Targeted Wrinkle Filler, £9.99;
Mac Studio Conceal & Correct Chromagraphic Pencil in shade no. NC15/NW20, £14
