by Elise Marquam-Jahns

5 Ways to Lift Your Mood by Playing with Color and Makeup for Women 50+

Do you remember opening up a new box of crayons when you were young or coloring in a favorite coloring book?

When I was seven years old, I vividly remember how excited I was to open up my new box of 64 crayons! After flipping open that cardboard top, there was that unmistakable one-of-a-kind smell of waxy crayon-ness (if that’s a word). But the real joy set in when I saw the amazing rainbow of colors contained in that small box. Who can forget “raw umber,” “burnt sienna,” “cornflower,” or “magenta”? Frankly, it makes me want to drive into a box of new crayons right now!

I have a hunch that you may also remember some of your favorite crayon colors as well as a favorite coloring book.

Almost the Same as New Crayons!

Unfortunately, I haven’t opened a new box of crayons for a while, but I must confess I experience a very similar feeling when I look at a beautiful palette of different blush colors or the gorgeous colors of a new eye shadow palette. The lavenders, magentas, cobalt blues and warm colors in an eye shadow palette—along with an assortment of matte, shimmer, and metallic formulations can sometimes take my breath away!

So let’s take a break from the stress and the challenging news of the day and focus on five ways we can lift our mood by playing with color and makeup.

#1 Shop Your Current Lipstick, Gloss and Lip Liner Stash

More than likely you have a few lipsticks you’ve set aside because they just aren’t the right color. I think that’s certainly true for most of us! Why not take a few moments to pull them out—along with some of your other lipsticks—and try combining some of these colors to create some new colors that you just might love.

We can also try out different lip liner colors under various lipsticks and different lip glosses over our lipsticks. By “playing” in this way, we can sometimes create some beautiful new colors by making the lip colors either darker or lighter.

#2 Try Out Different Eye Shadows as Eyeliners

Not every eye shadow formulation will work as an eyeliner, but many will. Now when we perhaps have a little more time, why not audition a few eye shadows for possible use as eyeliners. It’s a wonderful way to multi-task with makeup and save some money by not purchasing separate eyeliner products. And you can always put on your regular eyeliner shade first and then use an eye shadow color that complements your eye color as an eyeliner right above it.

#3 Pick Out a Few New Blush Colors from Your Collection and Give Them a Try

Why not combine a pink and coral blush to see if it creates a beautiful peach color that will work with your skin undertone? Or perhaps step outside your comfort zone by playing with a deeper or brighter blush and a similar lipstick. Or why not try using a dash of lipstick color as your blush?

#4 Try Out New Bronzers, Highlighters or Contouring Products

There are many shimmery eye shadows that look gorgeous as a highlight for the top of our cheekbones. Why not try a shimmery pink, lavender or light coral color? And certain bronzers (if they have a cool undertone) can be used for contouring under our cheekbones or along our jawline. And many bronzers can look gorgeous as eye shadow colors.  

#5 Try Out Different Eye Shadow Colors and Formulations

Frankly, I saved the most fun for last. Try playing with some colors that are out of your comfort zone or that you normally don’t wear. Why not try mixing cool and warm tones together in one eye shadow look.

One easy way to get the ball rolling is to pick out a neutral shadow you’re comfortable with and then pair it with a color you don’t normally wear. For instance, start out with a neutral light brown in your crease and then add some coral or a wine color to the outer crease and “outer V.”  Or perhaps you want to try some different eye shadow formulations.

For instance, if you usually wear matte eye shadows, start off with a matte and then pair a shimmer or metallic with it. On the other hand, if you love shimmer, why not give an all matte eye shadow look a try? And what better time would there be to experiment with different eye shadow application techniques? A foil or shimmer eye shadow color will look totally different when applied with a brush compared to an application with your finger, a dampened brush or a brush sprayed with a makeup fixative like Fix Plus.

Or, pair a neutral color with two other colors you’ve never tried together. And putting one eye shadow color over another can create a totally different look. For instance, try putting a gold eye shadow over a purple.

In Conclusion

I hope the opportunity to think about playing with color took your mind off some of the more serious things in the news today and provided a fun (and probably needed) distraction. And I hope it’s also inspired you to pull out some makeup and simply play.  It can be darn therapeutic.

Do you like to play with different makeup colors and products? Let us know in the comments below! 

Elise Marquam-Jahns is a professional, working makeup-artist who is passionate about helping women 50+ get their glow back.  In addition to her work as a makeup artist for a major cosmetics line, she founded Boomer and Beyond Beauty and recently launched her “Boomer and Beyond Beauty with Elise” YouTube channel for women 50+.  Elise is also an author and speaker and hosts Normandale Community College’s monthly Learning Well Edge Talk Radio show where she interviews experts in the field of health and wellness.

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