My Beauty Manifesto

January 29, 2020

By Tricia Cusden

Whenever anyone asks, as a young journalist did yesterday, why did you start Look Fabulous Forever, I usually reply ‘for two reasons - firstly because I was finding it difficult to source makeup that worked well on my face now that I was in my sixties and secondly, because I disliked the ‘anti-ageing’ rhetoric of the beauty industry which implied that I must want to look younger than I was.’

Let me start with what I have always loved about makeup because otherwise launching a beauty brand to disrupt the beauty industry makes no sense whatsoever. I suspect that for me it’s always been about creativity and instant results. A diet takes weeks or months to make a difference and is really hard to sustain. It takes months to grow your hair or improve your skin. But just ten minutes every morning with a few pots of paint and some brushes is enough to help my pallid winter face come to life, to make my eyes look bigger and brighter and to lift my spirits and morale. I just feel more like me when I have ‘put my face on.’ And I am doing this for my own satisfaction, not to please anyone else. The older I get, the more I feel that engaging with a beauty routine is a validation that I matter as a woman.

My Beauty Manifesto

1. Older faces can be beautiful too.

We have been brought up with a belief that youth and beauty are inextricably linked. There is a reason that the beauty industry shows its anti-ageing products on perfectly unlined 20-somethings - Cara Delevingne at 27 is Dior’s ‘face of anti-ageing’ - because it wants you to think that use of this cream will keep your face like that forever. Just this morning I heard a discussion on Woman’s Hour and an Instagrammer admitted that she’s been seeking out and using anti-ageing products since she was 20. If, instead of endless beauty ads featuring stunning looking teenagers, we were bombarded everywhere with beautiful images of older faces, we’d soon shift our perception of what it means to be beautiful. That’s why I insist on real older women and no digital shenanigans for all our LFF images.

2. I am against invasive procedures.

Cosmetic interventions of any sort are the point at which myth and reality meet in the beauty arena. The myth is that age can be eradicated with a scalpel or a syringe. Or maybe you fancy a ‘vampire facial’ which I only learned about, again on Woman’s Hour, this morning. In case you are intrigued, a vampire facial is one in which they take your own blood (thankfully) and apply centrifugal force to separate the platelets which are then injected into your face for the purposes of renewal. It costs a few hundred pounds and it doesn’t work. This is the reality. And the reason that the myth-pedalling of the beauty industry bothers me is because it perpetuates the belief that ageing is a choice. There may be a time when it becomes a choice, probably exercised only by the very rich, but in 2020 ageing will happen to us all whatever we do. Accepting this makes me much more likely to make peace with my ageing self.

3. For me, makeup is all about confidence and self esteem rather than youth.

From time to time, I do get quite angry messages from women who take me to task for being part of the problem by selling makeup for older women. Am I trying to have my cake and eat it? Is there a contradiction at the heart of my love of makeup and my dislike of the anti-ageing beauty industry? I honestly don’t think so. I have no desire to convert older women to makeup if they aren’t interested. My conversation is with women who have always derived pleasure from dressing stylishly, putting on some slap and enjoying the result of making the effort to put their best foot forward. And my message is ‘do what makes you feel good. Less isn’t more now you’re older - wear that red lippy with confidence, defiance and pride if that is still your choice!’

4. We all deserve to be part of the conversation about beauty.

Go to any beauty counter with a much younger woman and she will be the focus of the conversation, not you. The assumption is that you are there in support of her quest for beauty not in search of your own. Most beauty ads aimed at the older demographic are still centred around skincare. The conversation is about ‘repair and renewal’ rather than beauty. This is why I wanted to make videos with older women as the models, because I wanted to show that makeup has transformative qualities for an older face just as much (if not more) than for a younger one. We deserve to be included in that conversation and for it not to be assumed that we have lost interest in looking good as we have gained more wrinkles.

5. I will call out ageism wherever I find it.

And finally, my beauty manifesto will also include all and any areas where I find ageism. A comment on a blog a few weeks ago said something along the lines of ‘what qualifies you to offer anything beyond makeup advice?’ To which I’d happily reply: ‘not very much beyond my lived experience’. Last week I had a huge response to my blog about the challenges of finding the goods and services which I now need as an older woman. Just over a hundred and fifty of you, almost without exception, agreed that shopping now leaves much to be desired. Wherever and whenever I can, I will do my best to give space and voice to the ways in which we are marginalised because of our age. Who knows what effect this might have?

But I am mightily glad that I did decide to start a business offering products and services to older women within the beauty arena. It has given me so much pleasure to engage in a conversation with a great many like-minded women. My Beauty Manifesto underpins the values of our business. So much in society is designed to make us women feel almost guilty for getting older, as though our annual birthday is a failure of effort or will. That is clearly nonsense and whilst I am writing these blogs, I will commit to calling out this nonsense wherever and whenever I find it.

Survival of the Fittest

Dressing Your Ears

49 Comment(s)

Linda Gerecht

Feb 04, 2020 07:21

I agree with everything Tricia states above. I have always loved make-up and now at 73 still love it but with following Tricia's videos I have adapted my routine. I would love to visit your pop-up workshops but as I am part-time in a wheelchair (MS sufferer) I can only go locally. Would you ever consider coming my side of Essex. Chigwell, Buckhurst Hill, Loughton or Romford. We need you Tricia.

Theresa

Feb 03, 2020 12:56

You ROCK! Great works of wisdom and so very true.

Jean Ryall

Feb 03, 2020 11:53

Devastated to read in York Press that all the Pure Collection retail stores have closed, was so looking forward to seeing your wonderful range of make up represented in York!! Jean

Sue

Feb 03, 2020 09:39

I follow your posts regularly. Having googled ‘make up for older women’ I discovered LFF and your inspiring approach towards older women and learnt masses from your make up tutorials and enjoy using some great LFF products. We all have our own self to answer to above all else - and looking good is part of feeling good and our own self-esteem. Some say it is the beauty industry who try and sell to our female sense of vanity. But the way I see it I want to look and feel my best - for myself. I don’t believe we are ‘invisible’ after a certain age but that is a belief that society can put onto us older women if we let it get to us and hold onto that belief. I don’t. Make-up is part of who we are - the person we want to be. For some of us,it’s every morning,even for the few minutes it takes (with a bit practice), whereas others only make the effort for special occasions. But we all have the choice to be who we want to be! I didn’t always feel this positive - got very low and dragged down during my 50’s. Am now in my 60’s and try and look my best and your outlook, Tricia has helped me learn and change for the better. Living well and healthily yes - but why not try looking and feeling the best we can be. Thank you Tricia!

Suzanne

Feb 03, 2020 06:55

Enjoyed your blog Tricia ( as always) and agree with everything you have said.I used to get all my make up and beauty tips from magazines but have given up as they have nothing to say to a 69 year old! LFF has filled the gap and I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of my latest purchase. Suzy

Angela Hurworth

Feb 03, 2020 05:01

Thank you Tricia, your political stand is important. In terms of clothing it is easy to look glamourous (I’m 70) - it just costs a lot more ! But make-up is another thing, and you have made a difference! And I do stop and put on eye makeup thanks to you, which makes me look instantly better. Your blogs are always so pertinent, thank you!

Elizabeth

Feb 03, 2020 04:20

Is agree wholeheartedly with what you say. One query I do have is whether you will at some point create smaller versions of your products as I go to the gym regularly and smaller pots would be useful for putting in my gym bag. They would also be good to take on holiday. Liz

Heather in Oz

Feb 03, 2020 01:08

Here here!! Look, feel and BE fabulous forever. At 17, for a bit of fun, some older girls applied makeup to my face. I was instantly transformed from pale and pasty to fresh and vibrant. It’s still the case now I’m in my sixties.

Feb 02, 2020 12:59

Well done Tricia. Yet again you're spot on with your observations.

Anne Thomas

Feb 02, 2020 12:51

I couldn’t agree more. I am 65 this year and love life & live it to the full and that includes ‘putting on my face’ every day just as I have always done As we go through life we see the world with the same eyes (sometimes aided by the optician), but I really don’t buy into behaving in a certain way, thinking in a certain way or saying goodbye to my trusty makeup. Sadly some of my friends say they feel invisible, but I’m not nor will I ever be. My lines and wrinkles are who I am and I think it’s sad that we feel we have to be crusaders for older women. But here we are, doing just that

Carolyn Williams

Feb 02, 2020 12:46

Beware the angry older woman!! I read a wonderful comeback from an older woman at a checkout in a grocery store. The young cashier was saying that we ( my generation!) are to blame for the state the world is in.....well she got told !! The woman was telling her about using glass returnable,reusable bottles, walking , bike riding, bus riding, not a car, using paper grocery bags or reusable fabric one, all sorts of environmentally safe things. Stuff we are actually going back to these days! We older woman have so much experience to contribute ,if only we were not ignored! Thankyou for standing up and speaking out!

Pat Anderson

Feb 02, 2020 12:46

Yes please re an Edinburgh shop! I’d love to have one of your make-overs. I do find the videos really useful but would like to see what one of your experts could do with my face. Previous efforts at a beauty counter have sometimes resulted in me heading straight for the ‘Ladies’ to scrub some of the results off.

Dee

Feb 02, 2020 12:34

Hello Tricia, thank you again for your words of wisdom and for the support and guidance that you give to the more mature woman. I am tired of 'in-store' beauty counters where beautiful young assistants look down with disdain, as if the older person has no right what-so-ever to be seeking out beauty solutions! Thank you for giving us the confidence to look good and feel good.

Fiona MacNeil

Feb 02, 2020 12:10

Well done Tricia for saying it like it is. I love your blogs and you are amassing a growing army of women who are grateful and supportive! x

Susan

Feb 02, 2020 11:32

I totally agree, especially on invasive procedures - it is amazing to me how many young women have "had their lips done", and as you say, they are using "anti ageing" products in their 20s; maybe they are the target, hence the use of Cara Delevigne, so we are again being ignored! I also support the request to have a shop in Edinburgh or Glasgow!

Chris Gilbey

Feb 02, 2020 11:31

Spot on again Tricia. I agree with absolutely everything you say. I wear makeup every day for me and because it makes me feel good and confident. Keep up the good work.

Anne

Feb 02, 2020 11:17

I am looking forward to your weekly blog every Sunday. Thank you for another thought provoking or thought-reaffirming one Tricia. Well-written and felt as ever. Your blog provides a much welcomed alternative view to the commonly held and mediatised one. A breath of pure air which reflects the depth of your - our- experience, wisdom, courage, confidence, individuality and wit. We all share this at our age, whether or not we chose to wear make-up, and this makes us strong and beautiful. Anne 61

Alison

Feb 02, 2020 11:14

Another good one Tricia. Like you, I feel make-up lifts my spirits and morale. I do it for ME and it makes me feel great when I see myself in the mirror. I don't do it to look younger but so that I look and feel my best.

Helen

Feb 02, 2020 10:58

Well done again Tricia! Telling like it is.

Jeannette

Feb 02, 2020 10:35

I agree with everything you say. I always put my 'face on' even to go to the local shops, not because of who will see me but for my own satisfaction and pride. I am 81 by the way but still take care of my skin every morning and night, a part of my ritual which has been going on since I was a teenager!

Julie

Feb 02, 2020 10:29

So so bloody true hit the nail on the head yet again Tricia!!

Kay

Feb 02, 2020 10:24

I agree with your attitude to the anti-aging myth - it’s plainly nonsense. I have not always used makeup properly although the skincare I have bought has always been of good quality. It’s only since I have seen your tutorials and bought your makeup I have tried to use it properly - with a sense I at last know what I am doing rather than the haphazard methods of the past! At 76 years old (not young). As some people insist on saying - I am more confident about applying makeup and think it looks so much better on my face than it did in the past. It does not make me more confident, as I have always been confident in myself, but it makes me look much better and feel better about my appearance. Kay Slade

Lynn

Feb 02, 2020 10:09

Well done Tricia, I agree with everything you say. I too make time each day to do my makeup (for me). With my 'face on' I am me. I am confident, and ready to tackle whatever the day holds. I love my LFF products, and I now have enough of them to do my whole face.

Jackie Wardell

Feb 02, 2020 10:00

My goodness Tricia, you are an inspiration! I have always loved wearing make up from the age of 14 and will not leave the house without putting my face on! It makes me feel more confident and more "like me". I absolutely love your products particularly the blusher which is the best I have ever used. Our generation, (I am 66) do not want to become little old ladies who are largely ingnored! We are the baby boomers and our generation changed so many things so why should we ceased to be noticed just because of our age. Let's all look and feel the best we possibly can right up to the very last possible moment.

Jackie

Feb 02, 2020 09:58

You put into words exactly my thoughts and feelings. There’s nothing we can do to stop the passing of time, we just have to accept it. (And try to embrace it) We can make the most of ourselves though and your products and advice help enormously.

Eileen Allen

Feb 02, 2020 09:51

Hi Tricia, thanks for this week's blog and your manifesto. I completely agree with all you have said. I am exactly the same age as you, and have gone through similar conversations with myself. I have always worn make-up and these days, do occasionally wonder why? You are right, I do it for me. However, I do sometimes secretly hope that people will think "she doesn't look 72!". But, of course I know I do. But, who cares, I know I look the best I can, and that makes me feel good. I love OFF products. Regards Eileen.

Catherine

Feb 02, 2020 09:40

Hear hear Tricia I'll vote for you! At 'only' 59 ( my husband's view) I have an impending 'big' birthday so time for some reflection...in my head I'm 'only '26 and sometimes speculate that I'd like to be18/26/34/42 again - but only with the hindsight, experience , skills and knowledge being 59 has given me! A conundrum indeed! I wear makeup and take an active interest in my appearance. I have a new job in a slightly different sphere from my 30 years plus career( see experience does count!) and am certainly one of the oldest members of the team. My 'boss's is 28 ....I am accepted wholeheartedly, love their energy and enthusiasm but saddened to hear of botox visits some of the team are already undertaking. My style is admired & commented upon - not to sound vain but to say I value myself and therefore so do my colleagues. Ageing is inevitable, growing up a choice so thank Tricia for your manifesto, your LFF brand and especially bright red lippy!

Marion

Feb 02, 2020 09:30

I am happy to receive the occasional comment that I 'look years younger than my age'. Yes, I like that, but no, it is not something I would go to great lengths to try to achieve. I recall my first attempts at the make up box (my older cousin's) I believe there was Tangee Lipstick and 'spit on the brush' mascara involved! I would have been about 11! Once I started work (at 15) I always enjoyed using make up, and switched to LFF as soon as I found a brand that understood that skin changes radically in older women, and 'same old brands' were not helping. I am a total convert to LFF - nothing I tried over the post-retirement years came close to making me feel good about my 'look'. You filled a much-needed gap in the cosmetics market, and the women of a certain age salute you.

Cath

Feb 02, 2020 09:20

Well, I'm waving the banner right alongside you Tricia! I am glad I discovered LFF...I don't buy every single product,but I know which ones have changed my approach to make-up. At 71, I am not trying to look younger; I just want to look 'my very best me'. It's my choice. Just as it is my choice not to be marginalised because of my age. My pet hate is when it is assumed that I know nothing about any form of technology...(that's when I show my true colours)..You know the sort of way an assistant might ask: 'Have you got the Internet at home?' as though I might be far too old !! Tricia, continue your blogs which I love to read every Sunday morning. Of course any successful business, or blog, might get the odd negative comment. Ok,reflect on that odd negative comment and address it if it is valid,but be encouraged by all the LFF customers who buy and love your products.

Catherine

Feb 02, 2020 09:06

Please would you consider a Pop up shop in Edinburgh? . The cost of we Scots travelling South is prohibitive!

Jane

Feb 02, 2020 08:55

As usual I agree with so much of what you say. Your blog last week was particularly timely I went to Manchester to shop and came back with nothing. The shopping experience is no longer enjoyable. I know I sound like a grumpy old women but the deafening music, lack of assistants and clothes badly displayed is so off putting, it is so much easier to shop online. I am concerned about the effect on the environment but unless there is radical change the high Street will continue its decline.

Heather

Feb 02, 2020 08:43

Well done Trica, for a worthy and wonderful read. I agree with everthing you say.

Charmaine

Feb 02, 2020 08:32

Thanks for Your stirring blog Tricia. I read your blogs every week and feel much the same about makeup as you do I think. I am so grateful that you have created LFF and your blog, as I really feel that it has somehow opened up the possibilities for older women both in and beyond the beauty arena. I think that you might have initiated a ripple effect and long may it last. Anything that helps to create a more positive perception and space for older women is very much welcomed. I love all the suggestions you give each week not only in make up but also in ideas and thoughts in general, be it through books, or people who you introduce us to. Many thanks Charmaine

Carol

Feb 02, 2020 08:25

I agree Tricia and putting on makeup is for me a lovely thing to do and lifts my spirits. Finding LFF has been brilliant. Carol

Elaine Scarff

Feb 02, 2020 08:19

I would like to thank you for your fantastic products and ongoing information. I was buying products for a mature skin paying exorbitant prices. I am happy using all the products it has given me confidence in the way I look.

Vivienne Perks

Feb 02, 2020 07:59

I totally agree with all your comments. I too wear makeup everyday and have done all my adult life. I too wear it for me, to make me feel good not to impress. I am 75 years old and have been retired for 15 years and so don’t need to impress anyone - even if I’m gardening, decorating or doing housework I always “do my face” first because I then feel ready to start my day. I love all the products I’ve bought from LFF and have tried many of the tips in your videos. Well done Trish

Nicole OSMONT-Marx

Feb 02, 2020 07:45

You are so right. Older women are beautiful even more so when they still believe In themselves, with their lines testifying to the power of life experience... I have always used make up and I still go on using it as it is so pleasant to take care of one’s beauty and health. They go together. I’m proud of my years.

Stella von Thun

Feb 02, 2020 07:33

Dear Tricia, I am so glad you had the vision for your wonderful brand and the passion drawn from personal experience and your frustration with the beauty industry. You have helped tremendously to boost Mature Women’s self-esteem on several counts. Firstly the superb products which are LFF and secondly you have been a torch barer for Mature Women to create a success business. Lastly I love the way you communicate it feels like having a sister or good friend who shares pearls of wisdom. By now we have all been on a rich learning journey and share that beautiful quality of experience, which cannot be fast tracked! In gratitude,

Karen Renner

Feb 02, 2020 07:30

Well stated! I also like to look as good as I possibly can, but I feel that does not mean that I need to look 20 or 30 years younger. I believe that lines can speak to a life that has been lived to the fullest - a life that includes sorrow as well as happiness. I know many older women who are more beautiful now than they were in their 20s and 30s because of living their lives well.

Cheryl Boone

Feb 02, 2020 05:29

Again, Tricia, you have written a very lovely blog! I agree with you totally that MY confidence is what matters to me. These are good thoughts, and I thank you!

Gardener Ruth

Feb 02, 2020 03:28

Totally agree Tricia!

Maureen

Feb 02, 2020 03:25

I have to ask why anyone who thinks makeup is a waste of time follows your blog. Just so they can put out a nasty word or two? Ignore them. There are plenty of us that love makeup and care about looking how we want to feel - fantastic, at whatever age we are!

Novanna Hunt

Feb 02, 2020 03:06

So well said. You articulated my 77-year-old feelings about make-up so well. I wear it because I like to.

Stella

Feb 02, 2020 02:56

As a newly minted 60 year old, I agree fully with everything you have written. Thank you so much for your work, your spirit and your willingness to share and to 'disrupt'. It is (deceptively) important and much appreciated work in our ageist society. Brava!

Jacquie

Feb 02, 2020 02:22

I absolutely agree with everything you have said - as always! I thought maybe it was just me going slightly mad when I kept spotting all these young people advertising anti-ageing products. I realised quite suddenly that as an 'maturer lady' that I had suddenly become invisible but I have always 'put on my face' and enjoy doing it. I hope to get along to one of your outlets too and have a professional take a look too and offer some new ideas!

Eleanor

Feb 02, 2020 02:18

I enjoy reading your blogs Tricia and agree with your approach to ageing. I loved experimenting with makeup and was always interested in fashion when I was younger. However since turning 60, a few years ago now, I found myself losing interest. There was nothing in the shops I wanted to buy, the magazines that I once scoured for inspiration totally lost their appeal and I felt like an invisible older woman. It didn’t help that many of my friends and other women of my age appeared to have lost their mojo and had given up on makeup and were dressed solely for comfort. I started watching your videos and spending some time applying makeup and following your advice on brightening up by using colour and interesting jewellery. I accept I will never again get the attention I used to get when I was younger but I now feel good about my appearance and am again experiencing pleasure in using makeup. The LFF items I have purchased are great and especially the face primer and eyeshadows.

Kate

Feb 02, 2020 02:02

Thank you again Tricia. Couldn't agree more with everything you say. Ageism, phew I encounter it every single day, why? Because my hair is white and I'm only 5ft otherwise I don't think I look bad for my 68 years. A young Irish woman offered me her seat today whilst waiting for a family breakfast in our local farm shop, a very popular venue in our locality. I could tell she wasn't local because such a gesture would be unheard of by "the locals". I declined but did engage her in conversation about the benefit of good manners. I keep myself trim, walk briskly most days and do taichi and pilates so it is hard for me to accept the worlds view of my ageing self without getting prickly. With regard to my LFF regime I bless the day I found your website and have used your make up range exclusively since 2015 and my contemporaries do comment on my good skin. Gene's play an important role, good diet, only the occasional tipple all contribute to growing old with grace and style and of course never leave the house without putting on your face.

jane terry

Feb 01, 2020 06:33

Very well put and I wholeheartedly agree.

Mary

Feb 01, 2020 05:07

Thank you, Patricia, for your spirited words, thoughts and ACTIONS in support of older women. I love that you acted on behalf of what you believe, and I especially love that we older women get to reap the benefits of the thoughtfulness and work you put into your company and your products. I will turn 70 this year, am a huge fan of your makeup and wear it almost exclusively. I find it remarkable that we have nothing like it in the U.S.! Please keep up your pro-age activism, keep speaking your mind about what it means to grow older, wiser and more beautiful - and keep developing your wonderful products for all of us out here.

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