Meet Our Face of LFF Winners

April 05, 2018

By Tricia Cusden

In the final chapter of ‘Living the Life More Fabulous’ I write about the need for more role models to show us how to have the very best possible ‘third act of life’ now that we are all living longer.

I suggest that rather than trying to deny or efface the ageing process or (worse still) throwing in the towel and surrendering to invisibility, we need to embrace a different way of being which is: ‘the ultimate expression of positive ageing and it’s about staying engaged with everything around us but on our own terms.’ So, in January we decided to seek out a ‘Face of LFF’ - an older woman whose attitude to life would reflect everything that Look Fabulous Forever seeks to encapsulate. This person would demonstrate great ‘joie de vivre’ which, loosely translated, means ‘an exuberant zest for life.’ She would also be a warm, enthusiastic and vivacious older woman who had taken risks which had pushed her well outside her comfort zone.

‘I am now retired, but was a self employed florist shop owner for 25 years. I raised 2 children while working 60 hours a week. I was widowed at 41 with 2 young children, having spent 7 years caring for my wonderful husband who died from Motor Neurone Disease. I now work as a volunteer for an MND charity and I regularly look after my 5 grandchildren. Having been a widow for 18 years, I married a wonderful man (this Christmas) before I hit 60!
I love to walk our rescue dog, play with the grandchildren, I love our garden and to bake cakes. Our house in Richmond, North Yorkshire, is always open to family and friends. I intend to travel and holiday a lot this year and enjoy my golden years with my new husband.
I love LFF makeup and having watched all the videos it has given me new confidence to change my makeup routine after wearing same makeup for 30 years.’

She has instituted a yearly ‘Autism’s got Talent’ competition and on the day she came to the photo shoot, Anna was waiting for the release of a recording of a song performed by a choir of 7 autistic teenagers (you can see it here and buy it here). We were all mightily impressed when we heard it! Here is what Anna wrote for her submission:

“I don’t feel my age! I will be 58 this year and still have lots of energy even though I only sleep a few hours a night because of my autistic son's poor sleep pattern.
I love to go to zumba and tap dance and I am a Director and Ambassador for charities and groups across the country. I walk miles and also take part in a sponsored 10 mile walk every year with my son to raise funds for 2 charities. I also organise events for families and speak across the country throughout the year on raising autism awareness and an anti bullying campaign. I am patron to Kilmarnock Horse Rescue, a lovely sanctuary for rescued horses, donkeys and ponies in Crawley. I am always on the go and looking around the corner for what's next. My motto is you can either give up, give in or give it all you've got and then some!’

I can honestly say that the first time I met Annee (68) after deciding to nominate her as the winner of our Face of LFF competition that she was everything and more than I was hoping for! Since then I have met Annee on several occasions and cannot believe our luck in finding such a perfect ambassador for our brand. Here is Annee’s story:

“After looking after my husband for 8 years and then his subsequent death, I had to build a new life for myself. I am a very sociable person so I took up Ceroc and Ballroom dancing and I LOVED it! It really gave me the chance to have a social life and stay fit at the same time. I have been on a number of dancing holidays at home and abroad and I plucked up the courage to go, on my own, on a Mediterranean cruise. I met interesting people, saw lovely places and waltzed and quickstepped the night away. Since then, I have been on a cruise every year with a like-minded woman that I met on one voyage. I have 3 little grandchildren whom I adore, a spritely 89 year old mother, a weekly yoga lesson and a day when I listen to children read in the school at which I was a teacher before I retired. I tried internet dating on several occasions but had to meet quite a few frogs before I met someone I really clicked with. Now we spend holidays and weekends together. I enjoy life and there is still a lot of fun to have, places to see, people to meet and I would love the chance to be an ambassador for LFF.”

I really admire Annee for deciding to go on a cruise alone, which is something I don’t think I would have the guts to do, despite being a confident person! I feel that Annee is the perfect example of someone who is ageing not only positively but also in a healthy way. I am taking my definition of ‘health’ from the one proposed by the WHO in 1948: ‘Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity.’ Annee’s life incorporates a perfect balance of activities which ensures that she stays fit, nurtures the important relationships in her life and gives something back to a profession that she loved for many years. She is also a truly delightful, warm, vibrant and beautiful woman - in every sense of the word - and I hope you agree that she is the perfect embodiment of the LFF brand!

I realise that we will have disappointed some of you who no doubt feel that you would also have been the perfect ‘Face of LFF’, however we had to make a choice! Annee at 68, Anna at 58 and Hilary at 60 are all ‘living the life more fabulous.’ Each of them exemplifies the attitude to ageing that I was proposing in my book.

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42 Comment(s)

Pamela

Jun 13, 2018 03:20

Annee is ten years younger than I but everything she is doing to continue her life as a single older woman resonates with me as the last 18 years since retiring I have achieved as much, apart from the solo cruise. Well done Annee.

Now however with health not what it was I find myself restricted in what I can do on my own and have to rely on others. But, at the moment I am planning another holiday on my own and I will enjoy the company of other people as Annee describes. No one ignores you if you have a ready smile and the willingness to join in.

Well done all three, but Annee is my kind of girl.

Pamel Boon

Tricia Cusden

May 05, 2018 02:12

Hi Maureen
Thanks for your very thoughtful and considered remarks. I think we should have called this 'A Face of LFF' - one of so many in all their honest, unaltered glory. We ran this competition with the magazine Woman & Home as a way to increase awareness of our wonderful makeup. It was one marketing initiative amongst many which we have initiated to get our message out there to as many older women that we can reach.
We were looking for someone to embody the spirit of 'joie de vivre' and felt that Annee, our 'winner' was the essence of that quality. Annee is such a breath of fresh air in her attitude and approach having lost her beloved husband to Alzheimers when she was 60. That's why I chose her and that's why I feel she is an appropriate ambassador for LFF. I hope this goes some way to explain our rationale for the competition - it wasn't intended to be a beauty pageant. Triciax

Maureen

May 04, 2018 22:06

Well,, I’m a dissenting voice . . . . Before I continue, let me say that my comments are not meant to reflect in any way on your winners. I may not be able to explain my point of view without referring to the fact that there are winners, but it’s not my intention nor my wish to say anything that might cause offense. It’s not personal. So, now let me say that I’m disappointed you decided to go the beauty pageant route, with an added lifestyle category, which is what your competition was. This is such an antiquated and unnecessary way to honor women. When we reach our later years, there must be few women who do not have a back story, one of courage and survival, one of trying new activities and finding solace in mundane, every-day chores, one of raising the grandchildren or living alone after the death of a long-term partner, one of fear of the unknown but joining a class anyway to make new friends, one of fighting illness and staying fit, one of volunteering to help others and having the grace to let others help us during our most difficult times. The list is long, of things great and small, kindnesses and unselfish acts, and every single thing on it is worthwhile. And you decide to choose just one woman to epitomize this sisterhood of wonderful older women, any of whom would be amongst the first to admire a peer for her work and her inner beauty but would feel no need to think of her as anything other than an equal, because we mostly know, at last and in our different ways, who we are, and that the way we value ourselves is what matters. You have formed a whole glorious club of such women and you had to pick just one. We are all The Face of LFF, every day, because you taught us how to do that and be that. Now here’s where I may get myself into trouble, which I’m not looking for, so please don’t misconstrue my words and assign meaning to them that they don’t have. If I had discovered LFF for the first time after this competition, I probably would not have become a consumer. I don’t look even one tiny bit like your winner, and, as I do with all big-name cosmetic ads with movie stars and models, I would have told myself that there’s no make-up on this earth that’s going to make my face look like her face. So why bother? Just another marketing company’s hype that alienates ordinary people like me. You and your tutorials are what convinced me that I needed LFF, and then my first order confirmed it. The ladies in those videos were the courageous ones – older women, no make-up, close-up, that’s pretty brutal but they convinced me that if they could do it, so could I. I am disappointed that you had the need to find A Face in a competition. Your own face, Patricia, was perfect and sufficient and I shall continue to be a customer in spite of that disappointment because I love LFF products. Anything else would be cutting off my nose to spite my well-made-up-with-all-the-right-colors-in-all-the-right-places face, now wouldn’t it?

Liz Abildgaard

Apr 22, 2018 21:20

I think it's wonderful that LFF promote ladies of a certain age and show just how good they (we) can look. These 3 ladies have had their challenges, and I can relate to two of them, having lost my husband in 2016 at the young ( I think) age of 67. Now at 68 I too am having to forge a new path forward for myself after 48 years of marriage. I thank God that I am a woman, who has always been interested in fashion and makeup, and that there's so much I can do to make my self look better, especially on the tough days. LFF products and your blogs are very inspiring.

Tricia Cusden

Apr 11, 2018 01:46

Hi Maureen
You are right that we made our choice from the women who entered the competition online having seen it in W&H and Annee, Anna and Hilary were the ones we chose from those entrants.
As you may know I started LFF intending to sell the makeup direct via makeover parties. Within a few months and due to the success of our video tutorials on You Tube, the online business took off and we now have many thousands of happy customers worldwide. I believe that our success is down to four things: 1) older women don't feel welcome in beauty halls or on beauty counters which don't cater for their needs. 2) Having watched a few videos you can easily see how the products work and how to create the effect yourself. 3) We only show real older women and use positive language in everything we do. 4) We have a generous no quibble returns policy, so there is no waste of money if you need a replacement or a refund - even if you have tried the product. We also take lots of orders on the telephone too! Triciax

MST

Apr 10, 2018 21:23

Perhaps there were more entrants from a certain age range. The target market is 50+ and the platform for selling the product is online. At the higher end of the age range less women buy online so unless LFF finds a way of bringing their product to this group then they are less likely to be represented. I do buy online but I am not that keen on buying make up online as I like to see the colours and texture. I do think that companies need to be careful with marketing to the older women as many do not like to be shoe horned into a category (me for one). Many do not like the 50 plus clothing line and the Marks and Spencer Classic range. I do like the idea of a make up range for older women as we have been sadly neglected.

Vyvyan

Apr 10, 2018 03:38

I am so disappointed that you didn't choose across the age range and that two of the finalists are so "young". Surely this is at odds with the ethos of your product?

MST

Apr 10, 2018 02:12

The idea of a "Face of LFF" in principle is a good idea that has been used by many companies producing beauty products. I would not have applied as firstly I don't read Woman and Home and secondly I am quite a private person. However I would like the opportunity in future to nominate another person and the choice of the Face of LFF made by the followers of LFF. I think that would ensure more of a mix of women from different backgrounds and more representative of the target market. Ambassadors I am not so sure about. Problem is that if they get bad press it reflects on the company. These are just my observations and not intended as criticism.

Mary

Apr 09, 2018 21:58

You have chosen remarkable ladies to represent your company. To me, Tricia is the ultimate ambassador for the company. I love her thoughts on life and business, her natural hair color and the styles of hair and clothing she chooses.

Tricia Cusden

Apr 09, 2018 11:32

Hi Barbara
We couldn't possibly show all the entrants (including the semi-nude ones) and print all their stories! I am afraid you are all going to have to live with the fact that we found these three women the best embodiment of our criteria to be the Face of LFF. Triciax

Tricia Cusden

Apr 09, 2018 10:05

Hi Leslie
I am not sure what I have written which gives you that impression. The main criterion was to find a woman who embodies the spirit of Look Fabulous Forever - which is 'joie de vivre' or showing a great zest for life.

As you will know if you regularly read these blogs, we at LFF are not interested in ageing youthfully but in ageing fabulously, so there was absolutely no consideration of whether any of our finalists looked younger than their chronological age.
Hope that clears it up! Triciax

Ruth

Apr 08, 2018 23:13

I think you have chosen your ambassadors extremely wisely . I feel they epitomise the more mature woman with dignity and panache . Love the LFF ethos .

Christine Payne

Apr 08, 2018 22:26

What wonderfully inspirational stories from these three strong, beautiful women! Tricia, you and your LFF team did a brilliant job choosing these women to represent all that is admirable and enriching in the lives of those who embrace the joy of growing older gracefully. Thank you!

Barbara SMART

Apr 08, 2018 22:12

Great idea Trish, is there any chance we can see all the contestants?
I agree you have selected three remarkable women, but I bet they all are in one way or another?
I would love to see all the entrants.

Christine Gilbey

Apr 08, 2018 21:15

Inspiring stories from all three ladies all winners!!!

Lesley

Apr 08, 2018 20:08

I am sure all entrants were deserving candidates, however, I was under the impression that
The criteria was intended to be biased towards "not looking your age" as a promotion
To encourage your products rather than "life experiences" of course I could have that totally wrong.

Tricia Cusden

Apr 08, 2018 06:24

Hi Joan
Thanks for your comments. We get similar ones whenever we do our street style fashion! I think we could fairly have been accused of ageism if we had stipulated 'only women over 70 need apply'. At 68, Annee Pain, our winning face of LFF, is probably the median age of LFF customers who range from mid fifties to early eighties. Maybe these three wonderful women will not inspire all of you, however I loved their spirit and determination to make lemonade when life threw them lemons! Triciax

Joan Richardt

Apr 08, 2018 05:55

I have been a big fan of LFF for a couple of years, use your products and enjoy your videos and blogs. Tricia, you write about the need “for more role models to show us how to have the very best possible ‘third act of life’ now that we are all living longer.” I just turned 70 and look to role models older than myself, even in their 80s and 90s who are living with joie de vivre and making the most of their lives. And who do make every effort to look attractive, including using makeup.

So often when mainstream media focuses on women and aging, they profile people who are on the younger side of the aging spectrum and who are attractive and photogenic. Rarely does one see a very old woman celebrated except perhaps for celebrities who have a great deal of intervention to make them look younger. Jane Fonda comes to mind.

I see this as form of ageism and I fear that by choosing contest winners for your campaign who are all under 70, you have reinforced that trend. I was disappointed. I hope that in the future you will actively recruit, profile and celebrate much older women on your website who are vibrant, engaged and still in love with life despite the many challenges of aging.

Mary Barber

Apr 08, 2018 05:32

How truly inspirational these three women are. Courageous and so brave. Lovely start to my Sunday. Thank you LFF for sharing such encouragement.

Pamela

Apr 08, 2018 05:22

Excellent and Congratularions to the 4 ! Fabulous winners. Trisha you have inspired so many older ladies and these three Ladies have exceptional stories moving and inspirational I enjoyed this weeks blog so much

Pamela (Lester)

Lynn

Apr 08, 2018 04:20

What lovely and inspirational ladies, they are worthy winners and great ambassadors for LFF.How wonderful to get so many entries, I was one of them. It goes to show how much we all love LFF... the blogs on a Sunday morning... and the makeup that keeps us looking fabulous. Thank you Tricia.

Tricia Cusden

Apr 08, 2018 03:45

Hi Marie
If you click on 'here' in the blog where it mentions 'hear it' and 'buy it' you will be linked to the right place. If this doesn't work copy this link and it should take you to the right place: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFL_nRjZu04 (video) and https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/baby-boy-single/1361845719?i=1361846025 (to buy it)
Triciax

Claire

Apr 08, 2018 03:35

Congratulations on creating an initiative that inspired 400 contestants. I would join Lynn however in saying that the picture that hits our view when we open the email and blog seems extremely "limited". I do understand when thinking about it that you probably concentrated on persons who have lived through a considerable life challenge and who did not lose energy. However I'm quite surprised that the choice of winners specifically "look younger than their years". I feel that the face of LFF could very well have been a person deeply marked in her skin.

Tricia Cusden

Apr 08, 2018 03:25

Dear Lynn I accept your comments and realise that we can stand accused of a lack of diversity in our choices. However we could only make our selection based on the the entries we received. I hope you understand that whilst our competition was open to all, our winners reflected the vast majority of women who applied via Woman & Home. Triciax

Judith

Apr 08, 2018 03:16

What a lovely picture of you with the winners above Tricia! Very interesting stories also - we must not disappear into the background and be invisible, not ever,oh no!

Lynn Thomas

Apr 08, 2018 03:05

I think you have chosen a worthy winner and she looks incredible. However, as a woman of colour, and with such a large percentage of the UK population being non-Caucasian, I can see no one within your 4 finalists that pictorially I can relate to. I am big on inclusiveness, but in my opinion your choices only reflect White middle class women with a certain look, to whom I cannot relate. It is with sadness that I state, you have missed an opportunity. Lynn Thomas

Marie Firmenich

Apr 08, 2018 03:02

Bravo to all the candidates and it's been truly inspiring to read these 3 amazing stories. Where can we hear and buy Anna Kennedy's autistic children's group singing their new recording? I missed the link. Thank you LFF.

Julie

Apr 08, 2018 02:33

What fabulous choices, Tricia. For some time I’ve been ‘thinking about’ (I’m a great procrastinator!) doing some voluntary work. After reading about your inspirational new ambassadors I’m going to put on my LFF make-up, get out there and just DO it! Thank you.

Sarah McLenan

Apr 08, 2018 01:35

Uplifting reading! These ladies are inspiring and look fab! I love their narrative and LFF's comments. It's so great to see that looking good is not about vanity, it's about self esteem and a bit of sassiness, which is great for the soul! Thank you for this piece.

Audrey Evans

Apr 08, 2018 01:20

You three winners seem to represent women who are beautiful inside and outside. I think this should be the aim of all women, whatever their age, to emulate such a good example. I know, I will try. I have given up in life due to illness etc, but now your wonderful winners have made me realise more deeply that you only have one life and it's my responsibility to make it better. I congratulate you all ladies, you should be proud of yourselves.

Anne Sambrook

Apr 08, 2018 00:31

So nice you have found these deserving ladies. I can only admire them for having the confidence to get in with life after suffering heartbreak.
I don’t think I could have done this so easily.

Regards
Anne Sambrook

Christine Hanway

Apr 08, 2018 00:18

Wonderful role models!

Chris Mitchell

Apr 07, 2018 23:10

Having read your announcement of the LFF winner and runners up I feel inspired by their courage and it gives me the knowledge that life can go on whatever befalls us. Having experienced a couple of difficult years with my husband suffering with cancer, who I am glad to say is remarkably well now, it gives me confidence that in the future if I am left alone, a new and different life is possible.

Thanks also for your blog about anxiety it helped me in that respect as well.

Patsy

Apr 07, 2018 21:47

Congratulations to Annee, Hilary , and Anna!!! What a great trio of women! I love the accomplishments of these women and hearing their stories. It is very inspiring to learn how others approach what life sends your way. I love the spirit expressed my each woman in their own way as well as their confidence! They exude elegance and are so chic. I only recently found your brand after reading about it on the fashion blog, www.chicatanyage.com, and love both the products and the message. Thank you for introducing us to real women!

Kate

Apr 07, 2018 21:30

Undoubtedly good choices. look forward to following them on their LFF Journey.

Wendy

Apr 07, 2018 21:25

Hi Tricia, I'm wondering if you might be feeling a little deflated at some of the comments that you've received regarding the competition winners however I have to say that I think some very valid points have been made. All three ladies have truly inspirational stories and all three look absolutely gorgeous however, as one reader pointed out, two of them in particular definitely represent the younger end of the aging spectrum. Perhaps if you run the competition again it would be better to have five winners, one from each decade past fifty? It could also be that by partnering with that particular magazine you unwittingly restricted yourself to women who were more likely to be Caucasian and in their fifties? Food for thought. Don't be too disheartened though, you are doing an absolutely amazing job of encouraging us all to remain healthy, active, interested and looking our best as we get older!

Cath

Apr 07, 2018 21:08

Worthy winners with inspiring stories. I enjoyed reading. There must be lots of LFF followers who face so many challenges each day...and succeeding. Many,myself included, might have stories too distressing to even share. But I know that in our own way, we can inspire others by our determination and positive outlook. Tricia,thank you for your blogs.

jacquelyne

Apr 07, 2018 19:44

All three women inspire me. Excellent choices!!

Rosie Birkett

Apr 07, 2018 19:33

Congratulations to all 3 . I did consider entering but the time wasn’t right for me. At the age of 58 I lost my 47 year old husband tragically following a fractured ankle doing a charity event which led to a pulmonary embolism. These stories of these 3 beautiful ladies encourage me that I can still go On to have a full and meaningful life . Best wishes to all of you. X

Elaine

Apr 07, 2018 19:32

You really can't please all the people all of the time,and these ladies look lovely. Well done fabulous ladies.

Jean

Apr 07, 2018 19:12

Love all the blogs. Inspirational every one!

Margaret Tully

Apr 07, 2018 18:26

I love this post. I have read each woman's story and I am thoroughly inspired. Thank you. I have a blog called Fit, Fabulous & 50+ - www.margarettully.international/blog - I have recently become a presenter on Women's Radio Station and I have just recorded an insert (30 minutes) on ageisim. I am 58 and feel very positive about aging. I am now putting a piece together on how to 'rock the menopause', where I will be interviewing a doctor on how to make this transition as positive as possible. I would love to have some feedback for my blog and I look forward to posting my podcast and copy on ageism which will be posted in the next week(s). Thank you once again.

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