These are phrases that we are all used to seeing in beauty advertisements, screaming at us next to the heavily photoshopped image of a celebrity or model aged somewhere between 25 and 40.
Why are beauty companies obsessed with telling older women how to ‘defeat’ their age? And how does this obsession with chasing youth make older women feel? Look Fabulous Forever, the makeup and skincare range for older women, collaborated with researchers at the London College of Fashion to ask what older women think about beauty advertising.* The results were astonishing.
- The study showed that although 62% of the women questioned wore makeup every day, only 3% wore it to try to look younger.
- Over 98% said that they liked to see older models in adverts for beauty products aimed at their age group, while 91% felt that they were represented inaccurately, insufficiently or ignored by advertisers. Why are the beauty companies getting it so wrong?
“The message is clear – the majority of older women feel alienated by beauty brands that sell the idea of a
miraculous reversal in ageing, or with the idea that age is a ‘problem’ that needs to be fixed,” says Tricia Cusden, Look Fabulous Forever’s founder. “Why should we be told that as older women we should try to turn back the clock, alongside an image of a model in her 20s? At Look Fabulous Forever we believe passionately in celebrating mature beauty rather than trying to hide it – makeup and skincare that embraces your age to make you look and feel your best.”
This is the ethos behind the concept and formulation of Look Fabulous Forever’s first skincare collection. Older skin has a set of needs which are not often addressed by the youth-chasing beauty industry; issues such as dryness, skin sensitivity, and loss of firmness. So in place of claims about magically disappearing wrinkles, Look Fabulous Forever skincare promises to deal with these specific needs of older skin – helping you look and feel your best every day. And rather than young, airbrushed models, Look Fabulous Forever uses real woman who believe in celebrating ageing and use the brand every day. To the beauty industry youth = beauty. Look Fabulous Forever is saying why can’t age = beauty? Look Fabulous Forever’s new campaign asks people to share their stories of beauty ageism with #ageisbeauty so together we can make our voices heard.
THE COLLECTION
HYDRATION HOLD FACE SERUM: (£42.00)
This moisture-boosting silky serum is formulated with a high
concentration of active ingredients for an intensely hydrating
treatment that will make older skin feel and look comfortable and full of health.
SMOOTH THE DAY FACE CREAM: (£38.00)
One of the most common complaints about ageing skin is lack of
radiance. This daily Face Cream contains a complex of Vitamins A, C, E & F and anti-pollution actives to improve skin condition and promote a natural glow.
DEEPLY DREAMY NIGHT CREAM: (£40.00)
Address dryness with this deeply nourishing night cream. Ageing skins need extra TLC; this night cream will bathe your skin in a
nurturing combination of Vitamin E to improve skin condition,
ProVitamin B5 to enhance skin barrier repair, and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 to improve skin tone.
About Look Fabulous Forever:
Look Fabulous Forever is the multi-award winning makeup and skincare collection conceived, designed and formulated exclusively for older
women. From foundation designed to give more mature skin an extra bit of hydration to luscious lip colours formulated to pre-vent fine-line
feathering, Look Fabulous Forever has been created to enhance an older woman’s beauty, rather than conceal it.
Living the Life More Fabulous: Beauty, Style & Empowerment for Older Women is Tricia Cusden’s first book published by Orion Spring. Covering a range of issues from makeup application to ways to stay fit and healthy in older life, it is available from selected retailers nationwide and costs £20
Read more about Look Fabulous Forever at https://www.lookfabulousforever.com
Instagram: @lookfabforever Facebook: @lookfabulousforeveruk Twitter: @lookfabforever
For more information, samples, or to arrange an interview with Tricia, please contact
Emily at Imagination PR: T: 020 3384 9750 / emily@imaginationpr.co.uk
*The study asked 509 females, aged 40 to 89 years, from different countries, occupations, and levels of education and annual personal income, to complete an online survey. In this survey, they answered questions regarding their use of make-up, their reasons for following advertising for
beauty products aimed at their age group, their perceptions of various kinds of adverts, the impact that adverts have on them, and whether they would like to see older models being used more frequently in different kinds of adverts.