When did you start to look "older"?

[GingerbreadGingerbread]

I have always been semi confident with my looks, eg. Feel confident when I've done my hair and make up for a night out but still plenty of things if change if I could! However I still always felt as though I could look nice if I put the effort in.

Recently though I've noted I have to try harder to look good and even then nothing looks how it used to. I haven't gained or lost weight, I think I'm just losing that "bloom" of youth. I work in a young ish industry where people dress stylishly and follow trends well into their 50s so I think that's tricked me into thinking I still look young, as I dress in the same style of clothes I wore in my early 20s. However I'm starting to think there's no way back for me now. I'm 30 by the way.

Bit shocked by all the people saying 30s! I'm 47, have been grey since my twenties, I have a few approaching menopause issues not least my hair falling out! But I can't bring myself to worry about it ( apart from the hair!). There was a thread on here the other day about aging and it was so bloody depressing.

Some girls seem to sail through, I do think the obvious, not smoking, shit loads of water, bit of fake tan and no real tan makes the world of difference

I suppose I look older than I did in my 20's. But I like my face more now, might be to do with being happier generally in life. I've been through two marriages and come out the other side, most days I feel strong.
I weight train 3 times a week, and love it. I try to eat healthily, have a mentally stimulating job.
I think I look better, more interesting, than I ever have done. I'm in my 40's

Mid forties I started to look older I think. Now in my fifties I'm definitely looking my age. Quite happy to do so mind you.

I'm 34 and still look young-ish.

As pp's have said, at this age the healthy eating and lifestyle really starts to show. Drink water, don't smoke, no alcohol, eat well, exercise, sleep.

I've friends who are early 40's and the ones who smoke and drink look a lot older and more haggard. Weight makes a big difference too.

I think when I had that 'oh my, I am really starting to look my age' was a couple of years ago, at 39.

I was sat at a table, looking in a mirror in the cold hard light of day. Age, I thought had finally caught up with me as I'd always been told I'd looked younger than I am am.

I think I've aged a lot more over the last few years than ever. My left eyelid drops right down now, both are drippy anyway, I have those line marks from the outside of the nose that runs down the outside of the mouth. My face, as it appears, is going south!

I've recently struggled trying to do a good job with my make up, I think if I put too much on it ages me more, yet if I go for a subtle look, it looks like I haven't got any on & haven't bothered in the first place!

I think that some of the celebs that have gone down the route of plastic surgery have made themselves appear worse, I'm sure if they had left all alone they would have looked a 1000% better, trying to stay younger looking is always the better option. Growing older is inevitable, growing up is an option 😜!

Why are you worrying, OP?

I looked better in my 30s than in my 20s! My cheeks became less chubby (is that the 'bloom of youth'?) and I found my own style.

I'm 45 and I never even think about looking old. I wear what I like and I make an effort with exercise to stay healthy. Do that!

After ds2 was born, I've now got wrinkles

Having my second child aged me! So late thirties.

Fuzzypeggy

I completely agree with you. I'm also in my late 30s. Have been worrying about this - I was just called my first "ma'am"! But then I came to the realisation that well, so what. I can't really worry about this until I get old. It's inevitable anyway.

BUT I'm trying to get down to size 12-14 (5'8") because two years ago, at that weight (just five pounds overweight), I looked like a bloody uni student!

When I was 39 my dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer and I also had a baby.
So, nearly 40, pregnancy and newborn then toddler, and heartbreak all rolled into one and I have aged so much. In photos when I am 38 my hair and skin look much younger, my eyes have more sparkle, my figure is more hourglass and slimmer.
I look older, I feel ancient.

Don't worry, I think you kind of level up. I went through some sort of change definitely at about 27 and another one at 35, nothing I could put my finger on (other than slow weight gain ) but I looked different and the clothes and make up I used started to look wrong. But then I kind of got to grips with it, changed hair and clothes etc and just carried on. It was fun, I discovered new stuff, it's an ongoing project. I now look like a person in their 30s, why wouldn't I? And I'm a stone heavier than I was ten years ago. But tbh I'm way more confident about my appearance now than I was when I just guilelessly walked around with "bloom".

I'm 44 and I have no idea how to dress.... It seems that everything is either too young or too old and dowdy. Even bloody shoes!!! It doesn't help that I'm neither tall nor lithe, but I seriously feel old now!

Im 55 and its all still good. Hardly any wrinkles, good skin, body is ok, hair still good. I think its just an individual thing. Some people age more and quicker than others. I eat loads of fruit and veg (over 10 portions per day) drink loads of water and live in the now as much as possible and try to not let stress get to me too much. But thats just me and as I said, its an individual thing. People think I am about 40 ( i dont ask them thats just what they think). I dont follow "fashion" but do dress stylishly and keep an eye on the trends and adapt them for me.
At thirty I looked the same as I did at 20 other than being pregnant. After coming through the child rearing years and becoming myself again when they were teens, I actually started looking after me again and probably looked younger than I had at 30. Hope that makes sense

Around now, 36. I also feel like a lot of my clothes are 'too young' and I need to be a bit more groomed to look decent, whereas in my twenties I could do nothing with my hair and wear floaty shapeless things and look ok. I need a bit more help now! I'm not unhappy about it though, I'm quite enjoying thinking about having some sort of defined style. But yeah, with a toddler it's hard to have time / money / energy for exercise / haircuts / good skincare so that probably has an impact too.

I looked old between 33 and 37. Pregnancy. Breast feeding. Sleepless nights.
I'm 39 now. Children are a bit older. I exercise more. Eat better. I put more effort into my clothing. I regularly refresh my makeup. All because I have more time as my DC are school age. I look my age or a bit younger now but more importantly I feel pretty damn good in my own skin.

I think women age when they have children unfortunately. I'm 40 but only look about 25. Even my super critical mother says so! Most women my age who are mums really look like mums and look very middle-aged to me and I don't really identify with them. They all seem to get hunched shoulders - that's a big giveaway of age I think.

I only started to look my age very recently. I used to always be asked for ID when getting booze and people in general wouldn't believe me when I mentioned my age.
It's like everything has caught up with me: years of smoking (I stopped not that long ago), wild youth which lasted until my late 20s, sleepless nights with a baby, stress at work. It's mostly in my face, my skin seems a lot thinner, almost paper thin and I am starting to notice some thin lines on my forehead and round the eyes.
On the other hand, I finally found my own style, I probably look better than ever in terms of clothes, make up and haircut, so I think it balances itself out. And I have morw confidence than ever, I don't sweat the small stuff any more. I'm mid 30s.

Thing is I wouldn't change the summers in Ibiza, smoking sunbathing other things, nor the babies and the ruinous effect they have for anything so I look old, oh well. They are called laughter lines for a reason

I lost my baby faced look at about 35. My skin just changed overnight but as others have said, 30's is still young. I still look like me, it's not until much later that I think people look old. There's nothing wrong with getting older anyway! Mature like a fine wine

40 for me. Face especially had less elasticity, little jowly, permanent lines under eyes and looking v tired a lot. Bit nervous about post menopause. I look back at pics of me in my 20s and 30s and wish I appreciated my looks more then!

43. Very suddenly in that year I started to look properly middle aged. Everything changed. Skin texture, hollow sockets, jowls, hooding over the eyebrow (can't wear eye liner without a serious primer underneath)

43 was the WORST.

After having my second child. I look so different in photo's with DD1.

This is a really interesting one. I'm currently 51 - Lord, I can't believe it - and I'm not currently going through a phase of feeling I look old. It does go in phases, depending on how tired you are. Tiredness is the enemy - not the passing of time. Looking back at photos,, I think I looked my best aged 40! Cheekbones appeared, eyes seemed bigger without the face fat, body was still roughly the same as age 18 (have never been particularly slim), and I just had a bit more sass. A few years prior to that, when DD was born and I went through treatment for BC, I certainly looked older, and not just because of the obvious loss of hair and boob.

I've had eye wrinkles from age 27, grey hair from 30 (dyed, which it still is), forehead wrinkles from around 38. But none of this was particularly ageing. Then...I was aged about 46 when I saw the turkey neck for the first time. Terrifying. I had definitely passed my peak! This was for me, the real start of looking like a 'older woman'. But once I got used to seeing it, I realised it's just a small thing, and it's not half as de-beautifying as being tired and demoralised. Those are the enemies! You'll get your bloom back, Gingerbread. A bad phase will pass! Your best phase may well be in the future.

I agree with 43! My jaw line just dropped and the double-chin entrenched at this age. Before this, I looked roughly the same age for about 20 years. Now I'm clearly a middle-aged woman. I don't mind that much though, it's obvious I'm not a fresh faced youth, but I just aim to look nice anyway.