Women under 50 need not respond

[AnotheChinHair]

Sorry for such an ageist subject title, but I am often drawn to threads that ask for foundation, shampoo, etc. recommendations and then realise that the OP and respondents are in their 30s and feel like I need some discussion with women my age.

My hair has changed, my skin looks different, my body aches, my eyebrows are faint and full of greys... I was wondering if you're 50 or over, could you share your wisdom on how you've adapted your grooming?

I'd be particularly interested in hair products (my hair is fine, prone to frizz and def. thinning and receding), my skin is still combination I think, and I would like to find a long lasting oil free full/medium coverage foundation that doesn't look dry around my eyes (currently using ELDW), and also supplements that make you feel and look better.

I have a horrible carb face after the sugar excesses of Christmas, and I have stopped drinking alcohol as I clearly don't tolerate it anymore.

I should exercise more but my knee hurts.
Recently started hrt patches and that has helped with night sweats.

Hope others can share what's been helpful.

I’m 56 and lucky to have ok skin - don’t wear make up
Sun block in summer and tinted moisturiser in winter if I get any dryness
I have my eyelashes permed and tinted and brows waxed
Main thing I struggle with is hair - fine but lots of it and wavy rather than curly but prone to frizz
I find it’s better to wash less often, sometimes I just rinse and condition
I use osis curling cream and let dry naturally

The weave looks gorgeous no doubt, but is no one worried about how the human hair used in these extensions is sourced..?
It doesn’t sound very ethical to me?

@OneMoreForExtra

Great thread OP! I'm 52 - 53 on Weds - and loads of this is relevant.

My biggest issue is a massive case of the sags. My face looks like it's melting. So my biggest tip for those with sagging eyelids and hooded eyes is tightlining on the upper lid. (Just means using eyeliner on the waterline between your eyelashes and eyeball, not on the outside of the lashes). You need a waterproof pencil. It's an absolute game changer, and with just that and mascara on top lashes I feel kickass, rather than like a panto dame in eyeshadow.

Happy birthday @52today, you look much younger than me!

This!!!!! I have exactly this problem. I can literally see my face sagging in front of me. Definitely having hooded eyes and sagging eyelids

Will look up tightlining - thank you

@52today happy birthday!! You look super hot! x

Which lipsticks do you find work? I’ve never really used any but I need more colour in my face and I’d like to be brave and try some. The problem is my lips are thinner and I don’t want to draw more attention to that and my sagging lower face!

[quote FelicityFeathers]@BlueThistles excellent. Can't feel them at all weight wise and only know they're there if I feel for them. I was loathe to have extensions as I worry about stress alopecia and just making my hair thin even more but they're really very light. In each bond, there's only about 8 strands of hair and I had a pack of 25 ... split into half meaning I've got 50 mini bonds in. I could double that amount if I wanted to but this does what i wanted ... to lose the 'see through' frizzy strands. You wouldn't know I had them to look at me - my hair looks completely normal, just like the normal volume it used to have now [/quote]

this sounds wonderful... and a really good alternative to the weave.... I find trying the weave up in a pony tail quite heavy ... oh goodness I'm really excited about trying something lighter ... thank you so much 🌺💕

@Ironicpentameter I take tumeric capsules - I buy the ones from Nature's Best. When I started out on my slog towards menopause I got terrible foot pains, really debilitating. I wasn't on HRT (still not) but thought I might have to for the pains and for the flushes. Decided to try these instead, pains went in a few days, I had them (the pains) for a few months previously. Ditto flushing too, Menoforce sage tablets, within a few days the hot flushes stopped.

@Moiraroseandthecrows321 I use Jacob Hooy from H&B. I buy when it's on offer. There may be better brands but it's so expensive. I take it because all my life I have had joint pain. I find it really good for that. I'm a terrible sleeper though. My sleep pattern has gone to hell but I don't have the anxiety I used to get lying in bed so it's helped with that too.

50 yrs old here (a few weeks ago!) - one really simple thing that does wonders for my hair is putting a few drops of Argan oil (buy online from Naissance essential oils) in my conditioner, working through hair and rinsing as usual.

Also (from Naissance) Rosehip seed oil under facial moisturiser during the day and on the skin at night - works bloody wonders xx

@DameCelia fab advice, I'm not technically allowed on the post, but I'm 46 and have been weightlifting for 5 years, it's the magic cure for all women over 40. It makes you walk, live and feel powerful.

I’m getting on for 50 and deep in the grip of perimenopause. I’m taking black cohosh to manage the hot flushes because my sleep was getting so disrupted. A hot water bottle at night helps too.

My hair was thinning but I stopped colouring it some months ago and it’s now growing in much better. Skin isn’t too bad as it’s naturally very oily. Very light makeup most days: a tinted moisturiser, NYX powder brow pencil, mascara, lipstick.

Recently I lost a lot of weight and that definitely is helping me look more chic, I walk a lot and train with kettlebells, but have had a lot of joint pain lately and haven’t been able to do so much. If that doesn’t improve soon I think I’ll need to see the doc.

I've stopped wearing foundation and now just add a bit of BB cream to moisturiser. I also exfoliate quite often which my skin seems to like. Have done face exercises in the past which do work on some bits of the face but take some dedication to see results.

My hair isn't that thick to begin with, I use Elvive Fibrology Air Shampoo (white top, not the pink one) which makes it look a bit thicker, I haven't found anything which actually makes it grow thicker. I also now use John Freida Defy Grey shampoo and conditioner instead of dying my hair. It's worked great during lockdown and the greys are magically blended in without any fuss and my hair feels healthier and less brittle.

I swapped cotton pillow cases for silk ones which helped enormously with night sweats (pillow always cool), stops you getting pillow face and also stops my rubbish hair from being all frizzy and knotty in the morning.

I walk everywhere, miles and miles. No aches and pains but am noticing I'm getting really lazy posture generally so force myself to stand up straight. And it takes a lot more effort to stay the same weight or tone up than it used to.

Wine now makes me feel like death, although I can manage white wine with food. Champagne/prosecco not so bad. Cold bottled beer or gin still going down a treat.

Thanks so much for starting this thread. I've read every post. Such helpful advice, and not feeling so alone with my thinning hair problems now.

I'm 54. I don't think my hair's thinning, but my skin is in an awful state. Spots, cold weather sores, red marks on my nose and I look ancient. I hate this aging malarkey! My eyesight's deteriorating. I hate wearing glasses, but I can't wear lenses cos of my astigmatism. I wish I could stick to regular exercise instead of dipping in & out.

I think I'll give calcium and vitamin D a try. Has anyone tried Lifecell products? I haven't tried them, but I'm hearing good things about them.

@Want2beme

do you mean you might have rosacea type condition on your skin?

@AnotheChinHair if you can afford it find a PT to show you how to do the basics in lifting. Sorry if this was answered up thread.

Deadlifts
Squats
Bench press
Overhead press

If you can master the technique for those with about 5-10 sessions, then you'll have the confidence to go to the weights section alone at the gym.

You'll also know what to buy for home, bar, weights etc.

Have a look for kettlebell work outs on YouTube, you can buy kettlebells on Amazon.

And also body weight training, I've just discovered an Instagram lady

@ Meet me the barre who puts sessions online and going to give that a go as it's all online and home workouts.

Most of the time for those saying they have knee issues, it's the quad muscle above the that's tight.. you can relied this off at home - it lifts the knee and causes pain a physio is your best person. And the second biggest knee issue is weak glutes, that cause you to walk weird and put pressure on the knee. It's rarely the actually knee and normally the muscles and weakness around it.

Your hair looks amazing!
Can I ask whether many salons do weaves.
Is it becoming mote popular?
2nd question
If I were to get. Clip in ones, do you have any tips?

I can't help with make-up as I have rarely worn any over my whole lifetime. I do use a moisturiser with sunscreen though, and have done for many years.

I used to love my wavy/curly hair. but in the last few years it has been driving me mad and I was starting to hate it. I had it cut short a couple of months ago (not that it was long in the first place, only chin length) and suddenly I'm back to loving it.

I have a lot of aches and pains, particularly when I wake up in the morning, and I'm hoping that cutting back on sugar will help with that.

Which clip in extension are good?
And any other tips?

[quote FelicityFeathers]@BlueThistles excellent. Can't feel them at all weight wise and only know they're there if I feel for them. I was loathe to have extensions as I worry about stress alopecia and just making my hair thin even more but they're really very light. In each bond, there's only about 8 strands of hair and I had a pack of 25 ... split into half meaning I've got 50 mini bonds in. I could double that amount if I wanted to but this does what i wanted ... to lose the 'see through' frizzy strands. You wouldn't know I had them to look at me - my hair looks completely normal, just like the normal volume it used to have now [/quote]
Can I ask how long they last?
I heard that proper extensions are high maintenance and need readjustung every six weeks because they don't stay near the scalp due to hair growth.
I dont mind an initial big expense but surely going to the hairdressers every six weeks gets expensive,
Or are these different?
Thanks.

I've tried every product going over the years for my fine hair a d spent a fortune and whilst u sometimes see a little improvement, I've come to the conclusion that a lot of of is down to genetics and some people have hair that's programmed to grow so ling and then will break off.
Others are capable of growing really ling hair
That's why I'm going down the extension/weave/clips route.
They've all improved a lot Which is why I'm hoping to find something that works!

@ChaToilLeam
That is so interesting that a hot water bottle helps with your hot flushes. I find the nights I wear very little to bed, that my flushes are terrible. But if I bundle myself up in fleece and have an extra blanket, I don't get them. When I've mentioned this to friends, they've looked at me like I'm crazy. I think it's a homeostatic mechanism - so if you keep yourself warm, your body doesn't need to produce more heat?

@Angelicabean
I can't wear liquid lipstick or matte lipsticks anymore. They need to be a lustre or a satin - Mac satins are good. Also Clinique pop lipsticks.
I also like a soft lipliner with a gloss over the top.
I just had a sort through and got rid of all my ageing liquid lips.

@BlueThistles. The colour is gorgeous - looks really healthy. Can you brush your hair?

For those of you exercising and complaining about joint pain, I’ve just had two weeks off my gym class and the difference in my joint pains and aches is noticeable.
I know exercise good for you, but I do two classes a week and it makes my joints and muscles ache all week.

Has anyone found a magic cure for age spots on my face and hands/arms ?