The Modern Guide to Aging Gracefully

Good news for grown-ups: Those hard-and-fast rules about cutting your long hair and swearing off shimmer after “a certain age” have become a lot looser. 

New Rules for Aging Gracefully

Once upon a time, a, shall we say, mature woman was expected to get a bob, spray it into a helmet, and reach for some Dowager Pink lipstick. But now age is truly just a number, says Sonia Kashuk, the creator of Sonia Kashuk Beauty and a celebrity makeup artist, who has worked with such 40-something beauties as Cindy Crawford. “Today women are taking better care of themselves, and makeup has evolved so much,” she says. “It’s really about mind—and manufacturing—over matter.” If you feel young at heart, there’s no reason why your outside can’t match your inside. Here, experts tell how you can (and why you should) hang on to the looks you love.

You Can Ease Up on the Hair Color

Just because you’re sprouting an increasing number of silver strands doesn’t mean you need an allover dye job. In fact, if your hair is 50 percent gray or less, it’s better to get highlights. First of all, they add dimension to your hair color, which can brighten your complexion, says Ted Gibson, a celebrity stylist and salon owner in Fort Lauderdale and New York City. Allover color, which doesn’t always reflect light the way streaks do, can make your skin appear flat and dull. Then there’s the convenience. “You can stretch the time between appointments longer than you can with a single-process—12 weeks as opposed to eight,” since roots will be less obvious, says Thierry Brunet, a stylist at the Pierre Michel Salon, in New York City. For the most natural look, Gibson suggests “hidden” highlights, which are woven in under your hair’s top layer or natural part, instead of the kind that start at the roots and are instantly noticeable along the part. And stick to streaks within two shades of your base color.

Fashion styling on this page by Mimi Lombardo.