Why Eye Makeup Stops Working the Way It Used to After 40—and How to Fix It

There are many wonderful things about getting older. There’s accumulated wisdom. Meaningful friendships that have withstood the test of time. Clarity about what really matters. And, maybe best of all, showing up however we please. However, for those of us who like showing up with eye makeup on, sensitive and dry eyes, sparse lashes and brows, and shifts in the shape of the lid are among the less welcome parts of the aging journey.  

“I’ve given so many makeup lessons to women who say, ‘I don’t know what to do with my eyes anymore,’” says Suzy Gerstein, a New York City-based makeup artist. “They’re ashamed that they don’t know how to do their eye makeup despite the fact that they’re grown women,” Gerstein says. But the truth is, many of us learned how to do our eye makeup in our teens and have been doing it the same ever since, even though our skin and features have changed.

Take, for example, the decline in our skin’s integrity. As our collagen and elastin production slows overall, it’s particularly noticeable around the eyes because “eyelid skin is the thinnest on the body,” says Dendy Engelman, MD, a New York City-based dermatologist. This can lead to droopy lids or sleepy-looking eyes. Thinning skin coupled with years of smiling, laughing, and emoting can make fine lines and wrinkles more noticeable, giving eye shadow more places to settle. We also “have a big drop in ceramide production in our forties,” Engelman says. Ceramides help fortify the skin barrier, keeping moisture in and irritants out. This is why eye makeup you used without issue may suddenly start to bother you. 

Then there’s what’s happening inside the eye. “Menopausal dry eye is not simply a matter of having less moisture,” says Inna Lazar, an optometrist in Darien, CT. “Hormonal fluctuations during perimenopause and menopause can promote inflammation, changes in tear production, and even corneal nerve sensitivity, which can make eyes much less tolerant of things like makeup, skin-care ingredients, preservatives, and fragrance,” she says.

So if you’re wondering why you can’t tolerate waterproof mascara anymore or why shimmery shades don’t quite hit like they used to, know that it’s just another rite of passage. The good news is that by adjusting the formulas and techniques you use, your days of wearing eye makeup may not be behind you. Here’s how to recalibrate your routine.

The Issue: Burning and Itching

During perimenopause and menopause, changing levels of sex hormones directly affect the lacrimal glands, meibomian glands, cornea, and conjunctiva because all of these tissues contain hormone receptors, says Lazar. “One of the most important and often overlooked players is androgen decline. Androgens help regulate the meibomian glands, which produce the oily layer of the tear film that keeps tears from evaporating. As androgen activity decreases, these glands may produce less or poorer-quality oil, contributing to dry eye.” Interestingly, estrogen therapy may actually worsen symptoms, says Lazar, as it may promote ocular-surface inflammation, degrading the tear film and reducing the relative androgen effect that normally protects the meibomian and lacrimal glands. “Clinically, I treat the underlying dry eye, inflammation, and meibomian gland dysfunction directly, rather than assuming hormone replacement alone will restore the ocular surface,” Lazar says.

Regardless of the cause of burning and itching, Lazar recommends fragrance-free, minimal-ingredient eye makeup for her patients with dry, sensitive eyes. Eyeliner along the waterline is a no-no since applying pigment and wax directly over the meibomian glands there can worsen dryness, burning, and irritation. Another thing to avoid is waterproof mascara. “It’s not necessarily the mascara itself,” Lazar says. “It’s that the formulas are designed to stay put and often require more aggressive rubbing or stronger removers to take them off, which may cause sensitivity.”

The Issue: Hooded Lids

Whether you naturally have a heavier, more hooded lid or not, ptosis, or lid droop, will become more pronounced with age. “I’ve had patients who had to manually lift their brows just to put on their eye shadow,” Engelman says. “A physiological drop of our brow of about four millimeters starts in our thirties,” she says. While many women turn to Botox to counteract ptosis, injecting it in the frontalis [the muscle in your forehead responsible for raising your eyebrows and creating horizontal forehead lines] will actually exacerbate the issue, since Botox is a relaxer, she explains. Instead, for a lift, Engelman recommends injecting Botox instead in the glabella (otherwise known as the “11” lines between the brows) and crow’s feet, as well as higher up on the forehead, closer to the hairline.

If you find yourself with limited lid space, whether or not you’ve used Botox to lift your browline, there’s a makeup move that can help you deemphasize droopiness. Gerstein recommends staring straight into a mirror to see where your natural crease is, then smoothing on a creamy shadow (or a cream bronzer or contour product you’d use on your face) just above that line and blending down toward the lash line. This has the effect of creating a “taller” appearing eye, she says.

The Issue: Sparse Lashes and Brows

“All hair growth slows, and the diameter of the follicle gets smaller, thinner, and weaker over time,” says Engelman. While many women counteract thinning lashes with lash extensions, the glue used to adhere them to the lash line may cause irritation—especially on eyes that have become drier with age. A better approach, she says, is to use a lash serum (such as Nulastin Follicle Fortifying Serum) that thickens your lashes while nourishing them with ingredients such as keratin protein and peptides. As for brows, they get sparser over time, too, especially at the outermost corners. Note that some lash serums may be used on brows, but be sure to read the manufacturer’s instructions first.  

To give the appearance of thicker lashes with makeup, Gerstein uses a skinny black eyeliner pencil or pen and applies it as close as possible to the lash line—dotted between lashes in the case of a liquid liner, or smudged into the base of the lash if you’re using a pencil—a technique called tightlining. “You can even go in with your liner from underneath the lashes as opposed to trying to line above them,” she adds. 

To beef up brows, Gerstein recommends using a brow gel or pencil to fill in only the patchy areas; covering the entire brow can look unnatural. Use the tops of your brows as a guide for where to start applying color, and extend the line outward rather than curving it down at the outer corners, for the most youthful effect.

The Issue: Changing Eyelid Texture

Between the shifts in your eyelid’s texture and the ever-evolving shape of your eye due to hooding or drooping, the intense shimmers that we used to wear can often magnify those changes. The same goes for flat mattes. Gerstein likes to split the difference, advising her clients to choose silky shadows with minimal sparkle and to apply them with a finger or brush (she recommends experimenting with both). When it comes to eyeliner, harsh lines around the eyes may also emphasize changes in the eye’s shape. “Smudging is your best friend as you age,” Gerstein says. Sometimes she’ll use an eye makeup brush to smudge skin-toned shadow above and below the lash lines for a softly lined effect. Pro tip: Skin-toned doesn’t necessarily mean the overall color of your complexion; it could mean the subtler hints of brown, red, green, or even blue that can be found in your skin if you look at it very closely.

The Issue: Undereye Circles

The loss of collagen around the eyes may also make the “vascular complex” just beneath the surface of our undereyes more visible. That’s the bluish/purplish cast that most people refer to as dark circles, Engelman says. At the same time, the fat pads that once provided cushioning and a smooth surface under the eye begin to shift and deflate, creating hollows that cast shadows and make the area look darker than it actually is. Decreased circulation and lymphatic drainage can also cause fluid to pool, contributing to both puffiness and discoloration. Hormonal changes compound all of this, particularly the inflammation of the ocular surface, says Lazar, which can cause the eyes to water more and the surrounding skin to become irritated and reactive. The result is a perfect storm, Engelman says: thinner skin, less volume, more visible vessels, and a surface that makeup has a harder time adhering to and concealing.

Engelman is a fan of improving the quality of the skin under the eyes to better mask dark shadows with CO2 laser treatments. “Because the skin is so thin there, building even a little collagen really makes a difference,” she says. Hyaluronic acid fillers, such as Juvederm and Restylane, injected in the tear troughs under the eyes can have a similar effect. 

For those looking for a less invasive approach—or simply better day-to-day camouflage—Gerstein says the basics still matter. Drink lots of water to hydrate from the inside, apply a moisturizing eye cream, then dab on a liquid concealer or color corrector (or layer the former over the latter).