Ageless beauty ... 20s

Latoya Grindley, Staff Reporter

Today, we begin our three part feature focusing on beauty at any age. We will focus on proper skincare, make-up use and age-appropriate techniques.

Make-up is used as a tool to enhance a woman's natural beauty. But unfortunately, many women have been found guilty of inappropriate use.

Moving from one spectrum of the scale, where make-up is abused resulting in a very unattractive end result, to those who shy away from its use because of ignorance. But there is a balance to be attained and Flair is here to guide you through it.

To kick-start the series, we turn our attention to skincare and make-up for women in their 20s. For advice and demonstrations, we turned to local Maybelline distributor and make-up artist Marlene Gray of Makeup Delights @ the Beauty Spot.

Time to experiment

According to the make-up guru, when you are in your 20s, it's the perfect time to experiment and have fun with make-up. "Take chances; there are hardly any restrictions at this time."

The most important rule of thumb is to have a proper skincare regime. Gray notes that younger women tend to neglect their skin, which leads to obvious deterioration as they age. "Establish that from early on. If you wear make-up, you must must remove it before going to bed, and buy products that deep clean. Before using your cleanser, it is best to use make-up remover towelettes to wipe off the excess. Moisturisers are important as well. Even if you have oily skin, there are oil-free ones."

Gray also stresses the importance of wearing a sun block with an SPF of at least 20. "Most of the sun damage happens in our earlier years and becomes more noticeable as we get older when the skin begins to look dry, leathery and wrinkled."

When assembling a make-up kit, there are certain products that are compulsory.

"A foundation is a must, even if your skin is blemish-free, as it lays the base for all the other products and they also wear better."

A sheer liquid foundation, according to Gray, can be a suitable choice for those who are conservative make-up users as it gives a nice and light coverage. Other essentials to be included are eyeliner, mascara and lipgloss. For persons who have dark circles under eyes, a concealer can be added.

With some make-up lines carrying age-specific products, Gray cautions that persons in their 20s have no need to use anti-ageing products. In fact, she says taking care of the skin should be the sole focus.

To demonstrate the liberation, that young women have when using make-up, Gray creates two looks.

Models: Sadeke Brooks and Suzette HartShoot location: Makeup Delights @ The Beauty Spot - The Spartan Wellness Centre, Building 2, Suite 2, 1 Brompton Road, Kingston 5. Telephone 631-5507/288-2194.