Beauty Fix: How to find the right anti-aging products for you (and when to start using them)

Every week our Beauty Fix columnist takes on your questions about makeup, skincare, hair and more. Have a beauty question we haven’t answered? Email us at beautyfix@fashionmagazine.com or ask away in the comments below.

Do I need to spend a lot for effective anti-aging skincare?
Between department store offerings and the product-laden aisles at the drugstore, it’s easy to get overwhelmed, confused or just exhausted by the sheer number of options that you have at your fingertips. Selecting effective skincare to suit your skin is just a matter of knowing what your skin needs and matching those needs with good ingredients. Look to a range like Joe Fresh Beauty for excellent ingredients at fair price points. Case in point: Joe Fresh Eye Cream ($19, at Loblaws) tightens and smoothes fine lines while hydrating skin in the undereye area with the help of avocado oil, rose hip seed oil, chamomile extract and peptides, and it’s fragrance-free so your skin won’t be irritated.

How do I conceal fine lines and undereye circles without worrying about creasing?
Adequately hydrating the undereye area is the first step (whether you’re 15 or 50, don’t skip this step!), and doing this well in advance of makeup application can help prevent any makeup applied from settling into fine lines. The moisturizer will work to plump skin and smooth the surface out for less creasing. It also helps to use a concealer that’s resistant to settling into lines, such as Dior Diorskin Star Concealer ($36, Dior counters). This formulation is particularly flexible when patted onto the undereye area, moving with the skin in order to prevent creasing and appear fresh for hours on end. This concealer provides medium to full coverage of undereye circles and shadows, and a little goes a long way. Be sure to set with a touch of powder to prevent concealer from migrating on the skin.

What kind of facemask is meant for skin that’s starting to show signs of aging?
When you think of facemasks, you probably envision a stiff-feeling clay layer on your skin that sops up all excess sebum in sight. While that is one role that clay can play in your skincare routine, that’s not the only thing it can do for your face. Bliss Multi-‘face’-eted All-in-One Anti-aging Clay Mask ($62, at Sephora) combines kaolin clay, sugar cane-derived glycolic acid, jojoba oil, carbon and quartz to transform skin from rough, uneven, discoloured and dehydrated skin to smooth, hydrated, soft and nourished skin. The formula is applied to skin for 5 to 7 minutes and then removed with a wet washcloth. The quartz particles exfoliate skin as the mask is being removed, leaving skin remarkably supple. Tip: Remember to wear SPF after using skincare that contains glycolic acid.

What can antioxidants do for my skin?
All skin, aging skin in particular, can benefit from the use of antioxidant-rich skincare for several reasons. As skin ages, it loses its ability to repair and regenerate overnight. This is why skin eventually looks older as years pass; skin no longer has its full defense against environmental aggressors like sun damage and pollution. Using an antioxidant serum, such as SkinCeuticals Resveratrol B E ($165, skinceuticals.com), can actually kick-start your skin’s ability to bounce back from repeated sun exposure or pollutants in the air, warding off the visible signs of aging on the skin’s surface as well as underlying damage that would eventually emerge on the surface later on. This is all thanks to the combination of antioxidant wonders resveratrol and vitamin E, as well as baicalin, which works to brighten skin and reduce inflammation.

Do I have to avoid powder foundation if my skin has a few fine lines here and there?
There are no steadfast rules about what to stick to or avoid, and in the past, powder foundation could be more likely to emphasize fine lines, but formulations today are pretty outstanding. Chanel Vitalumiere Loose Powder Foundation ($79, at Chanel counters) is a prime example of this. This loose powder foundation offers the buildable coverage of a liquid foundation with the lightweight ease of a powder. The included mini kabuki brush is key, and it could very well be the softest brush you’ve ever felt, providing flawless powder application. The formula is skin softening with a canola oil derivative that ensures skin never feels dried out while soft focus powders work to blur imperfections, leaving skin with a hint of radiance.

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