Skincare expert Sally Foran says brown mascara beats black for women over 40 and urges daily SPF

"SPF, all day every day"
Foran names daily sun protection as her number one anti-ageing step, reapplied every two hours outdoors.
Mark

Why lead with mascara? It seems like a small thing.

Mimi

It's the most concrete swap Sally Foran offers. Women over 40, especially redheads and blondes, trade black for brown, and she says clients end up converted.

Luke

Worth noting that's her observation from clients, not a study. And she carves out an exception: very dark women should stay with black.

Mark

She ranks SPF as number one, though.

Mimi

Yes. Every day, every season, reapplied every two hours outdoors, even when it's cloudy. And she says don't rely on makeup for it.

Luke

Fair, but the source gives no research behind the two-hour figure beyond her statement. It's her guidance.

Mark

What about threading versus waxing?

Mimi

She calls threading kindest on skin and says waxing can cause sagging around the eyelids.

Luke

That's a claim without evidence offered in the piece. Treat it as her opinion.

Mark

And the spending advice?

Mimi

Skip pricey cleansers since they wash off; put money into serums, which she says have smaller molecules and penetrate better.

Luke

Again, her reasoning. The article doesn't back the molecule point with data, and it isn't clinical advice.

  • A familiar beauty ritual is being questioned, as black mascara is said to look harsh on women over forty.
  • Redheads and blondes are singled out as the ones most likely to find their faces softened by a change of shade.
  • Waxing is cast as the harsher option, with warnings about sagging skin around the eyelids.
  • Daily SPF, reapplied every two hours outdoors, is ranked as the single most important anti-ageing step, even on cloudy days.
  • The advice steers spending toward serums and away from costly cleansers, though it remains personal opinion rather than clinical guidance.

Somewhere in the long human habit of trying to look like our best years, a skincare consultant named Sally Foran has offered a few small, practical gestures for women past forty. Speaking to RSVP Live, she suggests that a brown mascara may soften the face where black has begun to harden it, that threading may be gentler than waxing, and that daily sun protection, renewed through the day when outdoors, matters more than any product on the shelf. These are one practitioner's personal views rather than medical guidance, but they reflect an older wisdom: that care is often less about spending than about quiet, consistent restraint.

Sally Foran has a simple suggestion for women who have turned forty: set aside the black mascara and reach for a brown one. Foran, a skincare consultant who shares her advice on Instagram as @irishbeautyfairy, spoke to RSVP Live about the small changes she believes make the biggest difference, and the mascara came first. She says black can look too severe against paler colouring, and that the women she advises often feel the difference once they switch. The advice is not for everyone. Redheads and blondes stand to benefit most, while very dark-haired women, she says, may still suit black.

She also has views on eyebrows. Threading, in her telling, is kinder to the skin than waxing, and waxing can contribute to sagging around the eyelids. Yet the tip she placed above all others is sun protection. "You need to be using SPF, all day every day," she said, reapplying every two hours outdoors and in every season, since UV rays can reach the skin through clouds. For those who find a separate SPF one step too many, a day cream containing SPF will do. Makeup, she warned, is no substitute.

Finally, she turns to spending. Many women, she observes, assume that higher prices bring better results. Foran disagrees about cleansers, which are washed away and so need not be expensive. Her own money goes to serums, whose smaller molecules, she believes, can work their way into the skin. These remain her personal opinions rather than clinical guidance.

Sally Foran has a simple swap for women who have turned 40: put down the black mascara and pick up a brown one. Foran, a skincare consultant who shares her advice on Instagram as @irishbeautyfairy, gave RSVP Live her best anti-ageing tips, and the mascara came first.

Her reasoning is about skin tone. Many pale-skinned women wear black mascara, she said, and it can be too harsh against their colouring. "With makeup, black mascara or liner is more harsh and ageing once you hit 40," she told the publication. She says she advises a lot of women to switch to brown, and that they are converted.

The advice is not universal. Foran singled out redheads and blondes as the people most likely to benefit. For women who are really dark, she said, black will still be best. In general, though, she described brown as much more subtle and flattering.

She also had a view on eyebrows. Women should have them threaded rather than waxed, she said. Threading, in her words, is the kindest method on the skin, and you can have your whole face threaded, with the hair growing back much more slowly. Waxing, she warned, can cause sagging around the eyelids.

But the tip she ranked above all others was sun protection. "You need to be using SPF, all day every day," Foran said, adding that it should be reapplied every two hours when you are outside. She said it belongs in every season, spring, summer, autumn and winter, because UV rays can damage skin even on a cloudy day. For women who find a separate SPF one layer too many, she said a day cream containing SPF is an option. What she cautioned against was relying on makeup for protection.

Foran also addressed spending. A lot of women, she said, are confused about their skincare and which products deserve their money, often assuming that the more they spend, the better the results. She disagrees, at least where cleanser is concerned. Any cleanser will cleanse the skin, she said, and since it is washed off rather than absorbed, big money is wasted on it.

Her own budget goes to serums. She said they have smaller molecules than a moisturiser, so they can penetrate the skin and get to work.

These are one consultant's opinions, offered in an interview, rather than clinical guidance. Foran can be followed on Instagram at @irishbeautyfairy.

With makeup, black mascara or liner is more harsh and ageing once you hit 40.
— Sally Foran, skincare consultant
You need to be using SPF, all day every day.
— Sally Foran, skincare consultant
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