Women like Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi, Michelle Obama, and Cindy McCain appear daily on TV, in magazines and in newspapers. It's a full time job keeping a public face camera ready. Some do a good job of it, yet others have me pondering if they did their makeup themselves.

Being a makeup artist for such a high profile political subject, you are asked to make your client feminine yet strong, bold yet soft. It's a difficult task for their makeup artists to create such a balance. I believe a good makeup design in general is made up of a balance between colors, shapes and blending.

Women in this age group I find, are confused on what works for them. Either their foundation is too heavy or it is too sparse. Here are few tips for mature faces to put your best face forward on any occasion.

Cream foundations while they offer great coverage tend to emphasize lines and wrinkles. Stick with a tinted moisturizer or an easily blended liquid base. Loreal's True Match and Revlon's ColorStay brands work well for mature skin. Make sure to moisturize your skin before applying. If your skin isn't too dry, a mineral foundation powder can give a healthy even glow to your skin.

Cindy McCain makeup

For eye shadows stay away from glitters, and heavy shimmers. Use matte colors and possibly a frosted shadow as your highlight color. Line the eyes with a pencil if your lids aren't too wrinkled and make sure to smudge the liner into your lash line.

Lastly as you will see on women of Hillary's age, gloss can give a youthful look. Shimmery pinks, and warm reds topped with a clear gloss look beautiful on mature lips. If your lips are thin from age, try lining them outside the lip line a bit with a color similar to your lipstick shade.

Most of all keep it simple and let your age shine through.

Vincent Ford
Los Angeles makeup artist