The best eyeshadows for older women should enhance the eye area without emphasizing texture, creasing, or dryness. “As we get older, the skin around our eyes naturally becomes thinner and more stretched—it’s actually the thinnest skin on the body, which is why fine lines tend to show up there first,” says Julie Chung, MD, a Los Angeles ophthalmologist and cofounder of hair tool maker T3.
At age 41, I’ve noticed new folds on my lids, fine lines under my eyes, and subtle changes in skin elasticity that have completely shifted my approach to makeup. But don’t feel boxed in. “The old standard that you don’t wear shimmer after 35 is so not to be followed,” says Katey Denno, a celebrity makeup artist who’s worked her magic on stars like Sarah Foster, Amanda Seyfried, and Leslie Bibb. “There are plenty of neutral shimmery-toned shadows that look great on 40-to-80-year-old lids.” Below, I vetted top-rated formulas based on recommendations from makeup artists. Our top overall pick is Laura Mercier Caviar Stick because it’s backed by pros, hydrates lids, and lasts all day. We also have drugstore picks, ones best suited for brown or blue eyes, and more.
Our top eyeshadow picks for older women
| Category | Product |
|---|---|
| Best Overall | Laura Mercier Caviar Stick, $33 |
| Best Drugstore | e.l.f. Liquid Velvet Eyeshadow, $8 |
| Best for Sensitive Eyes | Clinique All About Shadow Quad, $42 |
| Best Multipurpose | Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl, $42 |
| Best Cream | Merit Solo Shadow Cream Eyeshadow, $26 |
Makeup tricks & tips for older eyes
Laura Mercier’s Caviar Sticks can be applied like a crayon, simply coloring in your lid with a velvety smoothness. Blend out with a soft brush or your finger, and you’e ready to walk out the door. The formula is particularly great for women over 50, as it’s packed with ultrahydrating and nourishing ingredients like hyaluronic acid and raspberry stem cells that help with moisture and skin barrier health. Keeping the eyes hydrated is paramount, as mature skin produces less oil and is overall drier. While these sticks are creamy in texture, the product is still smudge-proof and crease-resistant, and lasts all day. Nina Soriano, a celebrity makeup artist, says she uses this formula on set and also in her everyday life, “Caviar Sticks are a constant in my kit, both personally and professionally. It gives just the right amount of color to add to the eye and is buildable, for just a wash of color or really glammed up with your tools. It also has a great color selection to choose from.”
Original photo from Micaela English testing E.l.f. Liquid Velvet Eyeshadow
The liquid-to-powder drugstore eyeshadows from e.l.f. pack a punch for the price ($8) and impart a sophisticated velvety matte finish. They’re “perfect for classic over-40 babes who like a no-fuss look,” says Soriano. The doe-foot applicator dabs directly onto the lids and dries with a powdery, transfer- and crease-resistant finish. While the pigment is saturated, you can easily blend it out with a soft brush or your finger for a diffused look, but act fast as they dry quickly. There are more than a dozen of timeless neutral matte shades to choose from—ones that work for the office, errands, or even a minimalist no-makeup makeup look for a night out.
Best for Sensitive Eyes: Clinique All About Shadow Quad
Clinique All About Shadow Quad
Courtesy of brand
Clinique All About Shadow Quad
Nordstrom
Whisper-weight and crease-resistant—Clinique’s cult-favorite powder palettes deliver a smooth finish and are formulated with all-day-wear ingredients. Offering four gradient shades in complementary colors, with options in both and shimmer finishes, its powders are designed to worn solo, or used to contour and define. They’re also eye-expert-approved and a favorite of Dr. Chung: They’re made from a “very light powder, great for sensitive eyes, and ophthalmologist tested.” They’re also easy to remove. “Choosing eye makeup that removes easily and using gentle, thorough removal techniques—no scrubbing—is essential for long-term lid and ocular surface health,” Dr. Chung says.
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Best Multipurpose: Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
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Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
Original photo from Micaela English testing Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
Original photo from Micaela English testing Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow Liner Kohl
“Stylo is both an eyeliner and blendable cream stick, use on its own or layer with your favorite eyeshadow,” says Soriano. This all-in-one eyeliner cream pen may feel chic to pull out of your bag (it is Chanel, after all), but the formula and design are genius and versatile. Ultracreamy in texture, this multipurpose liner glides on mature lids with a long-lasting formula that doesn’t budge or highlight crepey lids or fine lines. The shape of the eyeshadow has a thin edge that can be used as an eyeliner, while the wider side is perfect for shadowing out and blending for a cohesive allover-color look. The formula is deeply pigmented and gives you that je ne sais quoi French-girl look.
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Best Cream: Merit Solo Shadow Cream Eyeshadow
Merit Solo Shadow Cream Eyeshadow
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Merit Solo Shadow Cream Eyeshadow
Original photo from Micaela English testing Merit Solo Shadow Cream Eyeshadow
Merit Solo Shadow Cream Eyeshadow
$26
Sephora
“These eyeshadows are great for mature eyes. They look beautiful and are flattering in a weightless, less made up way,” says Offers. “They can be blended with a finger or brush for a wash of color on a hooded eye, which makes me look more well-rested and gives a warm glow to the eyes.” It applies smoothly in a cream-to-powder eyeshadow formula and is packed with lid-friendly ingredients like chamomile, calendula, and sunflower seed oil that keep the skin nourished. It glides on sheerly with your finger, or an eyeshadow brush, and can be layered on for more depth and richness of pigment. It’s available in 14 shades, including mattes and sheens made with microfine pearl that give a more “adult-friendly” shimmer rather than flecks of glitter.
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Best for Green Eyes: Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
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Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
Original photo from Micaela English testing Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
Original photo from Micaela English testing Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Lavender
$34
Nordstrom
“Shades of purple work for green eyes; they look beautiful in lavender,” says Offers. Bobbi Brown’s legendary Cream Eyeshadow Sticks comes in a range of purples, and the Lavender color delivers a buildable, glide-and-glow formula that’s also waterproof (friendly for those with tearing eyes and eye-drop users). The soft cream sticks glide directly on the lid and blend easily with the smudge of your finger. The icy pearl shimmer in this Lavender shade stays put throughout the day and is easy to build for an intense frosted lavender look.
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Best for Blue Eyes: Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
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Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
Original photo from Micaela English testing Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
Original photo from Micaela English testing Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Smoky Essentials
$55
Sephora
One palette; infinite runway-ready looks for blue eyes. Offers recommends rich tans, browns, bronzes, and golds are great shades for blue eyes because the contrast of these hues makes blue eyes pop. When shopping for powder shadows for mature lids, Offers says to look for formulas that are “finely milled and lend a subtle sheen, not a chunky metallic,” so there is less product migration falling into fine lines. This Dior palette wins with nine long-wear, pigmented hues in a variety of shades and finishes like mattes, satins, shimmers, and metals. Perfect for the makeup commitment-phobe, or any blue-eyed experimenter over 40 looking to try a range of looks.
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Best for Brown Eyes: Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette in Soft Cashmere
Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette
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Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette
Original photo from Micaela English testing Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette
Diorshow 5 Couleurs Eyeshadow Palette
$72
Nordstrom
“Plum is a great shade for brown eyes,” says Soriano, and this Dior palette features a range of browns: taupes, champagne, bronzes, and a warm plum chocolate. Formulated with cornflower extract for a creamy, comfortable finish, these five shades offer a wardrobe of options with finishes like shimmers, metallics, and mattes. The powders work as liners, allover washes of softer hues, inner-corner highlights, brow-arch highlighter, and high-drama evening looks with a mix of deeper hues.
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Best for Women Over 60: Ilia Eye Stylus
Ilia Eye Stylus
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Ilia Eye Stylus
$32
Designed with a unique slanted tip, Ilia’s buttery cream shadow stick resembles an art tool you’d find in a painter’s tool kit. One key ingredient is antioxidant-rich grape extract, adding skin care benefits to soften fine lines, and nourishing it with hydration while still offering the payoff of color. “I appreciate a cream eyeshadow stick because I hate fallout, when product migrates around the eyes. This is especially important, because as we age, our close-up eyesight begins to go and seeing all the fallout becomes more difficult. The ease of this Eye Stylus, with a few swipes and a smudge with a fingertip, is delightful,” says Denno, who likes to use it on her mature clients. The formulas are long-lasting, crease-resistant, and waterproof. For an all-over-lid effect, Denno suggests applying the Eye Stylus along the lash line and then smudging up with a brush.
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Best Eyeshadow Palette: Makeup by Mario Master Mattes Eye Palette: The Original
Makeup By Mario Master Mattes Eye Palette: The Original
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Makeup by Mario Master Mattes Eye Palette: The Original
$56
Sephora
This 12-shade palette packs powder shadows that feel lightweight on the lids and can be applied gently with a brush. “I tell older patients to avoid heavy or highly pigmented shadows,” says Dr. Chung, as these emphasize crepey lids and sit at the texture of aging skin. The palette also happens to be a cult-favorite, inspired by minimalist ’90s matte neutrals, and is filled to the brim with options. Twelve soft matte shades that glide on seamlessly with an eyeshadow brush for an allover wash of color, subtly contoured using lighter and darker shades, as liners, and matte highlighters. This palette boasts a lot of options, and is ideal if you’re traveling and want variety.
