As any woman knows, a spot of make-up can work wonders by seemingly turning back the clock.
But exactly how many years does that foundation, mascara and blusher knock off?
Now research suggests that when applied well, it can make the wearer look almost a decade younger.
The beauty myth: Respondents to the survey said Carol, 51, looked 53 with no make up, but just 46 – seven years younger – when she chose to wear a full face of cosmetics
Madonna, 54, took seven years off her ‘bareface’ age
Demi Moore, 49, lost six years thanks to make-up
Those who go out in their warpaint appear to be between five and nine years younger than when they are bare-faced.
Kate Moss, 38, and Carol Vorderman, 51, were shown to have the most age-reducing regimes, with both looking nine years younger after applying make-up.
Meanwhile, 54-year-old Madonna managed to shave seven years off her age and Cindy Crawford, 46, took off six.
The research – which you won’t be surprised to hear was conducted for a beauty retailer – involved showing respondents images of well-known women, first bare-faced and then with make-up.
Respondents were asked to identify a ‘make-up age’ and a ‘bareface age’, with the collective results making an average for each. Britney Spears, 30, managed to look five years younger with make-up on.
Demi Moore, 50, was the only woman whose ‘bareface age’ was below her real age at 47 – but with make-up on she looked even younger, at 43. Respondents were also asked about their own make-up, with 70 per cent of over-30s saying it makes them look younger.
MAKE-UP BY NUMBERS
100 per cent of 60-69 year olds say they look younger in make-up
and…
73 per cent of 40-49 year olds
62 per cent of 30 – 39 year olds
Of that, 36 per cent thought that make-up made them look one to three years younger, while 29 per cent thought it could make them look three to five years younger.
An optimistic 2 per cent thought make-up took ten years off their real age while 18 per cent thought it took off five to seven years.
Only women under 21 thought that a slick of black kohl and some lipstick actually added a few years.
The survey by Escentual.com showed that the older you are, the more reliant you are on make-up to turn back the clock. Only 60 per cent of those aged 30 to 39 thought they looked younger with make-up, compared with 100 per cent of those aged 60 to 69.
