9 hours ago 3

Introducing 'Face Time,' a new beauty advice column for women over 40

The first time I ever thought about aging in any serious way I was in my late 20s. I was working as a junior beauty and wellness editor for a women’s magazine in New York, writing fluffy stories about spas and the latest skin care trends. In the middle of an interview with a male dermatologist, my interview subject reached over, placed a thumb on my forehead, sucked air through his teeth and said, “Oof, you should really think about Botox. Those lines are way too deep for someone your age.”

The comment was a shock, an unexpected jolt that left me feeling vulnerable, panicked and, weirdly, ashamed. I didn’t take his advice (I got bangs instead), but I fully absorbed the observation: I had begun perceptibly aging. Moreover, these new signs of aging were a problem to be eradicated if I wanted to hold on to my value, or at least the value of my youth.

In the decades since, I’ve had all sorts of complicated — and conflicting — feelings about my face. If you are a human female with skin, I’m sure you have too. At 52, I think about my crepey eyelids and ever-sagging jawline more than I’m proud to admit, even though I know I’m certainly not alone. According to a recent Yahoo/YouGov survey, nearly half of all women are concerned about wrinkles, with those over 40 feeling 20 percent worse about their appearance than women in their 30s and younger.

Which is why my Yahoo editors and I thought it was high time to create a new beauty advice column, specifically, one geared toward the needs of women over 40 (and those who are over-40 curious). In the past few years, I’ve cohosted a podcast for just this demographic and I’ve also become a beauty editor again, reporting on the latest skin care trends and “anti-aging” innovations each week.

What I’ve learned is that in an ageist society, there’s a need for women of a certain age to receive straightforward, compassionate, trustworthy beauty advice from someone who’s been there and gets it. Knowledge is power after all, so — even if you choose to never apply anything more to your face than an SPF stick — my new column Face Time is here to educate, illuminate your options and, when asked, act as a gentle guide.

What to expect from ‘Face Time’

Candid conversations about aging.
Expert answers to your most pressing questions about everything from in-office procedures to the best eye creams.
Product recommendations from someone old enough to know if said products actually work (i.e., not a 20-year-old TikTok influencer with genetically immaculate skin).

What you won’t find here

I’m not going to tell you to use olive oil on your face or pretend it’s what I use on mine. And I’m not going to wax poetic about how any cream can reverse gravity, because I know it can’t, no matter the price. That said, I am not here to tell you to fall in love with your jowls because, frankly, I have a hard time loving mine. Nor will I be that middle-aged crank who says nothing will work except a facelift, because I don’t believe that’s true.

What this column will do is help demystify what it’s like to live with an aging face, expose what everyone else is doing in the privacy of a doctor’s office to look so good (again, not olive oil!) and guide you through your options no matter how you choose to take the aging ride.

Whether you want to know something as small as the best drugstore cream for a parched face or as elaborate as the cost of a neck lift or even just how to grow back your thinning brows, I’m here to offer practical advice.

Ask me anything, as the kids say. I’ve been doing this for more than 20 years and you’re allowed to pick my brain — and the experts I interview will be consulted too. Whether you’re just starting to think about this stuff like I was in my late 20s or you’re in full crisis mode over a melting neck, this is a judgment-free zone and maybe the exact moment in your life when you could really use some “Face Time.”