The Worst Fall Beauty Mistakes

Your better fall move: Give your skin extra TLC instead of getting aggressive. Add more hydrating products and emollients, both present in everything from cleansers to night creams.

Try switching from foam, gel and micellar water cleansers to cleansing oils and balms like Burt’s Bees Nourishing Cleansing Oil with Coconut and Argan Oils ($19, cvs.com) and e.l.f. Holy Hydration! Makeup Melting Cleansing Balm ($20, ulta.com) containing hyaluronic acid, ceramides and peptides. Soothing and luxurious to apply, these formulas won’t strip your skin of moisture or leave residue that compromises other products or makeup.

If you’ve been minimizing your daily routine with a tinted moisturizer and aren’t ready to give it up, try layering a hydrating serum like The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 Hydrating Serum With Ceramides ($10, kohls.com), or a moisturizer like Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cream ($22, nordstrom.com) under it to amp up glow and plump lines and wrinkles. You could also apply your tinted moisturizer as a primer for foundation.

Another way to improve dry, dull skin in the fall is to apply a facial oil like Mad Hippie Antioxidant Facial Oil ($19, ulta.com) — this one’s rich in argan and grapeseed oils. Used instead of night cream or over a day or night moisturizer, it locks in moisture and protects the skin’s barrier layer. Rub a drop between fingers and gently pat-press on your face, paying extra attention to very dry spots.

(From left) Supplement your beauty kit with a few new products, like Maybelline Color Tattoo Multi-Use Waterproof Eye Shadow Stix in I Am Courageous; Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Smoky Topaz; Revlon ColorStay Multiplayer Liquid-Glide Eye Pencil With Blending Brush in 402 High Stakes: and Lancôme L’Absolu Rouge Intimatte Buildable Soft Matte Lipstick in 440 Got Me Blushing.

AARP (CVS, Ulta, Target, Macy’s)

4. Going full speed ahead with trendy makeup.

After a summer of “lite” tints, lip oils, glosses and sunglasses substituting for eyeliner and mascara, real makeup is calling. It’s in our DNA. Last fall, we couldn’t get enough of the eye-lifting swoop of cat-eye liner and the highlighter/illuminator trend. Decades of makeup shopping and wearing experience are hard to erase, and ignoring new shades, brands and application techniques on social media is pretty impossible.

The mistake women make is rationalizing a huge shopping bag of new makeup as a form of cheaper-than-new-clothes “therapy.” Buying a whole new faceload of cosmetics instead of cherry-picking selective pieces for an update is always a mistake.

Your better fall move: Check the dates on the makeup you already own. If it’s been in use for a year, toss it and give yourself permission to buy new. Make small changes one at a time. Don’t get talked into more by a department store brand adviser suggesting a makeover or an eager sales pitch with promises of “special promotions.”

This fall’s goodie bag includes been-there trends you’ll recognize, like brown liner, shimmery cream shadows and berry and tawny brown lips. Swap the usual black eyeliner for a softer brown like Revlon ColorStay Multiplayer Liquid-Glide Eye Pencil With Blending Brush in 402 High Stakes ($10, target.com), and switch to soft, creamy shadow crayons in neutrals and shimmers. Select one of the Maybelline Color Tattoo Multi-Use Waterproof Eye Shadow Stix in I Am Courageous, I Am Authentic or I Am Cheeky ($12, cvs.com) or Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow Stick in Smoky Topaz, Bronze, Golden Bronze or Stone ($34 each, ulta.com) shades instead of another palette of powders (most of which you’ll never use).

For a lip update, skip your usual reds and beige neutrals and try cool berry or warm, tawny browns like Lancôme L’Absolu Rouge Intimatte Buildable Soft Matte Lipstick in 888 French Idol, 299 French Cashmere or Got Me 440 Blushing ($35, macys.com). No gimmicks, total flattery.

(From left) Give your hair a new look with the L.Erikson Ferne Jaw Clip in Black; Olaplex Weightless Nourishing Mask for Fine to Medium Hair; and Infiniti Pro by Conair DigitalAIRE Hair Dryer.

AARP (Nordstrom, Ulta, Target)

5. Getting a high-maintenance haircut.

“I can’t believe I went short again.”

“These layers will take a year to grow out!”

“I’ll need more products and styling time every day!”

Ask any woman over 50 about these comments, and she’ll say, “Been there.” Fall is when women decide that their ponytail is boring, layers will add volume, and somehow, some way, shorter hair will provide more of “a look.” Not always. Who is most susceptible to the lure? Women with hair that’s fine, thinning or damaged, or who have experienced a recent weight change or life change like divorce, death of a spouse, job loss or relocation to another city, state or home.

A hefty, blunt bottom-line snip will eliminate dead, split or straggly ends (regrowth here is easy), but more adventurous cuts may be your undoing. Many short or choppy layers, straight-across bangs and short bobs, shortie crops and pixies require additional products and extra expense to maintain their style and shape.

Your better fall choice: Try a long bob, aka “lob” (which gives you more leeway between trims than a bob); shoulder-grazing hair that can be worn textured or straight, thrown up in a topknot or pulled back for a chic effect; or long, sideswept bangs that are there one minute and gone the next. 

And for those who always want to cut their hair and then regret it, try small changes to give your hair a new feeling. Consider an updated lighter blow-dryer like the Infiniti Pro by Conair DigitalAIRE Hair Dryer ($167, walgreens.com) to speed up drying and styling; a hydrating mask like Olaplex Weightless Nourishing Mask for Fine to Medium Hair ($44, ulta.com) to pep up hair that’s dull, dry or damaged; or a more elegant hair accessory like L.Erikson Ferne Jaw Clip ($36, nordstrom.com), a glossy black clip adorned with pearls that makes bad hair days a distant memory.

(From left) Soothe itchy, dry skin with CeraVe Intensive Moisturizing Cream; Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Touch Hand Cream; and Aveeno Baby Eczema Therapy Nighttime Itch Relief Balm.

AARP (Ulta, Kohl’s, Target)

6. Soaking in long, hot baths and steamy showers.

Summer is about cool, refreshing showers; fall is about leisurely soaks in the tub. No matter what anyone says about the dangers of the latter, women over 50 will continue to renew their cozy, spa-like baths and steamy showers at the first drop in temperature. Then they say, “My skin is itching like crazy and feels like sandpaper.” “The insides of my black tees and pants are covered in flakes.” It’s time to hit the reset button.

Your better fall move: Try taking shorter baths and showers and turning down the heat from hot to toasty warm. For incentive, remember that dry, irritated, inflamed, itchy skin can make even the softest cashmere sweater and the most perfect pair of jeans unpleasant to wear.

Try an at-home therapy by smoothing on CeraVe Intensive Moisturizing Cream ($16, ulta.com) with urea, a powerful humectant, in addition to ceramides and shea butter, or Aveeno Baby Eczema Therapy Nighttime Itch Relief Balm ($5, target.com). Yes, it says “baby” and “eczema,” but this colloidal oatmeal and ceramide cream is one of the best-kept secrets of supermodels and celebs, and it’s great for ordinary seasonal dry skin.

Concerned about product residue your on silk blouses, flowy midi dresses or your new knee-high suede boots? Get your hands on a silky, fast-absorbing, hyaluronic acid–based body serum, like Soap & Glory Hydrate Expectations Body Serum ($13, walgreens.com) or Vaseline Pro VitaB3 Serum Burst Lotion Supple & Soft ($9, walgreens.com), that leaves absolutely no residue under your “good” clothes.

And speaking of hands, treat yourself to a special hand cream, like Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Touch Hand Cream ($16, kohls.com). It contains squalane for moisture, cupuaçu butter, which is rich in essential fatty acids, and the brand’s iconic scent. With the seasonal bump in more frequent handwashing, you’ll keep your hands soft and supple, and germs at bay.