Magnifying mirrors: How much is too much magnifying?

10 years ago

Time to replace my old Clairol magnifying mirror with the light strips down the sides. It's probably 17 years old and the lights flicker.

This will be a lighted mirror I can put on the dresser and plug in, not for permanent installation on the bathroom wall.

I have to find time to run into a Bed Bath & Beyond to check out the different magnifying options, but there are some out there that are 10x -- that seems like a lot, but maybe there are some people who want a really, really, really close-up view?

At my "advancing" age (I can see 50 from here), what I can't see, I can't stress about or be self-conscious about!

Featured Answer

amck2

10 years ago

I love my 10x magnifying mirror. I had perfect vision most of my life, then hit the drugstore readers stage. Last year I got Progressive contacts and that mirror has been invaluable to me with getting them in/out with ease.

I can apply all my makeup, including tricky eyeliner, without my lenses. Yes, you do see every flaw in detail. But I prefer seeing things that need blending or retouching before I step out of the house. Better than someone else seeing it first.

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Comments (21)

Fun2BHere
10 years ago
I have a 10X which works great for my aging eyes. My younger friends call it evil, though, because you can see every enlarged pore.
annzgw
10 years ago
I'm on the other side of 50 and find a good quality 5x works well for putting on makeup. A 7x would be good for checking stray hairs, etc. It all depends on your vision.
I want enough magnification that lets me apply my eye makeup without eyestrain.

Do buy a 'quality' mirror.....it's makes such a difference!
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justgotabme
10 years ago
I'm with Annz in feeling that it depends on your vision. And I might add to that on how much you actually want to see! LOL
dedtired
10 years ago
I think it depends on how close you get to it. I have 5x that I can pull up close and it is fine.
lynninnewmexico
10 years ago
(LOL!!!) A few years ago I asked for one for my birthday. Birthday morning arrives and I'm sitting in bed opening up my gifts. I pull out the new double-sided, lit, with 8x magnifying on one side. I check it out. Pretty nice. Flip it over to the magnifying side and . . . yikes, waaaay too much information at 7AM!!!
(Sigh) I've gotten used to seeing myself magnified 8 times, but it still is humbling . . . but helpful.
Lynn
dakota01
10 years ago
I just bought a x10 oval lighted one from Frontgate. It's nice but the light isn't strong enough. I have to add another light kind of above it to really see what I'm doing. I have a cheaper Clairol or Conair and the light is actually brighter. So it may not be the magnification it could be that you need more light to apply your make-up
cindyandmocha
10 years ago
Hahah how timely is this thread?? I'm finally redoing my bedroom and I've been searching all over for a vanity/desk. I can't find anything that doesn't look cheesy that I can afford. What I want is something with a couple of deeper drawers for all the wrinkle cream and bottles, and a magnifying mirror!

I too looked at Bed Bath and also O.co, as well as Amazon for the mirror. They do have some nice ones out there, but I was shocked at the expense. I'm 48 and my sis is 62. She just got through lamenting to me yesterday that she can't find a lighted mirror she likes as well as her old Clairol one (maybe 15 yrs old) that has a day/night setting -- they just don't make them like they use to.

I either want something I can leave on the vanity with a pretty metal stand (and thus no attached mirror to the vanity itself), or a deep enough drawer in the vanity to hide it.

I guess not many women use a vanity anymore. I don't have one myself right now. But the older I get, the more I think I really need that lit mirror and a chair to check the makeup.

I've been shocked lately when I'm shopping and look in some of the magnifying mirrors at what I MISSED (I don't have one).
hhireno
10 years ago
hahahaha, lynn, that is a shocking way to start your birthday.

I've mentioned this before but I think it's worth repeating. When using a magnifying mirror, be careful you don't pluck too much. I've read that can easily happen because you see every little hair and flaw, things the naked eye wouldn't notice. Be sure to check your work in a regular mirror.
nicoletouk
10 years ago
To give you an idea of my eyesight, I wear reading glasses that are 1.75 and 2.0.

I put on makeup using a 7X mirror and have a smaller mirror just for eyebrows that is a 10X. I love the eyebrow mirror, but it is really too much for make-up. Neither of them are lit, however. I place the 10X on the window ledge to get the best light.

Nicole
cyn427 (z. 7, N. VA)
10 years ago
Gee, I am 60 and pretty much determined to live in the fuzzy fantasy world of my regular bathroom mirror-it's surprising how really good I look-without my glasses that is-ha. I am not sure I would ever leave the house were I to enter reality.

Lynn, you are very funny.
hhireno
10 years ago
Lynn, you are very funny.

As are you cyn.
busybee3
10 years ago
i have a RH mirror that i think is 4x and that really is plenty i've thought...but, then again i don't need reading glasses yet, so maybe it does depend on your vision!
i use the regular wall mirror for makeup- for better or for worse!
maid_o_cliff
10 years ago
I have an extra closet in my bedroom that I use as as a vanity area. I have a 5x lighted mirror for make up, and a 10x lighted for getting rid of unwanted hairs and bugaboos.
I bought a cheap desk with three drawers and put a leaning wall mirror behind the desk.
I like to be seated when doing make up, as at my age (65) it takes a long time and a few putty knives. : )
Bought the mirrors at BB&B

Maid
rucnmom
10 years ago
If the magnification makes you want to call a plastic surgeon everytime you use it, then its too much.
celticmoon
10 years ago
When I travel I like to take a small magnifying mirror with suction cups on the back. Which I always forget and leave someplace.

This trip I had no idea what magnification to get and picked up a 14x at the drugstore. Yikes! Couldn't tell easily what part of my face was there!! Talk about TMI.
I forgot again and left it stuck to the vacation house bathroom mirror.

Somebody is in for a scare...
SunnyCottage
10 years ago
I'm fast approaching the half-century mark, wear readers, and absolutely can't do without my 10X (unlighted) mirror. I even have a travel version to carry with me on trips.

I've stayed in several high end hotels lately due to work travels, and just gotta ask - what is it with the dark bathrooms in those places? I don't need "mood lighting" in the john, fer cryin' out loud! Inevitably I look like crap when I do travel for work, because even with my trusty travel mirror, the lighting in the room is entirely inadequate for a decent makeup application.
WalnutCreek Zone 7b/8a
10 years ago
You are so right, SunnyCottage. Before I retired, I had to go on frequent business trips and just hated trying to put on makeup in the dim bathrooms. I often wondered if hotels had ever surveyed women to see what they think of the horrible bathroom lighting.
sbroc
5 years ago
Does anyone know how to tell the magnification of an existing mirror? I have one that isn't marked, and I need to replace it.
Condo Home
5 years ago
I used to use a 5X magnification mirror for plucking but my eyes aren't as good as they used to be and now I use a lighted 10X mirror. It makes such a difference! Yes, it can be scary to see every flaw so enlarged, but I just can't properly pluck my eyebrows without the 10x magnification anymore.
Sister Sunnie
5 years ago
I have the B B and B 10X mirror. Couldnt do with out it.

Magnifying mirrors: How much is too much magnifying?

amck2

Comments (21)

Fun2BHere

annzgw

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