Fab 40s: celebs who get better with age

Sarah Jessica Parker

Who are the ladies who just get better with age - and how do they do it? (Of course they all have an army of beauticians, stylists and hairdressers to help them achieve perfection ... but so do the young whipper-snappers sharing the red carpet who are half their age!) Read on to see our favourite 40-somethings and their top tips for looking good.

Sarah Jessica Parker

How old is she? 45

Still got it? Ever since she stepped out in Carrie Bradshaw\'s Manolo Blahniks SJP has been fashion queen bee. The \'Sex and the City\' star has maintained her crown and still graces the front pages of fashion magazines on a regular basis.

How does she do it?

With inimitable style. SJP knows how to dress age-appropriately and still be bang-on-trend. Her style ranges from dressed-down jeans to fairytale haute couture gowns, depending on the occasion, but she rarely gets it wrong.

She says: ‘When you\'re young you really do think a lot about other people\'s opinions of you. It really becomes your opinion of yourself in the end. But I really think I would be at a disadvantage to spend a lot of time thinking about what other people think of me, good or bad. My personality is more conservative than Carrie\'s, so I gave away a lot of the clothes to friends because I knew I would never wear some of the racier outfits. I prefer stylish but not too sexy. I say to people just accept your age and dress accordingly. Just accept whatever happens and try to find some good moisturiser!\'

Julia Roberts

How old is she? 43

Still got it? This ‘pretty woman\' has been at the top of her game and an idol to millions for decades. She\'s over 40, she\'s incredibly busy, she\'s got a bunch of kids and she\'s still got a body a 30-year-old would kill for. With her trademark smile, long limbs and flowing tresses Julia is definitely fit in her 40s.

How does she do it?

She stays as natural as possible. Julia has always maintained she would prefer to grow old gracefully than go under the knife to keep her youthful looks.

She says: ‘You know, you want everything to stay where it is, but it doesn\'t have to be a disaster. I don\'t know why people think about getting a different face that looks younger. It\'s a different face - I don\'t know how that makes you feel better. And now I have small kids I think that that would probably freak them out. The idea of getting older to me is having more adventures with them, and getting to know my kids better, and getting to, you know, intertwine my life with my husband more.\'

Halle Berry

How old is she? 43

Still got it? Halle\'s another star who just seems to get hotter and hotter as she grows older. Less than two years ago - having just had a baby - she was voted Sexiest Woman Alive.

How does she do it?

She takes care of her skin. Halle just glows in front of the camera and since giving birth to her daughter Nahla, two, her beauty has become even more radiant.

She says: ‘I use cleanser, toner, moisturiser and a weekly mask. But I\'m lucky that I have good genes. One big rule is to wash your face as often as you can and to use the right products for your skin type. I try to eat healthily and exercise when I can.\'

Catherine Zeta Jones

How old is she? 40

Still got it? Catherine still knows how to turn on the glamour and put younger stars firmly in the shade when it comes to big nights out. Of late she has been criticised for losing too much weight but she is still the beautiful girl from the Welsh Valleys.

How does she do it?

Catherine is a curvy girl - but unlike some of her peers she admits she has to work hard to keep in shape.

She says: ‘I\'m not going to lie to you - I\'ve got to drag myself down to the gym like everybody else. But when I\'m finished, I do enjoy it more. Then I can eat more smoked salmon sandwiches. I\'m a slave to my looks! I keep my skin clear by applying a mixture of honey and salt all over my body to moisturize and exfoliate. I also condition my hair with honey and beer which means I smell like the bottom of a beer barrel for days afterwards, but it\'s very good for the hair. I\'m one of those girls who really can say, \'I can\'t go out tonight, I\'m washing my hair\'. I don\'t mind admitting that I never leave home without my make-up bag.\'

Nicole Kidman

How old is she? 43

Still got it? Nicole\'s looks have come under a lot of scrutiny over the years. But in reality the Aussie actress still looks absolutely stunning; she\'s aged gracefully and maintains a strong sense of fashion, she\'s never afraid to try out new styles.

How does she do it?

She keeps it simple. When she split from first husband Tom Cruise, Nicole threw herself into her work and boosted her star status and career. But since finding love again with second husband Keith Urban and giving birth to daughter Sunday Rose, two, her priorities have changed and now all that matters is her family. Rather than living the high life in Hollywood she prefers to spend quiet time with her brood in Nashville, Tennessee, or back in her native Australia.

She says: ‘We have a very simple and normal life. I think age doesn\'t matter to me anymore because so much of my burning ambition has faded. I still love to work, but it\'s different now. I have other priorities. I\'m glad I was able to be a mother when I was both young and old. I got to experience being a mother at 25 with Isabella and Connor, and I got to do it again now with Sunday Rose.\'

Jennifer Aniston

How old is she? 41

Still got it? The rom-com queen has more than got it, commanding acres of newsprint linking her to every leading man she works with. Since her break-up with Brad Pitt in 2005, Jen has been seen on the arm of various Hollywood hotties - John Mayer, Bradley Cooper and model Paul Sculfor to name but a few.

How does she do it?

Jen\'s most alluring feature has to be her hair. No matter how she styles her long flowing tresses the world looks on in envy. She was responsible for the style phenomenon known as ‘The Rachel\' in the 1990s and two decades on, every woman on the planet still has hair envy.

She says: ‘It doesn\'t take too much to look after my hair. I just cut it and I condition it. Just L\'Oreal. The fancy stuff seems to not work. And I drink water. I drink a s***load of water. The one thing I notice in my skin is, if I stop drinking water I dehydrate badly and get crêpey. Water is important. And sleeping.\'

Kylie Minogue

How old is she? 42

Still got it? Absolutely! Ever since she spun around in those gold hotpants Kylie Minogue has been the object of both envy and desire - and now she is in her 40s she is still turning heads. The petite princess of pop is working harder than ever - and even though she has banned herself from wearing hotpants again she still has a body to die for.

How does she do it?

She keeps a bit of mystery! Although she used to flash a lot of flesh - and showed real cheek - Kylie keeps herself under cover a bit more these days.

She says:  ‘I do stay under wraps a lot more now. I feel different. People used to say, ‘How do you do that, getting photographed in a very small amount of clothing?\' And I\'d say, ‘I don\'t know what the big deal is.\' Now I\'m at a time in my life when I don\'t have to do that. If you are happy within, it shows - other than that a good hairdresser and a good make-up artist always help things along!\'

Jennifer Lopez

How old is she? 40

Still got it?  Famed for her curves (and in particular her perfect bottom) J-Lo has been in the Hot 100 lists for more than a decade. But just recently her looks have blossomed and come into their own, and she thanks her husband Marc Anthony and twin babies for that.

How does she do it?

Motherly love. Ever since she became a mum to twins Max and Emme, two, J-Lo has relaxed and become less hung up on work and what the world thinks of her - and it has really paid off.

She says: ‘I really love the direction my life has taken. I feel now like I\'m 25 again and that it\'s all starting over. With the babies, they just make you feel like your life is just beginning. Probably because their life is just beginning and you so love them that you\'re just like right there with them. It\'s like, ‘Okay, this is the start of something awesome.\' That\'s how I feel in my life and in my career right now.\'

Gwen Stefani

How old is she? 40

Still got it? With her off-beat style, mum-of-two Gwen is as strong and sexy as when she first hit the hip-hop scene, she\'s a woman who has no interest in being taken for a girl.

How does she do it?

Youthful vigour. No one can believe that popstrel Gwen is 40 and it is all down to her energy and attitude. The super-stylish mum-of-two knows how to conjure up a show-stopping look in the blink of an eye - but always gives it a cutting edge twist.

She says: ‘I still feel like a kid. Some days I wake up with a husband and two kids and I can\'t believe it. It\'s all cool though. I\'ve always enjoyed working out and try to look after myself. It\'s hard now as I have less time but you can always do something I think.\'

Renee Zellweger

How old is she? 41

Still got it? Renee works out hard and is often seen on a morning run but even so, she has still got it. She earned female fans galore when she played singleton heroine Bridget Jones and she earned even more male fans when she took the starring role in racy Chicago.

How does she do it?

Not stressing about her age or the need to have a family. Renee knows that her biological clock is ticking, but she just wants to be happy. The Bridget Jones star has already been married once before (to country crooner Kenny Chesney) and she is in no rush to make a matrimonial mistake again. For now she is more than happy dating handsome beau Bradley Cooper.

She says: ‘Motherhood has never been an ambition. I don\'t think like that. I never have expectations like ‘When I\'m 19 I\'m going to do this, and by the time I\'ve hit 25 I\'m going to do that\'. I just take things as they come, each day at a time, and if things happen then all well and good.\'

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