Kathie Lee Gifford Slammed for Not Looking Like Herself at 69 in New Pics - She Showed Her 'Bare' Face Once

• Kathie Lee Gifford gets blasted for not looking like herself in recent photos.
• However, the actress is busy being a "Bubbe" and spending time with her remarkable man whom she met after the passing of her husband of 31 years.
• Gifford once went totally makeup free on TV and opened up about her experience.

Kathie Lee Gifford is best known for her vibrant voice and strong opinions on the "Today" show. Like most women in Hollywood, her appearance is often heavily criticized, and she is held to impossible standards.

Recently, Gifford has been criticized because new pictures of her have caused fans to say she looks nothing like she used to. Yet Gifford blocks out the negativity by spending time with her loved ones.

Gifford has recently become a first-time grandmother, or "Bubbe,” as the family calls her, and is besotted with her grandson. She even made him a nursery out of her mother's old room in her house.

The TV presenter said the entire family was happy with her decision to give her grandson a space of his own in her home, and she said she knew her late mother would be overjoyed to give her room up for her great-grandson.

Gifford's daughter-in-law is an interior designer, so Gifford let her take the reigns when it came to designing the nursery. Gifford shared:

"She made it very animal-centric. It's basically beige and white, and it'll work for any baby that comes along the way now."

The TV presenter admitted she hoped it would be the family nursery for all her grandchildren until she eventually needed to install bunk beds as the children grew up. Yet she says she will cross that bridge when she comes to it.

Aside from her grandchild bringing insurmountable joy into her life, she also has her new man, whom she met after her husband-of-31-years' death. Gifford mentioned that before she met her current partner, she went on a few disastrous dates and was lucky to finally find her man.

Gifford hadn't been on a date for over three decades when her husband passed away, and it was important to her that she remembered she was not trying to replace her late husband but rather celebrate her own life.

Once she overcame the initial fear of dating and put the "disaster dates" behind her, she found true love and gushed:

"I have a very sweet man in my life. He's good for me, and I'm good for him."

While she is over the moon with her new man and her grandchild, she has clarified that she won't be saying anything about her partner because: "[She's] discovered that by not talking about it, it stays special."

Why Was Gifford Criticized?

Being in the public eye naturally results in strangers having an opinion about almost everything you do. Gifford is not immune to this phenomenon and is often judged on social media for her appearance.

Recently, she has been criticized because fans can no longer recognize her and say that she is not aging gracefully. Gifford posted a photo of herself in a long white coat and grey pants yesterday. She held a handbag and smiled into the camera.

While she looked beautiful in her minimal makeup and neat hairdo, fans were not impressed, with one saying:

"Poor thing. Not aging well."

Gifford was also criticized this Valentine's Day when she posted a photo of herself holding a bouquet of flowers and smiling. In the post's caption, she wished her followers a happy and healthy Valentine's Day.

Yet fans could not see past what they thought looked like a different face. One user asked her what she was doing and said she didn't look like her "beautiful self," while another said they would rather see wrinkles than a face full of filler. Gifford was even told she had an "unnatural, puffy face."

These sorts of comments have been occurring for a while now, with Gifford even being criticized back in August last year. Gifford posted a video of herself talking about the winner of a competition that she was involved in.

She sat in a comfortable chair and wore a blue and white checkered dress as she spoke. But the last thing on everyone's mind was the competition's winner, and all attention was instead turned to Gifford's appearance.

One fan said she was spoiling her natural beauty with the fillers she was putting in her face, and another noted that although they admired her, they wished she would stop getting filler. There was also a fan who remarked:

"It's really okay to have a wrinkle on your face! You should try it and embrace your age.”

Although there are many comments of this kind on Gifford's posts, there are also those who love what they see whenever the TV presenter posts a picture and tell her as much in the comments.

In the photo she posted yesterday, Gifford received many loving comments from fans, saying how beautiful she looked and how much her white coat suited her. One fan said she would look great in any style, and another said she looked "fabulous."

What Did Gifford Say About Being Makeup-Free & How Did She Look?

While she usually never steps out of her house with at least some makeup on, in 2010, Gifford went on "Today" without a stitch of product on her face and talked about how it felt for her.

Gifford and Hoda Kotb both went on the show without makeup on after Rosie O'Donnell accused Gifford of having a facelift. Gifford told O'Donnell if she could find a telling scar, she would own up to plastic surgery, but was adamant she hadn't had anything done.

While Gifford felt brave enough to go onscreen "bare and unafraid," she wasn't as excited about it when she saw herself. She admitted:

"I feel vulnerable … now that I see our monitor, I know why."

She then confirmed that she had come into the world naked and would go out that way, too, so she was unafraid to share her raw appearance with all the fans of the show who watched that episode.

Kotb and Gifford also had a special guest on the show that day as O'Donnell FaceTimed the pair (also without makeup — or brushing her hair and teeth, for that matter) and apologized to Gifford for accusing her of having work done. O'Donnell said she thought Gifford looked great, if not a little different than usual.

Gifford has faced much criticism over the past couple of years, but she has taken it all on the chin, ensuring that she never let the noise of other people's opinions drown out her love for her family.