How To Look More Awake In Minutes
1. De-Puff & Boost Circulation
As facial aesthetics specialist Dr Pamela Benito reminds us, when we’re not sleeping properly, skin tends to become dull and puffy. “Either wash or splash your face with ice cold water, or leave spoons in the freezer and press them down across your face to reduce any puffiness,” she advises, adding that a morning workout is the best way to boost circulation. “This will wake up your body and get the blood pumping, giving you a rosy, awake-looking glow.”
No time to hit the gym? Spending a few minutes massaging your face can both boost blood circulation and reduce lymphatic congestion (aka, the culprit behind that tired puffiness). SL swears by cooling crystal rollers – store in the fridge for even more impressive results – using the larger side for the forehead, cheeks and jawline, and the smaller side for the eye contours and sinus areas.
2. Give Skin It’s Glow Back
“Tired skin needs a huge injection of hydration,” explains make-up artist Jenny Coombs. “You can’t go wrong with a good hydrating face mask followed by an oil or emollient-heavy face cream to lock the moisture in.”
Need to rush out the door? Sweep one of Starskin’s 7-Second Morning Mask pads over your face, avoiding the eye area. With a clever dual-texture, they’re able to massage, exfoliate and tone on one side, whilst the other side functions as a serum, moisturiser, leave-on mask and primer. Follow with Pixi’s Rose Flash Balm – an instant pick-me-up for fatigued, lacklustre skin, the glow-giving formula is swiftly absorbed, getting to work to nourish, sooth and brighten.
3. Hide Under-Eye Bags
A lack of beauty sleep undoubtedly hits our eyes the hardest, so if you only have time for a minute of facial massage, this is the area to focus on. We’re converts to facialist Antonia Burrell’s signature method: softly placing your ring fingers in the corners of your eyes nearest your nose and gently rotating them along your eye line. And for the best effect, try the technique with an eye cream – the Caroline Hirons-approved Drunk Elephant C-Tango Multivitamin Eye Cream really does make a difference on the spot, visibly brightening and smoothing thanks to five forms of vitamin C and eight powerful peptides.
Camouflage dark circles with a powerhouse concealer, drawing a triangle shape under the base of your eye and sweeping upwards into a point at the peak of your cheekbone – this clever hack makes your face appear instantly lifted, by drawing focus upwards. Open up your eyes by curling your eyelashes and adding two coats of mascara, ensuring to wiggle the brush right into the base of your lashes for maximum lift. Our top tip? Squeeze this clever curler once at the lashline, once in the middle of the lashes and once at the ends.
4. Try Clever Colour Tricks
If you’re sleep deprived and not already on board with colour correcting (read our full guide here), you’ll want to try this age-old beauty industry trick before you start your make-up. For skin that’s looking drawn and lacklustre, Dr Benito recommends investing in a purple-hued primer: “It will make you look more awake in seconds,” she says. For stamping out sallow tones, we love Becca’s lightweight liquid formula, packed full of subtle lilac pigments and light-diffusing particles for a radiant finish.
As we can tend to look paler and more washed out when we’re tired, make-up artist Jessica Kell also advises adding a pop of pink to your cheek and lips – as the pretty shade “lifts the complexion”. Just remember not to skip the concealing and colour-correcting steps if you’re struggling with your skin. “Those with redness around the eye area or blemishes should make sure to conceal and neutralise the area properly before wearing pink make-up,” she adds.
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