The lazy girl’s guide to faking awake

Some days it seems like no matter how much sleep you’ve had, your face tells a different story. From tired eyes to a lacklustre complexion, we can all use a little help to look more awake. But it doesn’t have to mean a full face of make-up or a time-consuming routine. With these tricks, even the laziest of us can fake a fresh and glowing face.

#1 Illuminate your complexion

For quick coverage that also instantly brightens your complexion, try mixing your BB cream or foundation with an illuminator. Just dispense equal parts of each, mix together and apply as you would normally for fresh, dewy skin (and no extra time added to your morning routine). Or for some next-level glow game, make-up artist Hayley Dutton says to apply a cream highlighter “on the high point of the cheekbones, down the bridge of the nose and on the cupid’s bow.” Use a product like Rimmel London Good To Glow Highlighter, and simply pat it on after your base. Or, if you prefer a fresh face, it can also be used on its own.

#2 Highlight your eyes

The eyes are always the first to give away any tired signs. Traitors. But if you know the secrets to highlighting your peepers (or, as we like to call it, eye-lighting), it can take just seconds to pull them back into line.

First and foremost, Hayley says, “Using a highlighter in the inner corner of the eyes is a fab trick to assist in opening the eye up when you’re looking a little tired.” It’s also really quick to do when you use a pencil highlighter like Rimmel London Brow This Way Highlighter Pencil.

Pencil highlighters also make it easy to highlight your browbone, which Hayley says “creates the illusion of a brow lift, which automatically assists in opening the eyes and creating an awakening effect.” Ummmmm, YES PLEASE!

And lastly, ditch any dark colours for under your eyes and instead sweep some highlighter under the bottom lash line for a brighter, wide-eyed finish.

#3 Lift your lashes           

You’ve probably never thought much about your mascara technique, but how you style your lashes can be key to looking (and feeling) more awake.

Hayley recommends “really working your mascara through your lashes, curling the lashes up and outwards as you do, to create a mini lash lift.” Try to make sure your wand evenly coats, lifts and separates your lashes, rather than just adding layer on top of layer.

And choose your mascara wisely. Hayley says, “Opting for a separating and defining mascara, rather than a heavy voluminous mascara, will help to make eyes look brighter and bigger. Adding too much volume on the lashes can sometimes close the eye up, so keep it light and fresh.” Aka go for natural definition over heavy volume.

Try using Rimmel London Wake Me Up Mascara – it has a precision brush, designed to wrap each individual lash for extra length and defined volume, but without any clumpiness to drag your lashes down.

And if you’ve ever used a mascara that sets rock-hard (think: impossible to remove and heavy on the eyes), you’ll be pleased to know the formula contains vitamins and cucumber extract, to keep it gentle on those tired eyes. And the best part? It smells like fresh cucumber to invigorate your senses in the morning too!

How do you look less tired in the mornings? Have you tried the Rimmel London Wake Me Up Mascara?