Puffiness, dark circles, and bloodshot eyes are what greet me most mornings. Sleep is a crucial part of our day, but sadly most of us just don’t get enough – and it shows a lot. The good news is that you can fake a good night's rest with the right products. Here's how to take you from blah to bright-eyed beautiful!


Putting your eye cream in the refrigerator is a great trick. The cooling effect will help soothe and calm sore, puffy eyes. Choose an eye cream that will also help brighten and leave a luminous finish.

The skin around the eyes usually appears darker or discoloured compared to the rest of the skin. When covering dark circles, only apply concealer where the discolouration is. Use your fingers to let the product melt into the skin or a small concealer brush to get in tricky spaces. My concealer of choice is Benefit's Erase Paste (1). This little perk-me-up is a concentrated, creamy concealer that brightens and camouflages those dark circles.

To prevent concealer from slipping and sliding throughout the day, use a light-diffusing powder. Benefit's Powderflage (2) won’t settle into fine lines.

Groomed brows lend a polished look that helps you look fresh. Fill your brows in and set with a clear brow gel such as Anastasia Brow Gel in Clear (3) to keep unruly hairs in place. Lift the eye by highlighting the brow bone in a soft shimmery pink or shell shade like Anastasia Brow Duality (4). You can also dab this duo pencil to the inner corner of the eyes and center of the lid to highlight and brighten.


Smudging a little liner into the lash line will subtly define your eyes and give them some presence. Use a long-lasting formula like Bobbi Brown's Long-Wear Gel Liner (5).

To really open those peepers, curl your lashes and swipe on Benefit's BADgal Blue mascara (6). Apprehensive about blue mascara? The blue shade actually makes the whites of your eye look whiter and brighter. If it’s too much for you, apply the blue mascara over a black one for more subtle effect. To brighten those eyes even more, run a white or flesh-coloured pencil like Three Custom Color Clarifier (7) along the waterline.

If you’re lacking sleep, the pale of your skin will give it away. Warm up your complexion with an illuminating bronzer from Bobbi Brown (8).


Adding blush to the apples of the cheeks is the perfect perk-me-up. I love Tarte Cheek Stain in Flush (9), a sheer berry. This all-natural gel stain will leave your skin glowing and radiant. Highlight cheekbones with a luminous finish like Benefit's High Beam (10).

Finish faking a good night’s rest with a little colour on the lips. Add some shine with a gloss or give your lips a natural finish by using a tinted lip balm like Tarte 24/7 Natural Lip Sheer in Tea Time (11), a deep rosy-pink. It gives a “your lips but better” effect and will perk up any complexion.

Beauty rest, Beauty Fixed.

by Joy David-Tilberg