So what's a girl to do? Face the day with tell-tale signs of sleep deprivation and endless "Are you okay, you look a little tired?" observations or fake it to make it with these quick tricks fromCleo beauty editor Sarah Macrae, to give you brighter eyes in a flash. We'll take the latter, please.
Pop two slices of cucumber over your eyes for 10 minutes to de-puff tired eyes. Don't have any? Keep Manicure Soothing Cucumber Eye Gels in your fridge instead. Cold teaspoons also work well.
Look for a concealer (one that's peach-toned if you suffer from dark circles) that has light-reflecting particles and illuminating properties. They'll help to diffuse light away from problem areas, such as fine lines and dark circles, and make the eye area look instantly brighter.
Line the inner rims of your eyes with a nude pencil. A flesh-toned liner is more natural-looking than stark white and it'll help the eyes look bigger and more wide-awake.
Highlight the inner V of your eyes. Make-up artists always do this to make models' eyes look more open and bright. Use the sponge applicators that often come with eyeshadow (you can buy them separately if you don't have one) on a sideways angle and apply a shimmering eyeshadow (I like to use a champagne gold) to the inner corners of the eye around the tear duct.
Curl your eyelashes. When we're tired, our big, beautiful eyes disappear into squinty little peepers, so the easiest way to fake brighter, more wide-awake eyes is by opening them up. If you were thinking about skipping the lash curler and mascara, don't. They're a tired gal's best friend.
