I la-la-loooove going to bed early, sleeping in late and clocking 8 or more hours of solid Z’s , but there are always going to be days we are incredibly sleep deprived– for a variety of reasons– sometimes a happy hour lasted a little too long, sometimes there’s a little person whom you love more than life itself who takes over your bed at 2am, and then sometimes? We are struck with plain ol’ insomnia.

On these days we often wake up, look in the mirror and staring back at us is a reflection that straight-up look like a guest star on The Walking Dead.

Getting ourselves ready in the morning is part of what gets us going, “wakes us up”, but if we are struggling to look awake, well… it’s hard to feel awake– even with ample amount of coffee (which has practically become a food group for me).

So how do we “fake rested” when all we really want to do is face-plant into a big fluffy pillow?

An incredible concealer is always key (my fave– a little of this stuff goes a loooong way!), but what else can we do?

Below are a few beauty hacks for mornings like these that will help you not only feel put together but will convince your co-workers, friends and neighbors that you’re tooootally rested, refreshed and have your shizzz together!

De-puffing eye cream = your secret weapon

If you don’t have one you love, you definitely should set out to find one because they are a great secret weapon to have in your pocket on these days.

My personal favorites are Sky Iceland’s Hydro Cooling Eye Pads and Kheil’s eye de-puffer. Both of these eye de-puffers have a cooling effect and instantly make your eyes feel more awake. Technically, the Kheils one is a men’s product, but upon finding it on my husband’s side of the bathroom sink, I quickly claimed it as my own.

Eye De-puffer

Frozen spoons

You may have heard of this one before. It has been around for years, but I am here to tell you– it actually REALLY works. So keep some frozen metal spoons in the freezer and on your puffiest of tired eye-days, put them on your eyes for 5 minutes to decrease the size of those designer bags you’re carrying around.

Make your coffee do double duty

Put your daily java to work!

Many of us (myself included rely heavily on caffeine to perk us up in the A.M….. ok, and sometimes in the P.M. too). Well, turns out that the caffeine is an anti-inflammatory and can perk up your skin as well!

Here’s what you need to do:

After you brew your coffee, set aside the grounds to cool.

Once cooled, scoop a bit up and pat all along your under eye area– be careful not to get too close to your eye though– coffee grinds in your is not the way you want to start your morning.

Leave the ground coffee on your eye area for about 5-7 minutes and wash off & Viola!

Up your lash game

Lashes area magic, friends– and you know it. It’s one of the reasons I am obsessed with lash extensions. When I have lash extensions on, I wake up in the morning and feel like I can throw on a little bb cream to even up my skin and walk out the door. Done and done! And that? Is a fantastic feeling.

That being said, extensions can get costly and in my experience can cause your lashes to fall out if you tend to be an eye-rubber (guilty!). In lieu of extensions, place one or two “individual lashes” at the outside corner of your eyes to make them look larger.

And of course, having that go-to kick-ass mascara that makes your eyes pop is also a must.  My current favorite for long lashes is L’Oreal’s Double Extend Mascara. This is 2 product works similarly to but is WAY better than– Fiber mascaras that I find always end up UNDER my eye.

First, you apply the white conditioning layer and then the mascara on top. It really makes your lashes look thicker and longer. It can be a little tricky taking off. I find oil-based cleansers or coconut oil works best– but dealing with a bit of a tough removal is better than having it transfer under your eye– right??!

Oh, and the best part is? It is under $10!

Highlight those peepers

Shadow: Be sure you’re are using a light pale pink or white color at the center of your lid. A light pearlized/metallic works great for these days too.

Liner: At the corner of your eye, if you have light eyes–add a white liner– if you’re a brown-eye-d gal like me, lining with white isn’t out of the question but what I find is a bit more natural looking is lining with a reddish-brown liner.  Confession: The color I use is actually a lip liner. It sounds weird, but it will look amazing.

Highlighter: For a final touch add just a tiny bit of highlighter or a shimmery bright flesh tone shadow to the corners of your eyes to make them pop.Those 3 steps alone will instantly make your eye appear larger, and thus more awake.

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Correct, correct, correct

Color correcting the dark circles under your eyes is a game changer! I love my NYX color correcting pallet. I’m usually masking purplish tones with the yellow but here is a cheat sheet for you:

photo credit | NYX Color Correcting Pallet

After you have blended the correcting color a bit, add your favorite concealer that is at least 2 shades lighter than your natural skin tone & apply it in an inverted triangle shape.

Blue Eyedrops

Innoxa blue eye drops

Blue eyedrops help counteract the redness in eyes– that being said, I’ve tried the Innoxa drops and I do not recommend them with contacts because in my experience it leaves a blue-ish ring around them–BUT if you aren’t wearing contacts, definitely give it a go! I’ve noticed a difference!