Makeup hacks you need to know to look instantly fresh when you're feeling tired!

Base

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Okay, full disclosure: You’ll need to up your game by grabbing at least two foundation formulas here. Bespoke blends are par for the course in this day of mixing and matching, really – and besides, pooling different products together for a tailored fit is a favourite trick of backstage professionals, and it isn’t all that complicated.

Here’s how. First, let’s address the greasiness that can arise from exhaustion. Your skin’s oil output can become somewhat schizo under the strain of stress, so it’s crucial to control shine with strategic use of a matte-finish foundie by way of say, Nars’ pore-perfecting Velvet Matte Skin Tint, which comes chock-full of skin-friendly stuff like a supposedly sebum-balancing rose fruit extract. Start by stippling on your product from the centre of your face outwards – this is where one tends to get shiny faster, you see – and be sure to blend well with a fluffy foundation brush.

Try: Nars Cosmetics Velvet Matte Skin Tint SPF30/PA +++, $70.

Base: Step 2

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Got your matte down pat? Good, time to switch to a comforting cream foundation. Make it stick, so to speak, with Etude House’s beautifully blendable Play 101 Stick, an adorably chubby complexion corrector boasting a glorious glide – no wrinkle-causing wrenching and tugging needed! – and a delightfully dewy finish that's oh so Korean. To use, simply dab directly onto your cheekbones for a sexy, out-of-the-shower look. Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy!

Try: Etude House Play 101 Stick Foundation, $24.

3. Highlighter

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If you’re going for broke, consider boosting the brilliance with a pen-type illuminator, like Yves Saint Laurent Beauty’s legendary Touche Eclat – now available in an incredibly incandescent #LimitedEdition Strobing Light iteration that has to be swatched to be believed – and swipe along the nose bridge and under the eyes to draw attention to the middle of your face.

Follow up with a dot on your cupid’s bow to give your puckers a poutier appearance; and finish with a dab in the middle of your chin. The glimmering effect as light falls on your face masks fatigue and will imbue your mien with a subtle inner sheen that’s very intriguing indeed.

Try: Yves Saint Laurent Beaute Limited Edition Touche Eclat Strobing Light, $59.

4. Blusher

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Blusher-wise, the aim is to make the apples of your cheeks that look as if they’re lit from within. Keep the hue hue high up on the cheekbones – try Lipstick Queen’s exquisitely enthralling Frog Prince Cream Blush, which is a startling spinach in the pan but melts into a sheer salmon shade on your skin – and swirl the shade upwards and outwards into your temples using your fingers.

This winsome wedge of colour will lend your cheeks a subtly lifted and a soft halo effect, not to mention suffuse your complexion with a coquettish hint of a tint. Voila, a flirty feminine flush in a single stroke.

Try: Lipstick Queen Frog Prince Cream Blush, $35 from Escentials.

5. Eyes

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I’m going on the assumption you’ve got your eye cream essentials down pat. Once your lids are plump and primed, pick up a pea-sized amount of primer and dot it over and under the lid to create a clean canvas. This essential extra step is just incredible at ironing out creases and stamping out shadows under the eye.

Deftly dab the tip of a luminising stick – my obsession du jour has got to be It Cosmetics’ Hello Light Anti-Aging Luminizing Creme Stick – directly onto the triangle-shaped wedge at the inner corners and below your brow bone. Accenting your eyes with a touch of highlighter is one of the easiest and highest-impact trick in the beauty book: The glimmering effect as light falls on your face masks fatigue and gives the illusion of wider, bigger peepers.

Top tip: If you have bone-dry skin, avoid the crepey outer corners of your lids – highlighting formulas quite literally highlight creases and crinkles. No-go zone aside, this little trick is the easiest way to nailing bedroom eyes that will leave suitors in a saucer-eyed stupor.

Right, then. Follow these tips and you’ll be well on your way to going from lethargic and lacklustre to divine and dewy in minutes. Try these tips the next time you’re piling on the facepaint and with any luck, a firmer and fresher visage will be greeting you in the mirror!

Try: It Cosmetics Hello Light Anti-Aging Luminizing Creme Stick, $42 from Sephora Singapore.