All-nighters are what we call a necessary evil. Maybe you had a paper that you procrastinated, a test you didn’t study for, or the preferred excuse – you were up dancing at late night Hall. Whatever the reason may be, you feel and look dead the morning after.
Now, everyone is entitled to days where they don’t look their best, but I find that it doesn’t help me feel better in the morning to know that my skin looks dry, ashy, and irritated. Maybe you have a specific reason to look alive the morning after – whether this be an interview, having to go to work, or just not wanting people to think you’re auditioning for The Walking Dead.
If I know that I need to look presentable after pulling an all-nighter, I have a very specific routine the following morning to help me get the mess that my body is back together. First and foremost, I have to accredit the queen of all-nighters, Cat Marnell, former Lucky Magazine beauty editor and certified sh*t show, for her “no sleep beauty”, from which we can derive the general modus operandi. That being said, I’ve made a number of additions and changes to her article. If you’d like to take a look hers, here is a link: http://www.xojane.com/beauty/art-crack-ttractiveness-how-look-and-feel-hot-no-sleep
The first thing that I do after pulling an all-nighter, is promptly drink a ton of water. You have no idea how much alcohol caffeine dehydrates your body. After chugging water, you’re going to want to take a shower. This is where you get to take some time to relax and let your body take a break before you jump-start it again. I recommend using some sort of tingling facial cleanser, because that is definitely going to make you feel more awake, not to mention less like a Weeknd song, i.e. able to feel your face. I personally recommend Clinique Liquid Facial Soap.
Once you’re out the shower – here is a step that you can skip, but if you’re really going to try, you may as well do it. Use a coffee facemask. This is a life savor and makes a difference, but again, it does require that you have some made on hand, which means you will have had to have made it, and it needs to sit for a good 15 minutes. Skip it if you don’t care enough.
It might seem weird to be putting coffee grounds on your skin if staying up all night drinking coffee is what got you where you are in the first place, but it really gets rid of all of the puffiness that a sleepless night brings to your face. You know what they say – hair of the dog.
To make it, use honey, coffee grounds, and olive oil. Mix it until you get a paste-like consistently. Spread it across your face, amuse yourself by thinking about how ridiculous you look, and let it work it’s magic for 15 minutes or so. When you rinse your face, the coffee grounds also double as a much needed exfoliator.
A relatively small trick that makes a nice impact is putting a bit of peppermint oil behind your ears. I love this Aveda blue oil. It smells fantastic. Lack of sleep often causes awful headaches, and this does a bit to help with that, as well as wake up your face a little more.
Another little trick that I find really can make you feel better is eye drops. I don’t know about you, but lack of sleep really dries out my eyes. They can feel itchy, look bloodshot, and all-around be very irritated. You may think that all eye-drops are the same, but tried and tested – I’ve found that Rohto eye drops are definitely much more effective at soothing your eyes than any other kind.
If you want to look presentable, I would definitely recommend that you blow-dry your hair. Motivate yourself by calling it your arm workout for the day. Give your hair some shape around your face; add some volume to your roots. You’re going to be much better off than if you have your hair pulled tightly into a ponytail or a bun. Hair tied up is not going to serve well in taking the focus off your tired eyes. Not to mention, I’m sure the pressure isn’t going to help the migraine you know you’re going to have.
Now, we can start with makeup. Today is a day where you’re definitely going to want to use all of your base facial makeups. Be sure to use your go-to moisturizer generously, and don’t skip foundation. But, what’s really going to serve to make your face look alive is color. This is why I would definitely encourage that you apply bronzer across your cheeks bones and a nice complementary toned blush on the apples of your cheeks. The color and definition is going to make such a difference in waking up your complexion.
All of this being said, the most important step on mornings after sleepless nights (which should go without saying) is putting concealer under your eyes. As I like to say, your makeup may or may not be designer – the bags under your eyes most certainly are not. Get rid of them.
To continue with eyes, today is not the day for eye shadow or eyeliner. Both are going to make your eyes look even heavier. Now, if you really can’t give up your eye shadow, you’re going to want to make this day be the only time you actually use eye shadow primer. Seriously, who uses that stuff? That being said, I would recommend simply avoiding it entirely. Why bother going through the trouble when it’s not going to help either way? What you are definitely going to want to do is put concealer on your eyelids and then use a ton of mascara. Be sure to curl your eyelashes – this is a small, yet really imperative step.
Now, Cat Marnell advocates for bright red lips the morning after a night of no sleep, because in her words, “the color just makes most people look pretty, pulled-together, and brighter-in-the-face in general”. While this may or may not hold some truth, I tend to shy away from drawing extra attention to my face when I’m running on nothing (expect for probably a lot of Dunkin’). That being said, lipstick does tend to make you look far more put together, so a nice subtle pink could definitely take you places without making your exhausted face the first thing everyone in the room looks at.
Last, but absolutely not least, put a cute outfit on. You’re going to want something comfortable, but pulled together. Sometimes it’s important to consider that confidence can radiate from the outside in. I often feel myself feeling much better when I’m tired or sick if I force myself into a good outfit. Maybe this means putting on your favorite pair of shoes, a new top, or a belt that always makes you feel particularly put together. Either way, there’s nothing wrong with dressing the way you want to feel. I find that this trick is often exactly what I need to get myself through a rough (and tiring) day.