My skin's exhausted: time for a wake up call!

Our skin, just like our patience, sometimes reaches the end of its tether. Here are some easy as pie beauty tips to get it into shape without going back to sleep or spending hours in the bathroom! Pasty, dull skin, tired lines, dark circles, bags, uneven skin texture, dilated pores... Just some of the visible signs that our skin's worn out and, quite frankly, has had enough! Don't panic - there are plenty of ways to give it a much-needed boost.

A modern evil, fatigue plays a big role in the quality of our skin and can throw it completely off kilter - fluctuating pH levels, poorly functioning sebaceous glands alongside circulatory or lymphatic problems etc. Reasons enough to start giving it some loving care so that it springs back into action.  What's the first thing we should do when we get up? Give ourselves a facial massage! ! Start by lightly pinching your skin (go easy!) to give your tired skin a boost. Follow by rapid smoothing and stretching movements across your forehead, cheeks and chin. Finish by focusing on the pressure points along the top of your eyebrows. This little massage will kick start your circulation and give your cheeks a healthy, rosy glow!

No one wants to head outdoors looking old and haggard thanks to a dull, sallow complexion. Pollution, smoking, dehydration, stress, fatigue, rich diet, UV rays, hormones, lack of exercise... Lots of things can cause dull skin, but even if we can't tackle them one by one, there's one sure-fire way to get back your glow.  The solution? A face scrub! This is step number one for a flawless complexion, as it boosts our circulation and gets rid of skin cells that clog pores and suffocate our skin. Apply a fine grain face scrub once or twice a week and massage it on using wide circular movements. During colder months, you can also apply brightening, fruit acid-based creams and serums that will exfoliate your skin and remove dead cells. Although if you have sensitive skin, better give this one a miss!

The aim? To boost your skin and improve its tone. Using the palms of your hands, smoothe on a hydrating serum, followed by a treatment designed to zap signs of fatigue - close pores, reduce dark circles, deal with blotches...  Useful tip: apply a concealer to camouflage the worst offenders. If your dark circles are pinkish, apply a yellow-beige concealer under your eyes. If they're bluey-violet, opt for an orange tone. If your dark circles look like troughs, plump them up with a concealer that contains light-reflecting particles. You could also apply a treatment containing chromatic (or colour-correcting) micro-capsules to even out your skin tone.