I’ve had a love-hate relationship with glasses for most of my life. When you’ve had to wear them from a little kid, they almost become your whole personality.

I was singled out as “the little girl with glasses” by adults who couldn’t remember my name. Kindly relatives would look at me and then loudly exclaim, “Oh, it’s so sad! Does she really need those things?”

The glasses were an object of curiosity when I started school: classmates wanted to invariably try them on or know why I wore them. And then there was the well-known “four eyes” moniker.

At eight years old, it was hard not to feel detective. It would be a very long time before films such as Encanto and its protagonist Mirabel introduced the very first bespectacled Disney heroine.

Later on, in my pre-teen years, experimenting with makeup sans specs was a challenge, which involved hours in front of the mirror blindly wielding a mascara wand with the dogged determination of Arya Stark in Game of Thrones.

Unsurprisingly, I got fitted for contact lenses around the time I hit puberty, and went from “dorky” to reasonably pretty, like in some clichéd teen rom-com.

I couldn’t help but associate this transformation with surrendering my specs to reveal who I “truly was” – à la She’s All That.

But given how uncomfortable (and just a general faff) contact lenses are, I’ve recently revisited my four-eyed existence investing in some snazzy frames and generally taking the likes of Ali Wong and other stylish glasses-wearers as inspiration.

When it comes to mastering makeup with glasses, I’ve picked up a few tips over the years. Firstly a good tubing mascara is a must. It contains polymers that wrap around each lash, adding length without it looking clumpy.

It also prevents smudging caused by condensation build-up behind the lenses, as well as those unsightly blink marks on the glass. Hourglass is my go-to brand for mascaras, and its Unlocked Instant Extensions [Tubing] Mascara (£30) pretty much does what it says on the tin.

Elsewhere, Kohl Kreatives has designed a range of makeup brushes for those in the specs squad and people with more severe visual impairments, with cuboid handles that don’t roll off surfaces and Braille inscriptions, so users know which brush is which.

Plus, many brands such as Morphe offer brushes with an angled tip, making them easy to use while wearing glasses, so you can actually see what you’re doing. But if all else fails, a cotton bud dipped in foundation is your best friend when it comes to correcting smudges and mistakes caused by blurred vision.

As for under-eye concealer, cream formulas that are easy to blend are another non-negotiable — given that any makeup blotches can be magnified by those lenses.

I’ve been scribbling on Delilah Farewell Cream Concealer (£26) in a handy pencil applicator, which hides dark shadows without settling in lines and creases. Perfect for glasses-wearers and insomniacs alike.