BlogHer - The Great Mascara Road Test comes to BlogHer! - Comments

just tried a new one

bri_daisy — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 00:55:15 -0500

Loreal Bare Naturale

I hacked it here and on my own blog.

http://www.blogher.com/true-test-mascara

Bri

Under the Arch

You can find me at www.stlouistravelphotos.blogspot.com

Oh and Great Lash? I'm

slynnro — Wed, 14 May 2008 23:53:10 -0500

Oh and Great Lash? I'm sorry, it's terrible. I can't even see that I have on mascara with it. And I hate the brush (I prefer the style of the Diorshow brush, my third favorite mascara). People LOVE that stuff. I do not get it at all. My mom has used it her entire life.

I just bought the Chanel

slynnro — Wed, 14 May 2008 23:50:17 -0500

I just bought the Chanel Initajd.... whatever. It's good stuff. I love Fresh Supernova as well.

Agreed on Lash Blast!

Jeanne B. — Wed, 14 May 2008 12:34:29 -0500

I've tried a lot of mascaras lately, and I really do like Lash Blast and Lash Exact from CoverGirl. Lately I've been using L'Oreal's Voluminous, which has been really good too. We'll see how I feel about it at the end of the test run. And since L'Oreal owns Lancome, L'Oreal mascara tends to be just as good as Lancome.

I did use Maybelline Great Lash for a while and I found that I didn't like it as much as the other mascaras I've used before.

For fancy mascaras, I really like Fresh SuperNova (available at Sephora for $25 -- aiyeeee, but it's reallyreally good) and Benefit BadGal Blue.

~ Jeanne

http://periodicstyle.blogspot.com

I adore Lancome Hypnosis (I

shoegal302 — Wed, 14 May 2008 10:40:00 -0500

I adore Lancome Hypnosis (I may not have spelled it correctly though). I found that the regular mascara stays on all day and doesn't smudge - the waterproof was a bit too difficult to get off. I have soft contacts so I'm always wary of new mascaras that flake and irritate my eyes -- this one is my new favorite.

Lash Blast!

lleopold — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:50:12 -0500

Cover Girl's last blast is amazing. Look past the massive brush - the stuff really works. I like the regular, non-waterproof version. It lasts for 12+ hours on me.

I also like Stila's Multi-Effect mascara - but it's $20 and I hate shelling that out for mascara.

- Laurie
www.newlyweddedwife.com

so excited about this!

Susan Wagner — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:00:09 -0500

Thanks for the heads-up, Susan! I can't wait to see this.

The Maybelline that I'm currently sporting has a fabulous hot pink tube, which I truly love. So very pretty.

The Working Closet | Friday Playdate

Great Lash is a classic

Susan Wagner — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:58:37 -0500

I wore Great Lash in high school, and like Susan, was surprised by how many people recommended it when I started asking for brands to test.

Perhaps I shall pick up a tube today ...

Anyone have a department store brand they love? And why do you love it more than the drugstore brands?

Inquiring minds want to know ...

The Working Closet | Friday Playdate

Great Lash too

Melissa Ford — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:49:29 -0500

On the few occasions where I wear make-up, it has always been Great Lash. It's the only make-up I buy from the drug store--the rest is Mac and Bobbi Brown. But for whatever reason, I've been set on Great Lash.

Venting about infertility since 2006
www.stirrup-queens.blogspot.com
and we're not talkin' cowgirls...

My Mama Taught Me To Use Great Lash

missbritt — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:18:03 -0500

My mother's eyes always look fabulous and the only thing she has EVER used is the pink and green Maybelline Great Lash.

I've never had any knock my socks off results from mascara. NONE of it stays on past noon.

Miss Britt

http://www.miss-britt.com

"Dignity is Overrated"

Define-A-Lash/love the green packaging and clean look

Susan Doherty — Tue, 13 May 2008 12:59:40 -0500

We recently filmed a "Drug Store Beauty" episode of Six Minute Style (in the can, but not yet edited) and profiled Maybelline's Define-A-Lash mascara, in the washable version though, not the "volume" version that you profile. I like it for precisely the reasons you list for the Volume: it provides very clean and simple coverage. Great for everyday use. The brush is the rubber-version you mention and I, too, found it a bit awkward at first. Now, I absolutely love it. It doesn't clump and 'goo-up' as so many other brushes often do. Interestingly, one of the other features I really like is the packaging. The neon-green container is so easy to find in my cluttered makeup drawer, especially in those early morning hours!

The other ‘drugstore’ mascara we feature is the Maybelline standby in the pink and green bottle: Great Lash. I included it because I found that many makeup artists use this mascara. I expected (used to do some acting) to find some super-pricey, exotic brand in their arsenal, but it was always Great Lash. Go figure. We'll be profiling department store makeup in an upcoming episode and I'm curious to see if there really is a difference between drugstore and department store versions.

Susan Doherty

Six Minute Style

www.sixminutestyle.com

The Great Mascara Road Test comes to BlogHer!

Susan Wagner — Tue, 13 May 2008 10:50:16 -0500

About a year ago, my very favorite mascara ever was discontinued. I quite literally drove around town buying up EVERY LAST AVAILABLE TUBE (all of which were on final clearance and selling for about a third of what I had been paying, which sort of made up for the whole DISCONTINUED part). But I also started to think about how, one day, I would look in the drawer and realize that I needed to find a new mascara.

That day has come, my friends.

Actually, the day came last fall, but I'm still testing new mascaras. Not so much because I can't find precisely what I'm looking for (which I can't, if you must know the truth) but because the looking is so much fun.

Because who DOESN'T love road-testing cosmetics? Oh right, lots of you. Good thing I've already done it for you! You're welcome!

Before we get to the mascaras, let me tell you a little about what I am looking for. I want a mascara that lasts all day, without smudging or flaking. When I say "all day" I mean from the time I put my makeup on (ususally about 5:15 in the morning) until I wash my face before bed (usually around 10:00 pm). I have oily skin and I wear contact lenses, both of which can contribute to raccoon eyes, particularly on a long day. For all of those reasons, I usually defauilt to waterproof mascara, but waterproof formulas can be drying and the last thing I want is for my lashes to start snapping in half. I don't think that would be very pretty at all.

I wear black mascara every day, but only on my top lashes, and never more than two coats.

Okay, let's get to the products!

Dior Diorshow BlackOut waterproof mascara, $24.00 at Sephora.

This was my first foray into high-end mascara (I usually buy drugstore brands), and I have to say I was disappointed. The color was lovely, the brush was fantastic, but the mascara was all over my face after a few hours. I suspect that the less-than-attentive staff at my local Sephora (all THREE OF THEM who tried to help me with this) did not sell me the waterproof version of this mascara; one staffer told us they were out of the waterproof BlackOut, a second was postitive that there wasn't a waterproof variation of the BlackOut (not true!), and a third insisted that the BlackOut came ONLY in waterproof (also not true!). I would try it again, in the WATERPROOF, because I have talked with so many women who love it, but for that much money, I was a little underwhelmed. Also not impressed with Sephora, but that's a whole other post.

Clinique High Impact Mascara, $14.00 at a Clinique counter near you.

I stumbled onto this one: my mother came to visit and brought me her gift-with-purchase goodies from Clinique, and I tossed the mascara in the drawer and forgot about it, and then later I thought, why not try it? I've never loved Clinique's mascaras; the brushes were always kind of small and wimpy and the mascara tended to clump on the first coat. No more, however; the High Impact comes with a full, fluffy brush that grabs every last lash, and really does make them look thick and full. The web site says to allow lashes to dry between coats, to prevent clumping, but I didn't really need more than one coat to get a fairly dramatic look. The formula is not waterproof, but does a pretty good job of lasting all day, as long as you don't do anything unusual like cry or mess with your contacts. So far, this is probably my favorite of everything I've tested.

L'Oreal Lash Out mascara with Teddy Bear brush, $7.99 at CVS.

This one was hands-down the initial winner, in large part because of the special "teddy bear brush," which is the Greatest Thing EVER. The fluffy design of the brush coats every lash and makes them look long and thick; the waterproof formula lasts all day, even during the worst of allergy season, although the not waterproof formula kind of wimps out at the end of the day. HOWEVER, no matter how careful I am about putting the lid back on the tube, the Lash Out only lasts about three weeks before it starts to dry out and clump, which I find disappointing. I want a little more longevity from my mascara, even if it is less than eight dollars at the drubstore.

Maybelline Define-A-Lash Volume Mascara, $5.99 at the Target here in Oklahoma City; your price may vary.

This is Maybelline's newest mascara, so new that I can't find it for sale on the Internet, but we're all looking for an excuse to go to Target, right? It is actually the LEAST volumizing of the mascaras I tested, although it does provide the most natural coverage, because instead of fluffing my lashes up in a frenzy of synthetic coating, it covers what's really there, for a very clean, simple look. The brush is rubber, which takes a little getting used to (I jabbed myself in the eye with it a couple of times, which may have more to do with the fact that it was FIVE FIFTEEN IN THE MORNING when I was putting the mascara on than with the brush itself, but still, it kind of hurt) but it's a nice merger of mascara brush and lash comb, and the application is even and smooth. This is probably my least favorite of the mascaras I have tested, but it wears well and looks nice (I just really like gigantic fluffy eyelashes -- it's a personal thing).

Want some more options?

Michelle Madhok (who is an Actual Beauty Expert) dishes on the best mascaras for specific lash types at Real Simple's beauty blog. For voumizing, she recommends Sephora's Lash Plumper ($16.00) which I've added to my list.

The girls at Splendora shelled out over $1,000.00 to test fifty department store mascaras; the winner was Chanel's Inimitable. Now THAT is devotion.

Finally, StyleDash's Cat Lincoln has a word of warning if you're hoping to grab some Max Factor mascara: good luck. It's not easily available, at least not in San Francisco. Interesting.

Now it's YOUR turn: what's your favorite mascara? I'm still testing, so I still need suggestions.

Susan Wagner writes about style at Fashion Find and The Working Closet, and about everything else -- including her ongoing quest for the New Best Mascara Ever -- at Friday Playdate.