Benefit BADgal Plum Mascara ($19.00) is Benefit’s latest release in colored mascara, which is a dark plum color.According to Benefit, “[i]f you wear brown mascara, this is your new brown!”
Tips and tricks: Not sure what kind-a BADgal you were born to be? We’ll help you decide. If you want to warm up & intensify your pretty peepers, BADgal plum is for you. Can’t live without your black mascara? Add pretty plum to the tips of your lashes for a sweet & sexy lash look.
I would actually agree with their sentiment that this is a good alternative for days when you want to opt for brown mascara. I, personally, have not yet had that day come (and I don’t know if it ever will… maybe in ten years?). However, the BADgal formula proves to give me decent volume and lash thickness without clumping my lashes too much until the third coat. I don’t think it’s noticeably plum, especially on a bare eye; I imagine you might see more plum-action when it’s paired with some gold-based shadows. No smudging or flaking after several hours of wear either!
Take a look at the wand… Continue reading →
Chanel Exceptionnel Mascara ($28.00) recently debuted as part of their winter launch (Smoky Eyes).
Let me first say that it is important to master the correct application technique. Chanel has set-up a special website devoted to their newest mascara, which I did find helpful. But to summarize, you apply by twirling the wand and then pulling upwards to the tips of your lashes. It’s not the wiggle method! So Chanel has done a pretty good job of creating buzz and hype and anticipation over this mascara because samples were made via Allure’s beauty program (I’m not part of it, so I don’t know anything about it, other than a ton of Allure readers got samples of this mascara!). Overall response has been raves–the point of contention being the price.
Let me tell you about the pros, the cons… Continue reading →
Lancome’s Oscillation Mascara ($34.00) was available for one-day for early purchase back in July. My curiousity was piqued enough for me to shell out the big bucks and pick one up from my local Lancome Boutique. I’ve been using it on and off since then, trying to decide whether I love it or just like it. Some days, I love it, and other days, it’s not a bad mascara, but it doesn’t give me the volume I want.
Here are the requirements in my holy grail mascara:
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Thickens lashes without clumping
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Lengthens lashes to false lashes’ length or BEYOND!
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Blackest of black color
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Doesn’t flake or smudge during the day
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Easy to use on both upper and lower lashes
How does Lancome’s Oscillation measure up? Continue reading →
Colored Big Fatty Mascara ($17.00) is Urban Decay’s colored version of their famous Big Fatty mascara. Colored mascara can be a great way to pop open peepers on lazy days or minimalist days (especially blues/purples). Wende Zomnir, Urban Decay’s Creative Director, says “A colored mascara is the perfect summer beauty uniform.” Big Fatty mascara adds decent volume and length to lashes–it’s probably not my favorite mascara formula (Plushlash, love ya!), but I did use it for many months in the past, so obviously it caught my fancy!
- Electric Blue Add a jolt to brown eyes, or light your blue eyes on fire. And against bronzed skin? Mesmerizing.
- Indigo This inky blue, a free-spirited alternative to black, brings a mischievous edge to eyes of any
shade.
- Purple Haze Lend a violet aura to eyes of every shade, adds richness to brown eyes, or intensifies blues and greens.
- Black Cherry Sexier than basic black, Black Cherry creates a bit of studied mystery to eyes of any color.
Big Buddha Body Brush ($36.00) is a silky soft brush that’s enormous! It’s one of those brushes that feels so soft to the touch that all you want to do is pet it. While MAC’s 179 is ridiculously soft, it is also ridiculously expensive. At $36, the Big Buddha is both the answer to my body brush needs, and the limits of my wallet. Plus, Good Karma brushes is a cruelty-free line where bristles are synthetic and 100% animal-friendly.
Want to know what I thought of the rest of Urban Decay’s Summer Launch? Continue reading →
MAC COSMETIC’S PLUSHLASH MASCARA ($11.00)
A mascara formulated to instantly plump up lashes for extreme voluptuous effect. Works fast. Builds volume smoothly and evenly from root to tip. Delivers a silky, flexible, full fan of lashes. Fluid formula lightly coats lashes one layer at a time without smearing, smudging or clumping. Goes on via an innovative, specially patented wand with a v-shaped groove that prunes the bristles on one side while leaving the other side full and lush. The short bristles coax the lashes upward to an extraordinarily sophisticated yet flirtatious curl, while the other side separates and combs the lashes root-to-tip creating a long, well-defined glamour lash. Volumizing, lengthening, curling, lifting. This mascara features everything you want, with all the top mascara no’s: no clumping, spiking, smudging or flaking.
- Applicator: Medium-sized length, but fairly thick and dense brush.
- Clumping: No real clumping even after three full coats – just a touch, but nothing unexpected after going for the gusto with coats.
- Curl: It actually provides a minimal, natural curl — the curl shown here is courtesy of a lash curler, but the mascara lends a touch of curl for lazy days.
- Ease: Compared to a lot of mascaras I’ve tested, not nearly as easy. It does take some getting used to, because one side of the brush is sort of flat, while the other one isn’t. After a few applications, you should be able to get the hang of it, though!
- Length: Lovely length; long, luscious lashes that looked glorious!
- Thickening: Thicker is definitely better, and this mascara gets a thumbs up for giving me gorgeous, thick lashes.
- Volume: Oh, can you believe it? Length, thickening, and volume! Yes, it’s true; Plushlash surely pumps up the density, giving me a great full set of lashes.
- Best: I really love Plushlash because I feel like it delivers on all the points it says it should. I get amazing length, ultra thick, voluminous lashes. It holds a curl, and it never flakes. What’s even better? It’s only $11! I know some drugstore mascaras retail for $8 or so. I also love that you can keep piling on the coats without worrying too much about clumping.
- Worst: None, honest. The brush might require some practice to get the right results you want, but I swear it isn’t so complicated that you won’t get it.
Check out one more shot of the LENGTHENING POWER! that is Plushlash! Continue reading →
CLINIQUE LONG PRETTY MASCARA ($14.00)
Long, lush, soft to the touch lashes.Take lashes to new lengths for the softest, prettiest look imaginable. An exclusive new formula extends lashes up to 30%-without flaking or clumping. For full, feathery, natural-looking lashes that go on forever.
- Applicator: Medium-sized brush with a rounded square shape to it.
- Clumping: Not too much clumping, but my lashes are a bit wonky, so sometimes they’d get crossed and stick.
- Curl: This isn’t a curling mascara, but it does hold a curl when you’ve used a lash curler.
- Ease: Quite easy to apply given the nature of the wand, which allows for more precision to get to harder to reach lashes on the inner area and the lower lashes.
- Length: Length that comes out is moderate; it’s not nearly as long as I’d like, but it gives you a decent au natural length.
- Thickening: I was definitely able to extract some thickening out of this mascara, especially on my outer lashes, but not so much on my inner lashes.
- Volume: The mascara gave me fairly decent volume–it looked like I had more lashes than I naturally do–and my lashes looked fuller and more voluminous.
- Best: I think my lashes looked fairly good in the end; although they could definitely be longer, I really liked the overall fullness. I also liked the price of this mascara, because it’s not so high that it makes it a hard purchase to make.
- Worst: If you’re looking for more length, try Clinique’s High Impact mascara instead, which we loved!
