What kind of mascara wand do you prefer?
What kind of mascara wand do you prefer? Share!
Medium in size with a tapered tip, thicker/stiffer bristles.
Thanks to reader Me for today’s question! Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.
What kind of mascara wand do you prefer? Share!
Medium in size with a tapered tip, thicker/stiffer bristles.
Thanks to reader Me for today’s question! Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.
We're here to help you make better beauty purchases that you'll enjoy and love! We recommend signing up to take advantage of personalized features like tracking products you own, viewing dupes that you already have, and more!
Here are some useful resources for you:
Curious how two shades compare to each other? Type in the shades below to get instant side-by-side swatches!
Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!
Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).
We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!
We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!
Usually a thicker one with rubber bristles. (Like Benefits They’re Real, best mascara!)
I like ones that are on the runnier side of dry. If the mascara starts out as a dry formula I feel like I only get to use it for a few weeks before it’s totally unusable. I don’t like runny mascaras because they are quite difficult to apply (spider lashes and mascara marks from eyelashes on the brow bone area). I prefer a bristled applicator because rubberized ones tend to hurt my eyes.
I definitely omitted the word “wand” in the original question when I read it, so my response is for mascara in general. Oops! 🙂
I don’t usually have much issue with any type of brush, but I usually prefer the ones with the fiber bristles rather than the plastic. Shape is not important to me 🙂
Thick chubby ones with stiff bristles and a tapered tip to ease application on the inner corner lashes!
I love the wand on the MAC In Extreme Dimension Lash Mascara. It has firm rubbery bristles and the tip is like a spiky weapon. I like that the bristles are short because I have a tendency to get mascara on my eyelids with the longer “natural” bristles.
I like the relatively long, thin wands (can taper or not) with traditional stiff bristles. Somehow, every time I try to use the silicone (?) ones like Benefit’s, I stab myself in the eye with it. Literally every time. 😛
I’ve come to realise I like the big huge wands, like Diorshow, MAC Opulash, Benefit BADgal (loving that mascara right now!!) – all other types just annoy me because I have to work that much harder to get enough product onto my lashes, then it starts to clump because it just takes so long. I don’t mind curled brushes, but you don’t see them very often now I find.
My favourite wands are the “teddy bear” wands like the ones for Full and Soft. Nylon bristles that are “fluffy” as opposed to defined rows, and medium length. Huge heads with long bristles are just asking for a poke in the eye!!
My least favourite are the rubber bristles. They clump mascara on me like it’s nobody’s business regardless of the brand.
Thick with a tapered end and those plastic non brush bristles.
years and years ago, I think it was Covergirl who made the most terrific (in my opinion anyway) mascara and wand. It might have been called “Every Last Lash” but I’m not sure. It had a very small brush – straight and small – and it also seemed to have extra “wipers” so not a ton of product came out. All of this meant you really could get into the inner and outer corners to get the lashes there without getting mascara all over your face, nose, etc. I actually kept one of the brushes and will often use it with other mascaras. I like a mascara brush with a shorter handle – I’m short-sighted and find those much easier to us up close to the mirror (same goes for makeup brushes too). And I prefer bristles over plastic, although I am really liking the new Clarins mascara I got – it’s their newest one – and it has a plastic brush (and a way too long handle!). But it still works really well.
I like the plastic spiky wands like in Benefit They’re Real and YSL Babydoll. My lashes are annoyingly short and thick so I like wands that help separate them. Plus this type works better for my lower lashes too
You know, I used to prefer natural hair bristles that tapered well at the tip. Basically as long as it built volume well, and could coat even tiny lashes, I loved it. Now, I find myself going for the more plastic bristles. Which is odd, since I really didn’t like the Lashblast wand when it first came out. My best friends nowadays are Benefit’s They’re Real, Maybelline The Rocket and Covergirl Clump Crusher. Still don’t like Lasblast, though!
My ideal is actually the benefit they’re real one they have in the travel size mascara (not otiginal). It’s medium sized, quite fat and with a round end to for getting the little lashes in the corners
Yes! A tapered tip!! I don’t understand these mascara wands with a blunt end. It’s very difficult to get the smaller lashes in the inner corners with a big blunt end.
I love those small spiky plastic wands.
I usually prefer medium-sized, rubber bristles. Although I can’t say I’ve found the perfect mascara yet!
the Lancome Hypnose Wand!! it’s perfection. If you closely look at the bristles, One side is long and one side is full and shorter. So you get length and fullness. A lancome rep told me you were supposed to roll the wand to apply but I get better results applying the length side first too both eyes and then the volume side (fuller bristles).
This with the combination with their waterproof formula is heaven. I also use the volume side for the bottom lashes.
I love L’Oreal’s Butterfly Voluminous wand. It seems to work the best for me. I love Too Faced Size Queen wand also. Lancome Hypnose Doll Lashes is another favorite of mine.
I do not like Benefit They’re Real. I’ve tried to like it and use it, but I just can’t get it to work for me.
I like rubber spiked brushes, small to medium size. For reference, my favorite mascara wand and formula is Chanel Inimitable Intense, which I find perfect for me. Some of the plastic brushes hurt my lid (particularly the CoverGirl ones) but this one is perfect. My biggest thing is I hate stuck-together and clumpy lashes, and the Chanel brush doesn’t give me any of that.
I also save the old wands and clean them for separating if I decide to try a new mascara or get a sample.
My two favorite wands are the fluffy, bushy type found in MAC Plush Lash (the only MAC mascara I like) and a silicone spike ball, like the one in the Givenchy tubes. I buy disposable silicone spike balls by the hundreds to keep in my kit and use for myself. The MAC brush separates every lash, and creates a natural, feathery effect, while the spike ball is able to grab and cover every lash perfectly with precision, even lower lashes. Dragging the ball across the tips of upper lashes makes them look longer than anything else ever will.
I do love the wand in Benefit’s They’re Real! but really, it’s best feature is the spike ball tip. If you watch their “how to” video, they instruct us to use that tip last by running it up the tips like I said I do with the silicone balls to create the longest tips. It really works!
I also like the brush end of Maybelline Mega Plush Volume Express, but I HATE the bendy-joint in the actual wand! What were they thinking? It totally takes away any control you might have with the wand, and you end up with a lighter application than you might like. I can go light-handed if that’s the effect I want, but thanks for implying we’re all raccoon prone with the gentle application joint. *sigh* it’s the only cosmetics applicator I feel like is condescending me. LoL
Big, natural bristles that can push my lashes upwards because mascara tends to weigh them down..
I’ve never given it any thought, but since L’Oréal Voluminous has been my go-to mascara since HS, not only for the formula, but the wand, I’d have to go with that. I guess you’d call it a fluffy-bristled wand? I also really like the wand on benefit BadGal, but loathe the formula, but that may be because I’ve only tried a few “sample” sizes, so they may have been off.
I like having best if both worlds by having a long thin wand to apply the first coat of mascara and a thick wand to apply a second coat. MAC’s Haute and Naughty has spoiled me.
i really like the lancome hypno eyes mascara wand jut if only it was with the blinc mascara formula
I like a relatively fat wand with like a gajillion bristles. Those are the only ones that seem to grab all the lashes, coat them, and separate them. So I generally don’t like the rubber brushes, since they tend to have very gappy bristles.
I also can’t stand when the bristles are too short–CoverGirl Lashblast literally gives me a migraine from trying to work those stubby little bristle into my lashes.
I’m actually not a fan of tapered wands, because the tip doesn’t get wiped off when you pull it out, so you have to go back and try to wipe the extra gunk off on the rim of the mascara–very messy, and I hate extra steps.