In my quest to find a replacement for my beloved Marcelle Xtension Plus Curl Mascara, I have gone through quite a few duds.
Anyone remember, Covergirl’s Peacock Flare Debacle of 2017? (Shudder)
It’s not that I am super picky, it’s just that I have needs. In fact, I have 3 very specific needs:
- It cannot make my lashes clumpy. I HATE clumpy lashes! I don’t know if I am dating myself here, but every time I think of clumpy lashes, I think of Tammy Faye Baker crying on TV about “the children”.
- I need volume. Like lot’s of it. I actually have decently long lashes. You wouldn’t be able to tell by looking at them because they are blond (read: transparent). What I don’t have is enough of them. It’s like my lashes are the Vin Diesel of eyes. Pretty to look at, but no hair.
- I want feathery, curled lashes. I literally want my lashes to create unexpected gusts of wind when I blink.
I know what you are thinking. Why don’t you just wear fake lashes? Well, to start with, I don’t know how to apply them and the few times I have attempted to wear them have ended up with me throwing them on the floor and then taking it out on my husband and children for no apparent reason. I’d like to keep the emotional trauma to a minimum in my house.
So, my quest continues and took me to Maybelline. They have a new line called Total Temptation, which includes a mascara. The packaging is reminiscent of their collaboration with Gigi Hadid because it’s that pinky nude that other brands, like KKW and Fenty, also came out with this year. The difference, is that Maybelline incorporated some black to separate it from the multitude. I actually like the packaging. I mean the color is quite unoriginal, but there is a flat side to the applicator which I find makes it really comfortable to open and close the tube. Sometimes it’s the little things that impress me.
However, the winner for me is the brush. It actually has bristles! I find so many mascaras now a days are using rubber bristles, which I DETEST. I feel like they contribute to the clump. Bristles typically are packed tighter and are able to thicken and lengthen. The wand is also tilted at the end where the brush is located, which I suppose is to make it easier to get into the inner corner of your eye, but I really don’t find necessary.
The brush is not curved, which immediately tells me this isn’t going to do much curling, but I found that it did a decent job in creating volume. When I did that little jiggle from the root and worked the brush up, it didn’t clump at the base like the Covergirl Peacock Flare, and did spread the products to the tips. However, what it does FANTASTICALLY is lengthen those suckers. I mean, they looked so long that the tips of my lashes touched just under my brow bone and left some color. Check out my Instagram Highlights under Mascara Game to see what I am talking about. The length is NO JOKE!
The mascara lasted all day and I didn’t see any flaking or smudging at all. To be honest, this would be the perfect mascara, except that I feel like this is more for lengthening than volumizing. If you have a healthy set of lashes, then run to the store and grab yourself a tube. However, if you are part of the 3 Lashes Club like me, then you might want to rethink it and continue the search. I feel like although it did provide some volume to my lashes, it wasn’t enough to offset how long they make them look and if you are short on them, then it does sort of accentuate the lack of lashes because they just look like spiky strings just hanging out on your eyeball.
Does that make sense?
Also, I am going to say that this was not a waterproof mascara, yet I still had to go in and use up 4 cotton pads of Micellar water to get everything off. It did not want release itself and was holding on to my lashes for dear life.
BONUS REVIEW: I also purchased the Total Temptation Brow Definer in Soft Brown. I’m more of a brow pomade kind of girl as my brows don’t just need to be filled, but practically colored in, and I found the formula to be creamy and long lasting. I still prefer the pomade because it helps to keep my brows in place and with this pencil, I have to use a brow gel, but it works great in a pinch when I just need to create an illusion of brows before I leave the house.
Let me know if you have any other mascaras you want me to try out. I’m always on the hunt.
Till next time, my friends!
Maritza
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The Beauty Swatcher 