Mascara! Mascara! Mascara!

Remember this post.  Well since then I've added some new members to my mascara collection. I've said before mascara is a very important part to any make-up look. Many girls find that they're first piece of make-up (outside of lipgloss) is mascara. It completes a look and makes a difference between blah and wow. I know many ladies who prefer to wear mascara alone...they just want to play up their natural lashes.

So I felt that I hadn't done justice in the mascara department so I gathered all my mascaras up and decided to compare the different brands.

 

From right to left: 1. Maybelline's XXL Pro Curl (Waterproof); 2. Rimmel's Glam Eye's Lash Flirt; 3. Too Faced Lash Injection Pinpoint; 4. Maybelline's XXL Pro Volume (Waterproof); 5. Hard Candy Ginormous Lash Voluminizer. 

 

As you can see the wands are all quite different. Even between brands the wands are different. Take for instance the two Maybellines, #1 and #4. #1 is the Pro Curl mascara it's claim to fame is to make your lashes curl, as I've said before I have naturally curly lashes but every now and then I get stray lashes that aren't curled (weird I know.). I have noticed that this does seem to curl even those lashes. The wand is curve, which makes it easier to coat your whole eye in one movement. From inner corner to outer corner, however if you have small eyes that might cause issues. While #4 the Pro Volume formula, is slated to give you more volume and as you can see the wand is shorter for a full size. It's also sort of  elliptical shaped, skinny towards the tip and fatter towards the middle, then tapers back in towards the end. 

#2 is a different brand but it's also has a claim to give your lashes volume, but the wand is tall and skinny. Then you have #3 and #5 two mini sized wands, samples of their much larger counterpart. Both wands have the elliptical shapes. #3 claims to give you longer lashes and #4 another voluminous (a trend no?).

The differences don't stop at the shape of the wand but the actually bristles that make up the wand. #1 bristles are short and many, they follow the curve of the wand and are bunched together in little groups. #2 is the most different because it's made out of what seems to be plastic. The bristles are short and spaced out, the packaging calls it a "Volumflex" brush. #3 again has short bristles grouped in packed clumps. #4 has short bristles but their aren't as many as the others and are a bit spaced out. #5's bristles are short and compacted but are placed in a twirl around the brush instead of in straight lines like the others.

The trend in mascara now is to either give you outrageous length, volume, and/or curl. So you would think the formulas would be similar. The Maybelline mascaras are very much thick and creamy and both are two step processes. Rimmel's is thinner and more of a gel like formula. While Too Faced's is thick but not as creamy as Maybelline, and as you can see Hard Candy's is thick and a bit clumpy.

The prices vary a bit on these: Maybelline's brand is usually around $8-$9; Rimmel is around that price point as well. Too Faced is the most expensive at $21 and Hard Candy is $5-$7.

My Thoughts:
Maybelline's thick and creamy formula does go on pretty smoothly, I think the two step processes can be a bit much...causing you to put on a lot of product. However, I have often times skipped step one and gotten the same results. I rarely have to deal with the mascara clumping and they both are waterproof/smudge proof.

The Rimmel's thinner formula took some time to get use too and I find that I have to put on 2-3 coats so that my lashes look like that have something on them. The good thing about that is that even with building the product up my lashes aren't weighed down and I don't have clumps to deal with.

Too Faced is thick and one coat is good enough. I have to make sure to swipe the wand down as product does tend to buildup on it. The color is intense though.

Hard Candy...well it coats your lashes...

I do find that I reach for the Maybelline more often than not. However the Rimmel is starting to get in the rotation as well. I wear the Too Faced when ever I want really dramatic lashes but it's not an everyday tool for me. I never wear the Hard Candy mascara. The picture above shows you how clumpy it is and it's the same when you put it on your lashes. Even if you swipe it and then put one coat on it, it's just not worth the money...you can spend it on a better one. 

1. Maybelline's XXL Pro Curl (Waterproof):8/10
2. Rimmel's Glam Eye's Lash Flirt: 6/10
3. Too Faced Lash Injection Pinpoint: 5/10
4. Maybelline's XXL Pro Volume (Waterproof): 8/10
5. Hard Candy Ginormous Lash Voluminizer: 1/10