Favourite Mascaras of the Season

Hard truth: a mascara can make or break your eye look. You can take painstaking precautions when applying, blending, and lining your eyeshadow and liner, but one smudge, shed or clump of mascara and all your efforts are for naught. This season I have been favouring three mascaras that are now permanent staples in my routine. The formulas are awesome to be sure (opaque black and smudge/shed proof), but what really sets these mascaras apart are the brushes.

L’Oreal Voluminous Miss Manga Waterproof Mascara

If you want a thick black fringe, then this is the mascara for you. The key to reaping all the benefits of this mascara is you must wipe off the excess before applying. The brush comes out of the tube loaded with too much product and you can easily find yourself with a clumpy wet mass or a black dollop at the inner eye. Either pass the bristles over the side of the tube or along a tissue and then wiggle this super flexible wand for root to tip. As long as you do this you will have clump free lashes that you can build up for insane drama on the tops and bottoms for a wide eyed look. I do find the marketing juvenile and gimmicky so just ditch the cardboard packaging and use away.

Grade: A

L’Oreal Voluminous Butterfly Waterproof Mascara

True story: last year I spotted a picture of Jessica Chastain on the red carpet at an awards show and had to find out what mascara she was using. Her lashing looked that good. Turns out this baby was the reason why and I have always had a fresh tube in my kit since. The ingenious asymmetrical brush fans out lashes-especially at the outer corners-to give the illusion of a winged eye look without any liner! The shorter outer brushes are fantastic for the lower lashline. Full, defined and feminine lashes for one and all.

Grade: A

Make Up Forever Aqua Smoky Extravagant

The Aqua Smoky Extravagant mascara has an obscenely large brush that is made for precision, length and curl. I don’t get a lot of volume out this mascara but it does make my eyes look extra “lashy” by extending each lash out and up. The two-in-one, cone-shaped, synthetic fiber brush has a precision tip that separates lashes, and a rounded base to create the lift and curl. My one caution is that if you have smaller eyes, really tilt your head back or this mammoth brush will cause grief hitting your browbone.

Grade: A-