Beauty Obsessed

Soo…I’m totally a sheep (Eh? Does that sound weird to you?  What’s the singular of sheep? Strange…).  I doggedly follow various blogs online, reading all about the newest and best cosmetics out there, and then – I go get ‘em!  More often than not I base my purchases according to the reviews I read, and discard those products which sound subpar.  I trust my fellow beauty bloggers to steer me in the right direction, and usually they’re right on the money.  At least, with the items they rate well.  It’s rare that I’ll still forge ahead and grab something that meets a generally unfavorable consensus, because I just don’t want to waste my money and chance hating it too.  This behavior, while reasonable, makes me a sheep.  Sometimes I’m OK with that, other times I feel like I need to be more of a pioneer…but I think I’d need to be making a lot more money for that

Anyway, to the point!  I saw online several reviews for Benefit’s new mascara, They’re Real!, and despite the eagerness which people seemed to be buying this product, it was getting somewhat mediocre reviews.  It sounded O.K., and looked decent, but certainly nothing to write home about.  Those products, I usually skip.  But in the excitement of the moment, during the Sephora opening earlier this month, I scooped it up on a whim.

Now, of course, the day I bought it I then went camping for a week +, so I did not get a chance to test this baby out.  As soon as I returned however, it was game on.  And in the end, I wasn’t disappointed!

This mascara is up there with some of my faves.  After going through a slew of mascaras that just didn’t do it for me in any capacity, it seems my luck has turned lately – first with G.A.’s ‘Eyes to Kill’ and now with Benefit’s new offering.  Jet-black and long-wearing, ‘They’re Real!’ claims to lengthen, curl, volumize, lift, AND separate, and offers a specially designed brush to reveal “lashes you never knew you had!”.  So, basically it does it all.  Now, let’s get ‘real’ for a minute.  While I love this mascara, it’s no superhero.  All mascaras lengthen and volumize to some degree – it’s pretty much impossible to coat your lashes in product and miss the boat there.  So, point by point, let me rate the actual abilities of this product:

Lengthening: I’d give it an 8/10.  It does make my shorter lashes look noticeably longer, but by no means do I look like I have fake eyelashes on (which I think is the claim they’re subtly trying to convey with the title ‘They’re Real!’).

Volumizing: A disclaimer – when I think ‘volume’ in reference to lashes, I think actual density of lashes, as in, you look like you have a million lush lash hairs and create a breeze when you bat an eye.  I do not think that volume means the thickness of each lash hair, because to me that seems like a silly goal to have – why would you want to look like each hair is really fat?  I know the ‘spider’ mascara look is back this season, but it’s never been my preference and I can’t imagine that that is what the companies mean by ‘volume.’  But what do I know?
Anyway, in this regard, I can only give ‘They’re Real!’ a 6/10.  I already have somewhat voluminous lashes so take that info as you will, but I could definitely use more thickness, and this doesn’t really do the trick. I always find it sort of contradictory for a mascara to claim that it volumizes AND separates – personally I think it can only do one or the other.  Which leads me to…

Separation:  Here is where this mascara takes top marks – 9/10.  While it may not pump up the lashes as it claims, it does separate well and makes the lashes really stand out, which in turn makes my eyes the focus of attention very easily.  As is typical for rubberized brushes like this one, because the bristles are stiff, they can glide through the lashes and help minimize clumping.  Normally, I dislike these kinds of brushes; even though they do the job well, I always feel like I’m jabbing my lash lines and it feels uncomfortable.  For whatever reason, this brush doesn’t do that – and it’s just as stiff as any other.  Whatever, I’m OK with it.

Curling: Sorry dudes, I can never accurately rate this feature because – like my hair – my lashes are already majorly curly so I’d never know if this was doing the job or not.  No comment.

Lifting: Isn’t this the same as curling?  I guess this lifting claim is supposed to be due to the formulation, which holds well throughout the day and keeps lashes in check.  Again, I can’t really rate this as my lashes are always perky, but I can say the formula is excellent in terms of wear – no smudging or flaking the entire day.  It takes a bit more work to get off in the evenings (as compared to Clinique’s, for example), but nothing that your normal makeup remover can’t take off.

So, as you can see from my (incomplete) review, this mascara has mostly strong features, and is a good option if you’re looking to lengthen and separate lashes.  You probably could find something comparable at a drugstore price – this isn’t cheap at $29CDN – but then again, I didn’t have much luck going that route so it’s hard to say.  I hadn’t read how to apply the product, but after looking at the description on Benefit’s website, I’m intrigued by the suggestion to “fan the corner lashes outward with the custom-domed tip” to achieve a “big, doe-eyed look.”  Something I’ll have to try!

Which mascaras have you tried and loved/hated?  What features are you most concerned with when choosing a mascara?  Are you willing to pay more if the product does what it claims?

Hump Day everyone!  I hope you’re all making it through OK

Thanks for reading!