Sometimes one mascara isn't enough to get the faux-lash effect. Don't settle for second best, though. Double down on your formulas instead. Combine a lengthening lash-enhancer with a thickening formulation, or top a defining mascara with a curling one. The combinations are endless. For lashes even Snuffleupagus will envy, find a few top mascara pairings when you keep reading.
You've already figured out how to make your eyes look bigger, so now let's talk achieving longer, fuller lashes. Learn how to take your eyelash game to greater heights when you keep reading.
It's likely you apply mascara every day, but are you doing it the right way? Like many different makeup techniques, there are multiple ways to do them to achieve similar results. But there's one tried and true secret to full and far-reaching lashes: the wiggle. Learn how to pull off this mascara method and more after the jump.
Waterproof mascaras can be a girl's best friend or her worst enemy. Sure, they stay put all day and don't melt down your face (if you're lucky), but they can also leave you with dried-out, flaky lashes. But somehow Stila has given these major mascara faux pas the one-two punch. The brand's Stay All Day mascara ($22) clings to your lashes for hours while leaving them soft and supple. No crunchy, spidery eyes here.
Not only does the mascara stay budge-proof from morning to night, it brushes on without any clumps. The triangular brush also lifts and lengthens, leaving you with lashes that frame your eyes in a glamorous, flattering way. Sound too good to be true? There is a small downside; the wand traps a lot of the product, pulling more out of the tube than you need. This can lead to a messy application if you don't wipe the excess off before you swipe it on. But for long, thick lashes that last and last? We'll take the extra step.
Even though Per-fékt Lash Perfection Gel ($29) is not technically called a mascara, it still lengthens, curls, and darkens much like your favorite mascara. But this product goes beyond customary lash offerings. Ingredients like marine plant glycogen strengthen lashes for added growth, while hyaluronic microspheres and panthenol moisturize (your lashes require hydration just like hair, you know). But my favorite element is the short-bristle brush, which makes it easy to get right down to the lash lines. And thanks to the smudge-proof formulation, even the most avid eye-rubbers this allergy season are safe from flakes and spots. Here's to your new daily mascara . . . ahem, lash-enhancing product.
To create big, beautiful eyes for models on the catwalk, Estée Lauder Creative Makeup Director Tom Pecheux (who's a staple backstage at fashion week) often uses a lighter-toned mascara on the lower lashes, paired with a darker tone on the upper lashes. This lifting, brightening runway technique is exactly the impetus behind the brand's new Sumptuous Two-Tone Eye-Opening Mascara ($28).
With two different brushes and two contrasting colors, the effect you get is thick, richly pigmented lashes on the top, complemented by just a little something extra on the bottom. The rich black side (the larger of the wands) separates and lightly curls lashes without the flakes, while the lighter side (your choice of blue, brown, or plum) helps to open the eyes. The key is to make sure you're getting very close to the root on the upper lashes but just skimming the ends on the lower lashes. Otherwise, you've got yourself a baby-doll-like situation. But thanks to its smudge-free formula and multitasking benefits, this dynamic dual mascara is something you'll want to take with you practically everywhere this Summer.
YouTube star and beauty guru Michelle Phan always has a new tip or two for making the world of makeup easier. This week, Michelle tells us how to choose the right mascara wand for your lash look:
Hi everyone,
Not all mascaras are created equal, and mascara wands are just as important as the actual formula inside the tube. With so many different shapes and sizes to choose from these days, it's useful to know what each wand does. From big to small and combed to curved, this Beauty School post will go over a few of the key differences in wand anatomy to help you get the most out of your mascara.
Brush Shapes
Learn more about the different bristle types when you read more.
YouTube star and beauty guru Michelle Phan always has a new tip or two for making life easier. This week, Michelle tells us how we can take the mess out of mascara application:
Hi everyone,
After all of the mascara and eyelash talk last week, I thought it would be useful to revisit one of my favorite tips for better mascara application: using a business card.
The business card mascara trick is a classic. It's effective, easy to master, and will help to shield your eyelids from mascara smudges. All you need is a pencil, a pair of scissors, a business card (or index card), and your mascara! Here's what to do:
It's difficult to come by a mascara formulation that's neither so heavy and wet that it clumps, nor so dry that it flakes. But with Make-Up Designory's Black Cream Mascara ($14), you'll get intensely black, intensely thick lashes. What you won't get, however, is mascara fail: spider-y lashes with bits of product that end up on your cheeks and under the eyes by day's end. The squeezable tube, designed to keep mascara from going bad or drying out, also creates less waste and clumpiness. While you'll want to use a lighter hand (or a fan brush as the brand recommends) on the inner corners of the eyes to avoid overkill, for the rest of your lashes, you can layer it on as thick as you want. How often do you really get to do that, anyway?
We're happy to present this story from our friends at Allure:
Colored mascara has always had pretty tacky associations. But the electric blue lashes at Stella McCartney's Fall show in Paris were actually pretty gorgeous. "[Stella] said, 'I love when girls wear colored mascara'," explained makeup artist Pat McGrath backstage. The striking purple-cobalt shade they came up with was fun and youthful and made the models' eyes look bigger and brighter than ever. Still, it's colored mascara — a look that takes some serious guts to pull off off the runway. To help you get it right, here are a few tips from the pros:
