Battle of the High End Mascaras!

Mascara is vital. It gives the eyes that little extra lift that I just cannot live without. I have gone through a good amount of mascaras in the past year, some full sized, but mostly travel sized. (I tend buy a lot of travel sized product at Sephora because I’m picky and don’t want to spend a fortune on something I don’t like. Plus, I am subscribed to a few beauty boxes so I got some of these through Ipsy, Sephora Play, etc.)

Below we have 9 mascaras from 9 different cosmetic brands. The pricing listed is for full sized tubes, some of these are available in travel sizes but not all of them. So, lets get started!

The 9 mascaras are: (listed in no particular order)

Taste, Lights Camera Lashes -$21

Too Faced, Better than Sex -$23

MakeUp Forever, Smoky Extravagant Mascara – $24

Mally, Volumizing Mascara -$20

Lorac, Cobra Mascara -$24*

Dior, Diorshow Mascara -$28.50

It Cosmetics, Hello Lashes -$24

theBalm, Mad Lad Lash Mascara  -$18

Benefit, Roller Lash  -$24

 

Taste, Lights Camera Lashes -$21

This is a great mascara! It is lightweight, thin formula that applies very evenly. Because of that, it is build-able without getting chunky. I do feel my lashed look lengthened after applying this. This is the type of mascara that it fantastic if you do false lashes. Since this is so lightweight it does weight down your eyelids, and makes natural lashes blend into falsies beautifully. I did see Tarte released a new magical line, the packaging on the magical Lights Camera Lashes is a gorgeous shimmery color  (pictued is the original purple packaging).

Too Faced, Better than Sex -$23

Apparently I am alone on this opinion, I don’t like this mascara. This seems to be everyones favorite so I’m not sure why I haven’t had luck with it! I purchased a full sized tube of this mascara a few years ago and the first time I used it, I did really like it. It has a thicker consistency so I felt my lashes gained volume. I used this for about a week and then the product inside started drying up and getting really clumpy. I wasn’t happy being that I sprung extra for this mascara, when at the time I was using mostly drugstore products. I didn’t repurchase this because of that first experience, but I did received this travel sized tube in a gift set last Christmas from a former co-worker (best gift ever!). I was actually excited to try this again, thinking maybe I got a bad batch with my first tube. Upon using this, I had THE SAME EXACT EXPERIENCE! I was even careful to seal this tube tightly every time I used it thinking maybe something I did dried this out. So yeah, I will not be repurchasing and I hate to say that be I looooove me some Too Faced products.

MakeUp Forever, Smoky Extravagant Mascara – $24

This mascara is actually really great. The texture is different, it is a dry consistency, but in good way!  The wand is fabulous, it’s heavy duty and really works well with the shape of my eye. I like the tapered end to get into the corners of the eyes and the bottom lash line. This reminds me of the Lights, Camera Lashes formula but on the drier side. This also works great to blend false lashes. I would say this is one of  my top 3 mascaras.

Mally, Volumizing Mascara -$20

This gives volume to the lashes for sure, but in a natural way. I liked this mascara, although I didn’t find myself repurchasing it. This might be the only Mally product Ive ever used. I didn’t hate it but I wasn’t head over heels in love with it. This is fantastic for a natural look, or a no-makeup makeup look!

Lorac, Cobra Mascara -$24*

I cannot find this online anywhere, it seems to be sold out on every website I check. I am assuming that this is $24 because all of the other Lorac brands are priced the same. I looooooove the shape of this wand! It is curved (like a Cobra) to fit the lash line perfectly. The product is great, my lashes looked fuller instantly! This wore well throughout the day, but did start to get really dry by the end of the night. I found myself washing my makeup off earlier than I normally would after work, but that isn’t a huge downfall for me. I would highly recommend this mascara, if you can find it.

Dior, Diorshow Mascara -$28.50

This would be the most amazing mascara ever, if it wasn’t scented! Don’t get me wrong, I like scented products, for example I’m obsessed with my Too Faced Sweet Peach Palette. But scented mascara kind of freaks me out, especially scented like this. This mascara smells like straight up perfume. It’s floral and weird and I’m just not a fan. This also comes in at the most expensive mascara on this list, which I would stand by if it didn’t stink!

It Cosmetics, Hello Lashes -$24

This is almost an in between of the Lights, Camera Lashes and the Roller Lash. It is thinner than Roller Lash. This is kind of build-able if applied lightly, but one stroke too many and your lashes start to clump together. I would like to mention, I hate this wand!!! I thought I would love it, and I do like the rounded part for the bottom lash line. My problem is when applying to the upper lashes, I would always stab myself in the eye and this is a hard plastic wand so it’s super painful! I did this so many times that I stopped using this mascara all together, ouch!

theBalm, Mad Lad Lash Mascara  -$18

This is an example of a hard plastic wand that doesn’t bother me. The shape is perfect for the material of the applicator. This is another curved wand, similar to the Cobra in that is has a defined arch. I liked this product a lot, it really clings to your lashes, and is super black. I felt like even after I washed my makeup off, I would still have mascara residue, so make sure your removing this completely before bed. This comes in as the lease expensive mascara on this list!

Benefit, Roller Lash  -$24

This is my new fav! I love how this mascara applies and wears throughout the day. This stays in place once its on your lashes and really keeps a curl! The consistency on this product is very gel like. I believe the consistency is what makes this so great because it keeps the lashes lifted upwards and looking beautiful. This mascara is another one of those hard to remove products.  If you don’t completely take this off, you will get clumps the next day when you go to apply your mascara. Just make sure your using a makeup remover with this one to fully clean your lashes off. (Sorry this photo doesn’t match the others. I somehow forgot to take a photo of this with the grey back drop, but this shows the packaging and wand).

 

The order in which I like these products, starting with my favorite:

Benefit, Roller Lash  -$24

Lorac, Cobra Mascara -$24*

MakeUp Forever, Smoky Extravagant Mascara – $24

theBalm, Mad Lad Lash Mascara  -$18

Dior, Diorshow Mascara -$28.50

Taste, Lights Camera Lashes -$21

Mally, Volumizing Mascara -$20

It Cosmetics, Hello Lashes -$24

Too Faced, Better than Sex -$23

I hope this was helpful if you are looking for a high end mascara! All of these brands sell a variety of mascaras, these just happen to be the ones I’ve tried most recently. These  products that worked for me, my eye shape and my lifestyle. Your opinion may differ, and that’s okay! What are your experiences with these products? Let me know in the comments!

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