Today I am going to review some mascara that I used. I want to start off by saying that I don’t think mascara is an item for which you need to spend a ton of money on. Any inexpensive mascara can give you good results if you know how to apply it. I feel that application technique is more important when it comes to mascara than the brand or mascara itself. A lot of mascara from different brands work pretty much the same for me. I have long and curly eyelashes so I don’t curl them. But if you have straight lashes, I recommend using an eyelash curler. I like to use mascara that volumize lashes without clumping. I start from the base of lashes and take my time to wiggle it so it builds volume. I make sure to brush the tip of lashes so it looks longer.

I have extremely sensitive eyes that get watery with a little bit wind or dust. So if I use regular mascara, black water runs from my eyes. So obviously I mostly own waterproof mascara. Even if you don’t have watery eyes, I still recommend waterproof mascara since they prevent any smudge or mess.

Waterproof Mascara:

Maybelline Volum’ Express Turbo Boost Waterproof in Very Black: Probably the best mascara for my eyes and lashes. Most volumizing mascara have HUGE brush that I can’t get in the inner corner of my small eyes. This mascara gives me the volume I need, yet doesn’t smudge while I put it on.

CoverGirl LashBlast Waterproof in Black: It’s a great volumizing and lengthening mascara. The brush is really big- so if you have small eyes like me it will be a problem getting in the inner corners. It has a strong chemical smell. You can only smell it when you open the tube, you can’t smell it once it’s on your lash.

Something I noticed about this mascara: I used it for 3 months till it dried out. While I was using it, it actually lengthened my lashes. Not only when I was wearing them, but it lengthened the lashes in general. When I stopped wearing this mascara and wore another one, my lashes went back to its original length.

Maybelline Intense XL Volume +Length Waterproof in Very Black: Really good lengthening mascara. It doesn’t volumize much. Thus brush is really big.

L’oreal Voluminous Waterproof Mascara in Blackest Black: Really good volumizing mascara. The brush size is good for everyone.

Maybelline Define-A-Lash Lengthening +Defining Waterproof in Very Black: Great every-day wear mascara. Give natural finish – nothing extreme.

Lancome Hypnose Waterproof in Black: Gives a lot of volume, the brush size is also great. But I won’t purchase it again simply for the cost of it ($33 CDN).

Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Lash Extending Treatment Waterproof in Black: Great volumizing waterproof mascara and the brush size is great. But it dries out VERY quickly (before 3 months). The price is also too much ($28 CDN).

Maybelline Great Lash Waterproof in Very Black: It’s a good defining mascara, but the brush doesn’t work for me. I make a mess every time I try to use it.

Maybelline Great Lash Waterproof in Clear: I use it for my brows in the days I want a very natural look yet I want the brows to be defined.

MAC Zoom Lash in ZoomBlack: It volumizes really good. The brush is big- so I can;t get to the inner corners. It dries out in les sthan 3 months. I won’t purchase it again.

Regular Mascara:

Too Faced Lash Injection: I think this mascara is over rated. It is just like any other mascara and I wouldn’t pay the extra bucks next time I purchase another mascara.

Benefit Bad Gal Lash in Black: This mascara is also overrated in my opinion. It is nothing special and I won’t pay the extra bucks again.

Rimmel Extra Super Lash in Black: It makes the lashes look really long and defines. But that’s about it.

Don’t Buy these Mascara:

L’oreal Volume Shocking Waterproof Mascara in Black: It comes with a primer in one end and mascara in another end. It doesn’t give any volume, rather it clumps all the lashes together. The mascara doesn’t have a brush, it’s a comb. But the comb is so sharp – it pokes the eyes and hurts pretty badly. If you accidentally poke yourself hard, it can damage the eyes totally. I will avoid this mascara and will ask everyone to avoid it as well.

MAC Splashproof in BlackSplash: It is water resistant but not waterproof. It dries quickly. And most of all it stings my eyes. I will never buy it again.

ELF Regular and waterproof Mascara Duo in Black: Doesn’t work and stings my eyes. Will never purchase it again.

I have bought these, I will try them after my current ones dry out:

Maybelline Colossal Volum’ Express Waterproof in Glam Black

Lancome: Definicils in Black

NYX Doll Eye Waterproof in Extreme Black

Rimmel Glam Eyes in Black

Eye primers are GREAT investments when it comes to making up your eyes. Eye primers enhance the colour of your eyeshadow, prevent eyeshadow from creasing and make it last longer. I would never wear eyeshadow without an eye primer underneath. Because eye makeup usually takes the most time – it is not worth it without a primer underneath (in my humble opinion). There are many different types of eye primers such as invisible liquid primers, cream bases, MAC Paints, MAC Paintpots, MAC shadesticks, NYX Jumbo Pencils etcetera.

The first picture has all the eye primers and the second picture has MAC Electric Eel eyeshadow on left and MAC Shimmer Moss eyeshadow on right.

Eye primers from top to bottom:

1. Urban decay Primer Potion (can’t be seen since invisible)

2. Too faced shadow Insurance (can’t be seen since invisible)

3. MAC Paint Pot in Rubenesque

4. MAC Paint in Sublime Nature

5. MAC Shadestick in Beige-ing

6. NYX Jumbo Pencil in violet

7. Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner (don’t know the name)

8. Vincent Longo Eye Shimmer Souffle in Babelon

Invisible eye primers:

Urban Decay Primer Potion: UDPP is beige coloured but goes on invisible once you blend it in. UDPP enhances the colour of the eyeshadow – makes it a lot more vibrant. Eyelids tend to get oily throughout the day and eyeshadow creases on the folds of the eyes. UDPP prevents any creasing of eyeshadow. Normally a powder eyeshadow disappears by midday. UDPP also makes eyeshadow last throughout the day. It makes the value of the eyshadow (no matter what brand or type) a lot more than what it really is. It is $17 USD/ $22 CDN for 0.34 oz product.

One disadvantage is the packaging that UDPP comes in. The tiny bottle is genie inspired and very cute looking. The straight sponge tip applicator can only go straight in the tube. Where as the tube is curvy. So a LOT of the products get stuck in the curves of the bottle. And you would think you have used all up. But if you cut the bottle open in the middle you will find one 10 g jar full of product inside. But cutting the process includes using a knife. So the hassle and danger involved to get all the product out – to make your money worth ticks me off.

Too Faced Shadow Insurance: TFSI is also beige coloured and goes on invisible on skin. It also enhances eyeshadow colour, prevents creasing and makes eye makeup last longer. TFSI is $17 USD/ $24 CDN for 0.35 oz product.

TFSI has two advantages over UDPP. The first one is that I think it is better for oily lids. But a lot of people think both products are the same. So I might be totally wrong. Second advantage is that it comes in a squeeze tube. So you don’t have to cut it open – you can all the product out just by squeezing the tube. I absolute can’t live without this.

Coloured eye primers:

MAC Paint: It is a transfer-resistant creamy base than gives a powdery finish. It comes in a squeeze tube. Be careful when you use it for the first 10 times. A lot of the product comes out with just a little bit of squeeze. It lasts for a LONG time. It is totally worth my money. Some has a satin finish (almost matte -with very slight slimmer) and some are more shimmery. These come in mostly skin tones colours and I love this product too. It is thick and pigmented- covers the eye area well evening out the skin tone. I use Sublime Nature Paint (a satin finished paint – my skin tone) almost every day over Too Faced Shadow Insurance before putting on eye makeup.

One con is that it tends to dull the eyeshadow colour a little bit. But I will always love it because it evens out my skin tone.

MAC Paint Pot: It comes in a small jar. It comes in a lot of colours including skin tones colour. It comes in matte/cream, satin and frosty finishes. They are really good to enhance the colour the eyeshadow. They are so pretty I would all of them if I could afford it. However, I don’t find myself grabbing them as much when I do my eye makeup.

MAC Shadestick: The packaging is like a mechanical eye pencil. But it is too big to be used as an eye pencil. It is a cream base that comes in a stick. But I personally don’t like it because it doesn’t blend well. It goes on flaky on my eyes.

NYX Jumbo Pencil: These are great alternative to MAC Shadesticks. These are not mechanical – so you have to sharpen them. But the Jumbo Pencils are very creamy and very pigmented and easy to use. I like using them a lot.

Benefit Creaseless cream Shadow/Liner: It’s a cream base and doesn’t crease. I like it a lot.

Vincent Longo Eye Shimmer Souffle: It is a very creamy and shimmery base. I tend to use to under colourful eyeshadows.
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Anyone who ever wore make up, knows a little bit about foundation. They should also know that the cake-on look is so over. Modern day foundation has is light-weight and gives medium to full coverage. There are a few types of foundation. Creams foundation are best dry skin, powder foundations are best for oily skin and liquid foundation works on all types of skin. Tinted moisturizers are great for sheer coverage. Mineral foundations are good for sensitive skin and for sheer coverage. But everyone is different. To find your best foundation and your exact shade, you might need to try more than one or two foundations – which can get expensive. I think it is worth spending money on foundation since it is just that- foundation for the rest of makeup. Foundation needs to look flawless for eye makeup, blush and lip stick to look good. If face is even and blemish free, confidence comes from within.

Modern day women have to keep their makeup up with technology. If an event is video graphed, possibility is that the camera is High Definition (HD). HD cameras can pick up more than naked eyes. So even more blemishes can be seen – which is kind of scary. However, as technology is improving, makeup is also improving along with that. I have tried tons of foundations and will try to give brief reviews on a few of them.

High End Foundations:

Make Up For Ever’s HD Foundation is the holy grail of all foundations! It gives awesome coverage but looks amazingly natural on skin. It is very light weight for the coverage. The application is smooth and dries within a minute or two. It feels very light on the skin and the natural looking finish amazes me every time. It is $43 CDN but worth every penny. It has 25 shades – everyone should find their exact shade (or a better shade compared to other brands). It can be found at Sephora, Sears and some select Shoppers’ Drug Mart in Canada.

Vincent Longo Liquid Canvas Dew Finish Foundation. It has SPF 15 and called Radiant Glow foundation. It’s great for dry skin. It gives a glowy finish and has awesome coverage. I don’t recommend it for oily skin since oily skin doesn’t need more shine. The darker shades can be a bit orangey.

Mineralized Skinfinish Natural by MAC is a mineral powder, but it is pressed. I like that I don’t have to deal with the trouble of loose powder going all over the place. It gives a natural but dewy finish. It’s great for summer since it can be applied with a Kabuki brush within a minute. And none likes the feel of liquid or cream foundation on their face during summer (except for special occasions). However, it can be really shiny on oily skin and can look greasy in photographs.

Sheer Colour SPF 15 Tinted Moisturizer by Stila has SPF 15 and is great for a natural look. They also made an oil-free version of this recently – which is even a better news to us oily-skinned girls.

Studio Sculpt SPF 15 Foundation by MAC is a cream foundation is best for dry skin. It gives a dewy finish. It is a full coverage foundation and can look cakey if too much is applied. People with oily skin should avoid it.

Benefit makes some kind-a-gorgeous foundation. It is a cream foundation and is supposed to match every skin tone. Though I would not agree with the skin matching part. It also has a slogan on the package, “Fake it, don’t cake it”. But unfortunately I think it does look cakey.

Elizabeth Arden makes Flawless Finish Mousse Makeup. It has a good packaging, it comes out like a mousse, applies smoothly and feels good on the skin. And that’s how it is sold. However, it is $40 CDN and is a does nothing for the price. It gives a very sheer coverage. Within an hour, it starts looking really shiny and wears off very easily.

Budges-Friendly Foundation:

Revlon ColourStay Makeup Foundation is the best low-end foundation, period. They make two versions – combination/oily skin and normal/dry skin. There are quite a few shades to choose from. Some of the foundations have SPF 15, some have SPF 6 and some has none, I don’t understand the chemistry behind that. But it really lives up to its name. Once it goes on it won’t go on your dress and it lasts forever. The formula is very thick – designed to give full coverage. But it can be sheered out with a moisturizer.

My second budget-friendly favourite foundation is also by Revlon. Revlon Beyond Natural Skin Matching Makeup is great for the days when you want medium coverage. It has SPF 15 and looks natural.

Dream Matte Mousse Foundation by Maybelline is a great foundation for oily skin. It gives a matte finish.

ELF is the acronym for Eyes Lips Face. This website has a lot of products for $1 USD only (There are a few exceptions, i.e. Mineral and Studio line). But if you are ordering from Canada beware of the big shipping fee. ELF makes Shielding Hydro-Tint SPF 15 foundation. It has 4 shades. It is not the best, but it is quite nice for the price.

ELF also makes a mineral powder. It only has 4 shades and can look cakey after a few hours.

All Over Cover Stick by ELF is a cream foundation that comes in a stick and has 4 shades. It is very cakey – I only recommend it for theatrical makeup.