Makeup Tips: Mascara Trials, Errors and Successes

I must admit that I never thought I would ever be dispensing any advice on makeup! I often get asked by my friends about all things related to having kids – pregnancy, potty-training, discipline, diet… And of course I’m sought out often for style tips. But makeup?

Up until just a couple of months ago (just after the IN STYLE Palo Alto fashion show when my mother “suggested” that I learn to apply makeup the way the professionals did it that day – see my previous post) my entire makeup regimen consisted of face powder, lip gloss and sometimes lip liner. That was the extent of my knowledge on makeup.

Sure I experimented with a little too much black eyeliner (as was the trend back then) in my early 20’s. But not only was it soooooo NOT a good look for me, the older I got, the lazier I got when it came to playing with makeup. And of course having kids was the end of all makeup experimentation altogether… until my mother reminded me that I’m not improving with age! ;-)

Spurred by my mother’s “encouragement”, I rediscovered the fun that is Sephora! They really are fabulous! Pretty much everything is available for you to try and play with. They have a fantastic customer service policy (I’ll never buy makeup from Saks, Neiman’s or Macy’s again unless it’s absolutely not available at either Nordstrom or Sephora) and the best part is, they actually train their sales associates! Every time I walk into a Sephora, someone super friendly and super knowledgeable offers their assistance. And if I ask a question that stumps them, they’re always happy to find someone else for me who might have a more educated answer. For whatever reason, I decided that I wanted to start with my eyes. Doing up my eyes has always been a weakness of mine. I simply don’t know how. Plus I have a pair of small, very Asian eyes that even most makeup artists have a tough time with. I have absolutely no eyelashes… well, they’re there, kind of… they’re just super short and super sparse that you can’t see them at all without a magnifying glass. So I decided that a great entry point for my new found makeup discovery phase would be… drum roll please… mascara!

I had caught a portion of a segment on the TODAY Show on mascaras a while back where they were recommending a Japanese mascara called Fiberwig by Imju. It has these tiny little fibers mixed into the mascara (I’ve also heard them referred to or called “tubes”) that will actually adhere to your lashes and extend them. Supposedly, the more you apply, the longer your lashes look. Well I loved it! It really did make my lashes look longer and even did a decent job holding a curl. Although I discovered that the more I applied, the clumpier my lashes got and that it really did take quite a bit of skill and practice to actually, gently make the lashes get longer and longer. The best part was, absolutely no smudging – not even on my ridiculously oily eyelids and the area just under my bottom eyelashes. I remembered from my previous and very short-lived makeup experimentation phase in my early 20s that I was never able to find a mascara that did not smudge under my bottom eyelashes after a couple of hours and always ended the evening looking like a raccoon. Thrilled with my new smudge-proof mascara discovery, I applied it every chance I got (i.e. whenever I had a few extra minutes without my kids climbing all over me before we had to leave the house)… until one day, I found myself having one of those heart-felt, tear jerker conversations with a good friend. Suddenly, not only did I find myself with severe raccoon eyes, but I also had clumps of black fibers running down my face! Not a good thing! As much as I loved this mascara, I learned that I needed to find something waterproof – and Fiberwig is unfortunately so very, very not waterproof.

As luck would have it, I managed to catch another makeup segment on the TODAY Show. This time, they recommended the DiorShow mascara… which is available in waterproof! Back to Sephora I went, marched myself straight to their Dior section and bought myself the highly rated DiorShow mascara in the waterproof version. I LOVED it! It really did volumize even my skimpy lashes and it did a decent job lengthening as well. My favorite part was how it curled and kept the curl up all day and all night. It was amazing how it opened up my tiny, very Asian looking eyes. Then, a couple of hours later, the smudging began. I was walking around with raccoon eyes again!

Not to be discouraged, I marched myself back to Sephora again and again in search of the ultimate mascara that would curl, volumize and lengthen even the skimpiest of lashes, my lashes AND would not smudge on even the oiliest of skin types, my skin. It’s a tall order, I know, but I was determined to find the ultimate mascara! I consulted with a Sephora makeup professional each time, and each time, followed their recommendations and found myself trying: Chanel’s Inimitable mascara (great at separating lashes, not bad at lengthening and being smudge resistant but just didn’t volumize and curl quite as well as DiorShow Waterproof and is not waterproof), BADgal Lash Mascara by Benefit (wax based, not waterproof but definitely tear resistant, which is all I really need, but not as great at curling and not completely smudge proof), DiorShow Iconic Waterproof mascara (still smudges, although not quite as much, but doesn’t curl or volumize nearly as well as the original DiorShow Waterproof), Lash DNA by Smashbox which is not available in waterproof but is supposed to be smudge proof so I tried it anyway because I was fascinated with the spiral brush (not too bad at being smudge resistant but couldn’t really curl at all and of course, is not waterproof). Finally, MAKE UP FOR EVER came out with a waterproof version of their Smoky Lash mascara which had already been highly recommended to me by a Sephora makeup professional but I didn’t try it because it wasn’t waterproof at the time. I like it. It does a decent job volumizing and lengthening and is totally smudge proof and waterproof. In fact, it’s so waterproof that you definitely need to get yourself a good eye makeup remover to use with it. (I recommend Lancome’s Bi-Facil or, for those of you with kids and no time like me and need a quick, all-in-one solution, I highly recommend Clean & Clear’s new oil free “Makeup Dissolving Foaming Cleanser”. Not quite as quick and effective as Bi-Facil but not bad, especially for the $4.99ish price and easy, one-step all inclusive process.) However, it still did not curl as well as the DiorShow Waterproof and could not hold the curl for very long either. So what’s a girl to do? Exhausted with my mascara experimentation, I’m now using MAKE UP FOR EVER’s Smoky Lash Waterproof mascara on my lower lashes as it volumizes and is completely smudge proof and waterproof, and the original DiorShow Waterproof mascara on my top lashes as it really is second to none when it comes to the combination of being able to curl, volumize, lengthen and last for hours and hours and hours. On very special occasions, when I actually have extra time to get ready, I’ll also use Imju’s Fiberwig mascara on top of both the DiorShow Waterproof on my top lashes and the Smoky Lash Waterproof on my bottom lashes for extra length.

I can’t handle anymore mascara experimentation! I’m sure one day somebody will invent the truly perfect and ultimate mascara for us all. But for now at least, I am very happy to have finally found the perfect combination of mascaras for me.