Eye Opener

It started last season and became an obsession everywhere you look: big lashes. It looks interesting on magazine pages and evokes memories of old black and white photos of our mothers in the sixties.

It also contributes to the endless amounts of lash products one can get, not to mention the falsies. And if you looked at the latest Vogue, you also read the article about lash extensions. Yup, they actually do that. I’m not going to judge anyone for trying this. Or for buying the Talika cream that’s supposed to be like Rogain for lashes (according to my Bliss catalog there’s also a similar product to help grow out your eyebrows). I have my own crazy plethora of beauty habits that cost a pretty dime, so fertilizing one’s lashes are not that far out there.

My own lashes are dark, thick and of good length, though the upper ones stick out straight instead of curling upward. I’m also too neurotic to have any metallic objects anywhere near my eyes, which means eyelash curlers freak me out (especially heated ones). So, it’s all up to good mascara.

Now, some of us are on a constant quest for the perfect lengthening and curling mascara. Others have been loyal to theirs for years. Some will always go high end. Others swear by a $7 drugstore product, mostly because they feel the end result will always be a little clumpy, so why pay more?

I don’t have one definite answer, but I can tell you what works for me. In 20 years of wearing makeup I’ve tried everything. I’ve used Lancôme products for years and was mostly happy. They always have some new mascara out. In recent years I've ventured out- I had mascaras by Dior and Chanel, tried samples of Stila and a few others. They are all okay- you know the drill- you paint the lashes, they look longer, bolder and thicker to some extent, and if the product is decent there won’t be much clumping.

Then I got a sample of Clinique High Impact mascara, which sent me the next day to the counter and I’ve been buying it ever since. I use both the black and the black/brown. The latter is for a look that’s just a bit softer. This mascara actually does make a difference in curling my lashes just enough to make my eyes look really nice. And the product’s consistency is smoother (hence better on the clumping front) than those by Chanel and Dior. For now, I think it’s the perfect mascara.

The sample was a GWP from a local department store.