I haven't bought a tube of mascara in probably over a year. And yet I wear mascara nearly every day. How is this possible, you ask? Free mini mascaras seem to keep throwing themselves at me everywhere I turn -- namely, Ulta and Sephora.
I have gotten two minis of Benefit's cult-fave They're Real! Mascara, which I think is my favorite. Everyone raves about this one, and I get it. It lengthens without clumping -- what more can you want? It also works pretty well if you're one of those gals who likes to apply multiple coats. In terms of volume, I would say it's not the best choice. It gives you so much length, though, it makes you forget about volume. Interesting story -- I recently had my makeup done for a wedding by a woman who has been in the biz for years, and she absolutely hates They're Real! because she said it clumps. She also said they always use disposable wands and not the wands that come with the mascara for hygienic reasons, so the wand might be the key to They're Real!'s success (although it looks like any ordinary wand to me!).
Another luxe fave is the mini I recently got as a free gift with my Tarte BB cream purchase -- their Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara. I know their Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara gets a lot of love, but I've never tried that one so I can only speak to Gifted which is part of their Amazonian Clay line. Like They're Real!, this mascara gives amazing length with a single coat. It can be a little quick to clump when applying multiple coats, but not too bad overall. I also feel like it gives much more volume than They're Real!, which is a big plus for me. It can be a little stubborn to remove with just my face wash, but a few swipes with eye makeup remover usually does the trick.
My third favorite mini that I have in my makeup drawer right now is the Noir Couture 4 in 1 Mascara by Givenchy. I never buy "designer" brand makeup, so this is definitely not something I would've purchased on my own, but I was pleasantly surprised. I like the three-bulb wand style for reaching all my lashes, and it also doesn't clump and gives good length and volume.
My least favorite mini that is currently in my rotation is the Make Up Forever Smoky Extravagant Mascara. It's bleh. Doesn't do much in terms of length or volume, but is an OK basic mascara. The cone-shaped brush also doesn't do anything for me. Pass.
And finally, I have to mention a drugstore mascara that I love and have actually repurchased in the past: Physicians Formula Organic Wear Jumbo Lash Mascara. This is, honestly, the one I'm most likely to buy the full-size off once my minis run out. It's less than $10, natural, and does what most of the above mascaras do. I first bought this a few years ago after asking a coworker what she used on her fabulous lashes, and I just noticed they have a couple new formulas in the Organic Wear line that must've come out in the past few years. If the above mascaras are a bit on the pricey side for you, I would definitely recommend starting with this one and seeing how you like it.
Does anyone else have a problem with knowing when to throw mascara out? You can't easily see what's left in the tube, and unless there's clearly no product on the wand, or it's clumping like crazy when it didn't use to clump, how do you know? I've never had a mascara do any of the above, so usually I just toss it after I can't remember how long I've been using it. I know different makeup products have different shelf-lives, but I usually don't follow these as I like to use things up to the last drop (or, as my husband would say, I have a compulsion to use things up to the last drop :).
I also wanted to mention that I gave my blog a little facelift since there were some technical issues with the layout I was previously using. I don't love it, but I'm considering upgrading to a nicer blog as soon as I have the time and resources.
