Reader Question - Mascara Brushes

This is why I love my readers. I was feeling a bit disappointed that I was low on Cosmetic Tuesday ideas. After all, it is probably my favorite day of the week. However, just when I was getting ready to retire my mind swirling with no ideas, I get this lovely comment:

Hi Michelle! I love Cosmetic Tuesdays. I was wondering if you have tried all of the crazy mascara 

brushes (fat, thin, long, disco ball…) and what you thought of all of them.

Thank you so much for this idea! No only is this a great topic, but it is also a good source for inspiration on doing some posts about other make-up essentials, such as brushes!

So, let’s see, I think I should first start with some essential mascara tips and work my way to wands and products.

Mascara Tips and Ideas

1.     Mascara is probably the most frustrating of make-up topics. I say this mainly because mascara should be replaces more often than other products. This bugs me since I really love to buy my mascara in different colors. I think right now I have blue, black, brown, and purple mascara. In any case, experts recommend disposing of mascara after two or three months of use. They tell you to do this for two reasons. First, it dries out, and second, if you pick up bacteria in your make-up, which is inevitable, you can hurt your eyes. I tend to ignore that rule and keep mine longer, but I would be careful with following my poor example.

1. One tip to extending the life of your mascara is by not pumping the wand. My make-up artist sister saw me doing this one day and just lost it. Basically, by pumping the wand all you are doing is letting air in and that will end your mascara’s life far quicker than just dipping it one more time.

1. 2.     A second tip is that before opening your mascara, lightly tap the closed tube against your hand to get the extra product off of the brush. This will make for a smoother application. You do not want to get clumpy lashes, or as we like to call it in my family, spider lashes.

1. 3.     Look for the signs of an aged mascara. If you are going to keep your mascara past two months, make sure your mascara is not drying out too much. A good mascara will have some shine and will apply smoothly. If it is providing some friction, clumping your lashes or looks cakey on the brush, you really need to get rid of that product immediately. It doesn’t look good and it probably means you are in danger of giving yourself an eye infection or losing control of the wand only to end up with mascara on your lid or nose. I don’t know about you, but I hate when that happens, it really ruins all of the work you just did.

1. 4.     Don’t believe the hype. Just like other make-up or hair products, mascara comes with a line of advertisements. Some products claim to add volume, others separate your lashes, and some claim they will make them longer. This is all malarkey. The mascara formula itself will generally never do these things. It is really how you apply it, the wand you use and the natural volume and length of your lashes. I will give my thickening lash remedy below and the volume and defining lash ideas will follow in my wand verbiage.

Thicker lashes

To get thicker lashes, you will want to use a primer. This can be a true primer like what Studio Gear makes or Revlon, or even clear mascara. I think the primers are probably better suited though. If you apply your primer first and let it dry, it will instantly add a coat to your lashes to thicken them. Since lashes tend to thin out as they get further away from your eye, add a second coat to the tips. Then, add your mascara after. This should thicken your lashes in a natural way without adding falsies.

$14 at studiogearcosmetics.com

$3.99 at drugstore.com

Mascara Wands

1.     Thick Wands – This is the wand type I use. I like my mascara wands thick and with plentiful bristles. This is because I have really long and thick lashes. The more bristles you have, the better the wand will separate your lashes giving you less clumping, more definition, and probably more volume. The thicker the wand, the better the coverage you will get on length as well. So, if you have thicker and longer lashes, Benefit’s Bad Gal is a really great product. I wish I would provide you with a second option for cheaper, but unfortunately I have not found a competing product that works nearly as well as this one. Bad Gal can be purchased on the Benefit website or at Ulta.

$19.00 full size at Ulta or Sephora, or sample for $9 at Sephora

2.

            Skinny wands – Skinny wands tend to work better for shorter lashes. If you want definition, you will want to look for more bristles on the wand, but the skinnier wand should allow you more control. My favorite mascaras that would fit this type of wand would be Maybelline’s Great Lash mascara and Studio Gear’s mascaras.

The Maybelline mascara is the most popular one you are used to hearing about. It comes in the pink tube with a pink or green top. The best part is that it comes in blue in addition to the standard black and brown. The blue is also a really gorgeous color too, not your standard navy.

$5.49 at Walgreens

Studio Gear is probably a product you haven’t heard of before unless you are familiar with the prestige lines at Ulta. This is actually the company my sister worked for when she was a make-up artist. They have some pretty good products, but they are exclusive to Ulta. You can buy most of their products on the website, but if you have an Ulta nearby, I would recommend going in instead to make sure you get exposure to everything they have to offer. 

$14.50 at Ulta or Studio Gear's website

Disco Ball Wand

Now the disco ball wand is just crazy. I put a picture of one that Loreal makes below. Honestly, I found no good use for this wand. I can’t remember where I tried this crazy thing, but I didn’t like it. The claim is that it thickens lashes. I can see that because the entire product is concentrated one crazy little ball. However, I think you can get the same result from a regular brush and some primer underneath. My take is that you should just leave it on the shelf and walk away quickly. If you did buy it already, I think you can still use it for thickening the tips of your lashes and perhaps applying it to your bottom lashes. Oh, that reminds me! I like to apply mascara to my bottom lashes since they are a bit longer. My sister is not a fan, explaining that unless you are skilled at applying mascara, you should avoid it. This really depends on how you feel about the situation; I don’t believe this is fuel for an age old feud on the use of mascara for your bottom lashes. However, if you are nervous about it, this wand might actually be a good thing to use to learn how to apply it. The ball is short and offers a great level of control. Since it claims to come on thicker, you will probably want to give that tube a really good whack against your hand to remove extra product though.

Curved Wands

I don’t really see a great benefit in the curved wand to be completely frank. If anything, I think it really only ruins the distribution of the mascara to your lashes. Sure, your lashes curve along your eye, but think about how you store your mascara. Generally, it is placed downward into a tube. This just means that the mascara will not distribute evenly over the wand. Chances are you will end up with more mascara on the bottom or middle of the brush. This may not be completely noticeable, but I don’t see a problem with our traditional straight wands to create a great need for the curve.

Length of the Wand

I actually don’t see much benefit or loss in how long your mascara brush is. Generally, you are going to need to apply more mascara to your inner lashes than your outter, and most wands are shorter than your lashes span. So, the shorter length really only offers you a little more control, if anything. I really think the length of the bristles, their material and the number of bristles matter. I would say avoid plastic bristles like what will come in a Max Factor mascara and opt for something with a little flexibility. The average wand soaks in some of the product where as a plastic bristle will just plop clumps on your lashes making more work for you. Also, remember that the price of mascara really means nothing.  I had a Smashbox mascara I hated just as much as a Max Factor mascara. I have always loved the Maybelline Great Lash mascaras just as much as I love my Bad Gal. It just really depends on the user and diagnosing your issue with application. If you have specific questions about a particular mascara, please let me know. Tell me what the problem is you are seeing, or what it is you would like out of your mascara and I can possibly help individually.

Given that, I will leave you with my steps to applying mascara in succession!

1. I first apply my primer to both my top and bottom lashes, adding a second coat to my inner lashes and the tips. I actually use my primer for my eyebrows too…I thought I should mention it.
2. Once dry, I add my mascara. For the first eye I start from the inside and work my way out. I generally start by doing quick short applications and do the inside first since the most product will be on the wand when you start and those are the thinnest lashes. I then elongate my application as I move toward the outter part of my eye. I add a little extra to the tips and then in a back and forth motion work the wand through my lower lashes.
3. For the second eye I usually start at the outside of my eye. I do this because if I am going to have to dip the wand again, I want more product on the inner lashes just like I did with the first eye.
4. Once done, I inspect for clumps and use a little eyelash comb to remove any that may be there.
5. Voila! You have perfectly thick and long looking lashes.

Here are a couple of pictures of what my mascara looks like on.