Mascara is the one product many women can’t live without. It adds definition and length to your lashes, making your eyes look bigger and more open. Being a product most of us use everyday, we thought it would be helpful to round up 10 genius mascara hacks every girl should know, plus a list of our favorite mascaras worth investing in. Take a look at our favourite tips and products to ensure you’re getting the most out of your favourite piece of makeup!
The Best Mascaras to Invest In
1. For Lengthening: Glossier Lash Slick
This mascara visibly lifts and lengthens to give your lashes the look of baby extensions. Its weightless, flexible formula enhances the look of your natural lashes, coating each individual hair from root to tip to create maximum definition. It never clumps and is tear-proof, so perfect for a wedding or an emotional therapy sesh.
2. For Volumizing: L’Oreal Voluminous Lash Paradise Mascara
This volumizing formula delivers full lashes that are feathery soft. It won’t flake, smudge or clump – it simply gives you the long, full lashes you’ve been looking for. With a soft wavy bristle brush and smooth glide formula, the voluminous lashes you love are right around the corner.
3. For Fullness: Maybelline the Falsies Lash Lift Mascara
This mascara will give you an instant lash lift and fullness. It’s infused with fibres that deliver dramatic volume and length for a false lashes effect. The double curved mascara brush separates and lifts, while the volumizing mascara formula thickens and lengthens. No clumps, smears or flakes, just volume all day long!
4. The Drugstore Gem: Covergirl Lash Blast Volume Mascara
Covergirl Lash Blast expands and lengthens your eyelashes, creating an eye-opening effect. Designed to max out every lash, it creates 10 times more volume instantly. It coats each lash with no clumping or flaking and gives you the full, voluminous lashes you’ve always wanted.
5. The Clean Mascara: Honest Beauty Extreme Length Mascara and Lash Primer
A 2-in-1 primer and mascara, this formula works together for length, volume and definition. The primer coats the lashes to create an even base and intensify colour and the mascara lays down smoothly for dramatic length and sky-high lift.
Our Best Mascara Hacks
1. A Clean Start
Before applying mascara in the morning, make sure all traces of your makeup from the day before are gone. You should always take your mascara off the night before, but it doesn’t hurt to clean your lashes again in the morning if there’s still some residue. Any leftover or flaky mascara will create buildup which prevents a smooth application. Investing in a good eye makeup remover is key.
2. Use the Wiggle and Roll Method
For seamless mascara that gives your lashes a fuller look, use the wiggle and roll method. Place the brush at the root of your lashes and before grazing your lashes with the brush, wiggle it in place and slowly move the brush upward. This will also give the illusion that you applied eyeliner.
3. Replace Your Mascara Regularly
Clumping is one of the most frustrating mascara blunders and it often happens when your mascara is old and dried out. Keep things fresh by replacing your mascara regularly – every 3 to 6 months is usually a good timeline depending on how often you use it.
4. Never Pump Your Wand
On the topic of dried out mascara, it’s best not to pump your wand in and out of the mascara tube. This injects air into the product, which will speed up the drying out process, creating clumps. Instead, twist the applicator as you pull it out to get an even amount of product on the wand.
5 .Use Clear Mascara as Brow Gel
Clear mascara like the COVERGIRL Lash Blast Transparent Serum makes for an awesome brow gel. Use the wand or a spoolie to comb your brows in an upward motion to help brow powder or pomade set. This will also help define and shape the individual brow hairs.
6. Bend Your Brush
Vertical mascara brushes aren’t the most ideal for coating your lashes effectively. Bending your brush allows the mascara to reach the tiny corner of your eye, giving all your lashes equal coverage.
7. Prolong the Life of Your Mascara
One of the main ways mascara dries out is the accumulation of product around the tube opening that happens when you try to remove excess mascara from the wand. Instead of rubbing the wand bristles against the opening of the mascara tube, remove excess product with a tissue. When it accumulates around the opening, it dries out more and more each time you do it, decreasing the life of your mascara.
8. Don’t Overdo It
When it comes to mascara, less tends to be more. Stick to two coats as a general limit as anything more tends to weigh down your lashes and give them that spidery look. Allow the first layer to dry for 30 seconds, then apply the second layer for stunning results.
9. Use Clear Mascara for Natural Looking Lashes
If you have naturally dark lashes, apply a clear mascara for curl and definition without the drama of a black mascara. It looks clean, fresh and polished and works great for a no-makeup makeup look or for a day traveling or at the beach.
10. Don’t Add Water
If your mascara is starting to dry out, you may think that adding some water would be a good solution, but this will dilute your mascara and lead to a less than pleasing result. Instead, soak the tube in a cup of hot water or run the tube under hot water. This will help soften the mascara and make it less clumpy, allowing you to use it all up.
These are the mascara hacks every girl should have in her arsenal! Make sure to use them for mascara application, common application mistakes and to prolong the life of your mascara!
