BEAUTY REVIEW: L'Oreal Voluminous False Lashes Mascara in Blackest Black

SOURCE:  Drugstore.com

Mascara is a makeup product that I wear daily, but don't really get that much bang for my buck.  I have really skimpy eyelashes.  They are short and sparse and really don't show up even with a ton of mascara on.  However, it is far better for me to wear mascara than without, so there I am every morning in front of the mirror; carefully applying mascara.  Honestly, I just don't have time in the morning to apply false eyelashes either.

I am always looking for a good mascara that will provide me volume and length.  However, the most important feature for me in a mascara is that it has to be waterproof and smudge proof.  I have gone through far too many tubes of mascara claiming to be both, but by lunch time, my raccoon eyes set in, which can be difficult to wipe away.

I was excited to hear about the new L'Oreal Voluminous False Lashes Mascara, which claims to have a lash sculpting fiber formula that adheres to lashes for a volumized, sculpted lash effect.  Lashes are supposed to appear fuller, longer, sculpted, and curled.  Furthermore, and of most particular interest to me, the product claims to be clump-free, flake-free, and smudge-free.  I was intrigued and decided to see how this mascara would perform on my wimpy lashes.

Unfortunately, I give this product a thumbs down for several reasons:

1. The wand is too long.  With a long applicator wand, I feel like I have less control of the mascara brush and application.
2. The applicator brush is too long.  I have small eyes on top of the fact that I have wimpy eyelashes, which makes applying mascara a little trickier for me, especially when reaching my corner lashes.  I  poked my eye more than a couple of times when I used this product.
3. The triangular shape of the mascara tube is hard to grip.  I am used to a round tube and the angles of this mascara tube do not comfortably fit in my hand or between my fingers.
4. You really need to build this product onto your lashes.  The formula has a drier consistency, which I prefer over a wet formula, but needs building with several applications to achieve a thick and full lash look.
5. The formula is not clump-free.  While building up my mascara, I noticed that my lashes were starting to clump together.  I had to stop before all I had was only a couple of spider leg lashes on each eye.
6. The formula is not smudge-free.  While I admit that I tend to have teary eyes, I noticed that by lunch, I was developing raccoon rings around the outer corners of my eyes.
7. The formula takes a little more elbow grease to remove.  I use the Physicians Formula Cleansing Lotion to remove my makeup.  I love this product because it takes off all of my makeup, including my waterproof mascara with little rubbing.  I needed to do a little more rubbing to remove this mascara from my lashes.  I noticed clumps on my lashes even after I washed my face, which I had to carefully remove by hand without pulling out my lashes.

I usually end up loving products that are raved about by YouTube makeup gurus, but this time I have to pass on this product.  Back to my favorite mascara--CoverGirl Lash Blast Fusion!