Lengthening mascara is nothing new, makeup companies have always had some kind of clear or colored lengthening formula that you use as a base or alone. However, they never seemed to live up to my expectations.

Recently Maybelline and Cover Girl came out with new mascara formulas that boast of being able to add … miles… to your lashes.

I thought I would give lengthening mascara another try. I looked at 3 popular brands. 2 drugstore brands and 1 department store brand, the Maybelinne Lash Stiletto, Cover Girl’s Lash Blast and Shiseido’s Mascara Base.

Maybelline Lash Stiletto

The Claim:

You’ll Love It! The only mascara that does for lashes what stilettos do for legs.

The review:

On a popular beauty site, hundreds of people reviewed this product. The consensus was that the product did live up to the claim of increased length but at the cost of volume and sheen. The product is called Stiletto and Stilettos are known to be long and thin… right? One must assume that Maybelline did not make this product for volume and concentrated only on building length.

Stiletto does add length to your lashes and has a unique fragrance in the formula that makes the mascara smell a bit fruity. For ladies with sensitive skin or allergies, it may be a good idea to test it on your skin first to make sure the added fragrance does not irritate you. This product also tends to clump rather easily. The instructions on the Maybelline page tell you to NOT wait for the product to dry between coats. Not following the proper application instructions will cause the mascara to get clumpy. Maybelinne Lash Stiletto runs between 6 and 8 bucks in most drugstores.

Cover Girl  LashBlast Mascara

The Claim:

Soft, Long lashes.

Our new Elasta-Nylon™ formula flexes without flaking, giving you extreme, notice-me lashes all day long. Our longest brush ever gives you an 80% longer lash look*

The review:

This mascara seems to give great results to people with a lot of patience. To get dramatic results out of the tube you must put on 2 or 3 coats with the coats fully drying in between. You must also use a certain application technique which is ideal for this brand.

While most people who tried this brand were disappointed in the very “natural” look, they were happy with the softness of their lashes after application. The formula is on the dryer side and remains soft to the touch when dry. The downside to the soft lash formula is that it does not hold curl very well.

The application technique for LashBlast Mascara by Cover Girl:

This is the process I use: I first start with coating just the very tips of my lashes. After this, I need to hold the wand at the base of my lashes and twirl it forward until I feel like the brush is touching my lid, and then wiggle the brush back and forth in a zig-zag motion through the tips. I realize this is technically the “proper” way of mascara application, but some mascaras don’t need such a meticulous process. I apply one coat to one eye, then do the other, and alternate back and forth with additional coats as the subsequent coat dries a little on the opposite eye. The entire process takes about 10 minutes and several coats, which is more effort than I’d like to put into my lashes…

LashBlast runs 4 to 9 bucks in popular shops.

Shiseido Mascara Base

The Claim:

A clear base coat for eyelashes that improves mascara application and wear, and boosts volume and curl. Adds dramatic definition to the eyes.

The Review:

Out of the three lengthening products reviewed here, Shiseido’s Mascara base is the one that gives your lashes the most bang. However, that bang comes at a pricey cost. Shiseido base is just that. It is a colorless base that adds length and volume that must be followed by a regular mascara. Not only will you spend around 25 bucks for the base but you must also buy the colored mascara to go on top of it.

The mascara base works by adding small clear filaments to your lashes, those filaments fill in for volume and add length. Once a colored mascara is applied, you end up with stunning, full, long lashes.

The mascara base also holds a curl very well. Even the most resistant lashes will hold a curl all day. The one downside other than the price of the mascara is that it is waterproof and difficult to remove. Any non-waterproof mascara you use on top will ultimately become waterproof.

Shiseido Mascara Base is around 25 bucks at most department store makeup counters.

Overall, all 3 products seemed to deliver what the manufacturer promised and the results you get will vary greatly depending on your method of application. Lengthening mascaras are not meant to be the quick “one coat and out the door” types.  They all need multiple coats that are applied following the instructions on the package exactly or you will be disapointted by the results

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