Vibrating wands are just one of many trends in the mascara world lately. The makers of such mascaras imply that the vibration action separates, defines and lengthens each lash in a way that manually applying mascara doesn't. But do they really work? I had the chance to find out. Since my beloved Cover Girl Lash Blast Length was reaching the end of its shelf life, I cast about for a new mascara and found a new tube of Maybelline Pulse Perfection Vibration mascara on my bookcase. (It was amidst a bunch of unopened beauty products I'd accumulated from goodie bags for various events.)
Unfortunately, Maybelline's Pulse Perfection mascara disappointed on many counts. The vibration was minor, made little difference to my lashes, and was no substitute for good application technique. Instead of relying on the wand to do all the work as I swept the applicator through my lashes, I alternated manually wiggling the brush back and forth with pressing the vibration button.
The brush has sparse, short bristles. Combined with the tar-like texture of the formula, it made for clumpy, goopy results. I had to comb my lashes out, then sweep a wet Q-Tip over my eyelid to clean off traces of mascara. My lashes looked reasonably good at the end, but I was annoyed at the extra cleanup effort. What's more, the mascara formula proved to be smudgey as the day wore on. It left a dark shadow in the undereye area and made me look more sleep-deprived than I already was. Not attractive.
Considering the Pulse Perfection mascara retails for around $20 at drugstores (signficantly more than the average drugstore mascara), I'd say that pulsating wands are more of a gimmicky money-grab than a makeup must-have. After two days, I got sick of this mascara and tossed it in the trash.
Have you tried any vibrating wand mascaras? What do you think of them?
P.S. Only 1 day left to enter my Consonant Body giveaway. Have you done it yet?
Great info to know. Thank you for the review. I thought about buying it too, but wasn't sure how the vibrating wand worked. Sorry the mascara dissapointed you. Maybe better luck next time?
ReplyDeleteI basically only use Benefit Bad Gal Lash, but I was intrigued when I saw this, I love gadgets. When the vibrating razor came out, i snatched it up right away, and yeah, it made no difference. Doesn't surprise me that this didn't either, but does disappoint me a little. And at $20 it's more expensive or as expensive as better brands at Sephora, kind of crazy!
ReplyDelete$20?? If I'm going to spend that much on a mascara, it's not going to be a drugstore brand.
ReplyDeleteI love the CG LashBlast collection-the applicator is great and it never flakes/smudges (unless I take a nap with it on which, let's face it, is becoming a daily occurrence in my life as finals approach!)
I got this too but I haven't tried it yet! I guess maybe I won't be anytime soon...
ReplyDeleteYou really got to try Anna Sui's Waterproof. It's life-changing! Trust me :)
I haven't tried any...I seem to always be using some mascara I got for free (and I use them way too long but I'm lazy)...thanks for this honest review!
ReplyDeleteThat scares me a bit. I'll stick with my Great Lash. HAHA
ReplyDeleteI got this as a goodie as well and the vibrate feature was completely useless. I also tossed this in favour of Clinique Naturally Glossy mascara which I'm loving right now!
ReplyDeleteXo Chelle
discoveringelegance.com
Definitely good to know, because I probably would have gotten lured in by the marketing that's been buzzing about this product. Thanks for the reviews! They're awesome.
ReplyDeleteI've debated trying these kinds of mascaras (i'm a sucker for gimmicks). But your review has helped to me to avoid this particular one.
ReplyDeleteMind you I wasn't aware of any other vibrating wand mascaras?
I've never tried any vibrating mascara's. I LOVE my Loreal Panoramic curl waterproof mascara. It's the only one that I've tried that has lasting power and also makes my itty bitty lashes look longer and fuller!
ReplyDeletexx Love & Aloha
I've never believed the hype surrounding the vibrating brush... never made that much sense to me. I worked with a large international beauty company before and I know that the majority of cosmetic companies pretty much invent these things as a marketing gimmick without real evidence to back up these claims. I do like some of Maybelline's other mascaras though.
ReplyDeleteI got to try this out too (from the Blanche Macdonald fashion show goodie bag) and I actually love it! I read some reviews online and it said that the trick to doing it is to go very slowly and hold the want still (no zig zagging). I use a Shiseido base followed by this mascara now and my lashes look longer and fuller than they ever have without falsies. I'm glad my bf was with me because now I have an extra on hand too. Too bad it didn't work out for you!
ReplyDeleteI tried this mascara a while back, and im going to tell you know, it was absolutely horrible. I couldn't figure out how to turn the vibration button on, and once i finally did and put it on my lashes, it was a disaster. I dont know if the formula was bad in this mascara or what, but my eyes swelled up SO bad and were really sore afterwards. And on top of that, the mascara did nothing for my lashes, and clumped SO much. I even tried it without the vibrations, and it was even worse. Like i said, didnt do ANYTHING for my lashes whatsoever, and clumped beyond explanation. I do not recommend buying this mascara at all, save yourself pain and money.
ReplyDelete