Starting Off: Mascara

I am trying really hard to get back on track with #theSOproject, I just seem to have been so busy once again! But alas, only a day late this week so I'm definitely improving; I'm hoping to organise myself a lot better and post more frequently, I have a few ideas up my sleeve so I hope you'll be looking forward to seeing more of my posts.

This week is one of my favourite make-up products of all time - mascara. I will wear it every time I leave the house, once I was in a rush and I forgot to put it on before work and I felt lost without it and was even considering dashing out and buying a new mascara during my lunch break I was that desperate! Out of anything else, I love having bold eye make-up the most and having a good mascara is definitely a factor in making your eyes appear brighter and more awake.

First of all, I will talk about application. Mascara is the last stage of your eye make-up to be applied, so make sure you apply any eye shadow or eyeliner before this otherwise the look of your lashes will become clumped and uneven. Try not to pump your mascara wand too much otherwise this will force air into your mascara tube and dry it out. Gently put the mascara wand against the base of your lashes and wiggle the wand from side to side towards the end of your lashes - making sure that your lashes are coated evenly. Apply several coats until you get the desired effect that you want, try not to overload on mascara or it will start to leave clumps and weigh down your lashes. It's really simple to use and if you are just starting out you can buy natural coloured mascaras for a toned down and more realistic appearance (perfect for getting away with wearing make up at school ;))

Now there are many different types of mascara, that will lengthen, volumise and even encourage your lashes to grow! There are also mascaras that are for a basic colouring for your lashes - whether this is for a natural or a more colourful look, there are mascaras of every type and every brand you can think of! Personally I like having big and bold lashes, I used to go through of phase of wearing false eyelashes every time I went on a night out, but there are so many good mascaras now that are just as good as false eyelashes. All of my current mascaras help to lengthen, volumise or do both to my lashes, so I will show you my current collection and what they can do to the look of your lashes.

L'Oreal Lash Architect 4D Mascara - £10.99

This is the mascara I am currently using and I fell in love with it as soon as I started using it; People could instantly tell the difference and I received a few lovely comments about this mascara and how good it made my lashes look, so I would definitely recommend purchasing this. As the tube states, this mascara gives a false lash effect; it contains almost undetectable sculpting fibres within the mascara and when applied to lashes, these help to build the look of your lashes and make them appear more volumised, lengthened, texturised and curved - basically having everything all in one mascara!

The mascara wand is very long and thin with lots of bristles, which is perfect for getting an even coat of mascara on the wand and making sure that each and every lash is then perfectly coated and separated at the same time. As it is a thin brush, it's a lot easier to use and really work it into your lashes to encourage them to lift up and fan out; you will notice your eyes will look a lot more open because of this. Though as there are a large number of bristles, it's very easy for this wand to get clogged, so I would suggest washing it with warm water to make sure it stays clean and clump free, your mascara will apply a lot better if it's with a cleaner brush!

I love the all-round look it gives, my lashes are more curved and volumised and compared to when I take my make up off, my lashes are significantly lengthened. This mascara applies perfectly every time, there are no clumps or flakiness and the wand even catches and coats the smaller lashes that are harder to catch with a bigger brush. This L'Oreal mascara does everything in one and I can't think of a better mascara to use if you want big, curvy, even looking lashes.

Clinique Lash Power Mascara - £17

For last Christmas, one of the presents my boyfriend got me was a Clinique eye make-up set with a mascara, eye liner and a roll-on eye serum. What can I say? The boy has good taste! I only have a couple of Clinique make up items, but so far I'm really impressed with the brand. I've only recently opened this mascara as I know how expensive it is and I didn't want to start using it! I know that's what it's for but I like to save nice things that I get. This mascara is all about staying power and promises to last for up to 24 hours without smudging and smearing, it's also waterproof so it will last and last whatever the weather. The trouble with a lot of waterproof mascara is they won't budge! But this mascara has thermosensitive technology, which means it is easily removed with warm water, it also won't irritate the delicate eye area with scrubbing and rubbing to get it off so it is ideal for people with sensitive skin and eyes.

The wand is uniquely shaped and is tailored to the shape of your lashes to catch even the small lashes in the corner of your eyes. Similar to the L'Oreal wand, this brush is long and thin, but is slightly thicker towards the middle, this brush is perfect to really lengthen your lashes and add a little extra towards the middle to bring a focus point to your eyes. Having a smaller brush also means you have greater control and are less likely to make mistakes when applying!

All I can say about this mascara is wow! I can't believe how long it makes my lashes look, it's actually insane how much longer it makes my lashes. So, if you really want to lengthen your lashes a mascara like this will be perfect! I do wish it also thickened my lashes a little bit more, I think I prefer having volumised as well as lengthened lashes. I also don't think it applies as evenly, it seems to go a tiny bit clumpy in places but that might just be me being heavy handed and applying too much! I do really like the fluttery lash effect it gives though, my lashes are nice and separated, it's almost as if I've got lash extensions; so you could really save yourself a lot of money just by using this mascara instead of getting extensions/false eyelash strips every couple of weeks.

Soap and Glory Thick and Fast Super Volume Mascara - £10

Funnily enough, this was another part of my Christmas presents of my boyfriend! He bought me a massive Soap & Glory body set and included in it was also this mascara and Sexy Mother Pucker lipgloss. I love Soap & Glory and I'm still working my way through the products after all this time! This mascara is pretty much on it's last legs now, but it's not going quietly. This mascara delivers super volumised and fuller lashes with it's Superfill false lash fillers, shine amplifiers and NoFlake24 technology.

As you can see from the wand, the brush is really thick so it will really help to coat and thicken your lashes, you will find that most mascaras that market themselves as volumising will have significantly thicker brushes. As this is a bristle brush compared to a plastic brush, it gets clogged up really easily as you can see, so if you have any bristle mascara brushes, I'd suggest washing them more frequently to stop the build up of dry mascara and clumps.

Compared to Clinique's, this mascara not only lengthens but really does give you thicker and bolder lashes. As this is an older mascara, it has gone a bit dry and clumpy but I think it's still very wearable and it would normally have a cleaner finish if it was new. This mascara is ideal to use for nights out for a more dramatic look and it definitely has the staying power to last all day and night. It also does well at curling lashes up to make your eyes appear more open, so overall this is a really good mascara if you like having big, sexy lashes.

No 7 Intense Volume Mascara - £9.50

This mascara is a minature version that I got out of some form of Christmas gift set, the only No7 stuff I've really used before is the skincare and I've had really good experiences with those, so i'm glad I'm venturing into their make up as well, I quite like getting mini gift sets to try out products I wouldn't normally have used. As the name suggests, this mascara provides volumised and lush lashes, considering it was in a gift set, I was glad that it would be something that I would actually consider using in my quest for thick lashes.

Like the Soap & Glory brush, this one also has a super thick bristle brush to optimise the coating of the lashes and making sure they will be more volumised and full. Even though they are thicker for a reason, I do find them a bit more awkward to use as there is less precision and I end up getting mascara on my eyelids and have to end up touching this up afterwards, though I don't really wear that much eyeshadow so you can't really notice where I've had to wipe mistakes away.

To back up my last point, you can even see where I've got mascara on my eyelid and under my eye! I really need to learn to be more careful, but when you are in a rush in the morning, there's sometimes no time to spend ages putting mascara on. This mascara has a similar effect to Soap & Glory's, but the appearance of the mascara looks a lot more glossy and even. Lashes are less separated but I think this looks nice as it makes lashes look really thick and full. This mascara is also really good at making lashes look curved and dramatic, so it is another great all round mascara and I'd definitely go out and buy it myself

If you like to have volume and length, I'd highly recommend any of these mascaras to use, I hope these pictures give you an indication of how each mascara appears, as it's always hard to judge in a store how well or badly a mascara will turn out. If you are part of #theSOproject then please leave me your links so I can check out all of your recommendations and advice!

Amie xx