It's been ages since I did a Mascara Monday post, and even longer probably since it was a good oold drugstore buy. I decided to give another mascara by Essence a go, you may remember I've raved about the budget brand before in this post. This time round I went for the Essence Lash Princess False Lash Effect Mascara, because anything that claims to mimic false lashes is right up my alley. Here's how I got on...
First things first, the packaging doesn't really do it for me. I know, I know, it's the inside that counts, but this is a little young and very reflective of the $5 price tag. Having said that, if a mascara is amazing, I don't care what it looks like - this was just my first impression.
Secondly, I loved I've always been a fan of narrow bristle mascara wands because I feel like I can get them right into the roots of my lashes, which builds more volume. This wand did exactly that and got into all the corners just as I'd wanted it to.
The formula is third on my list and this is thick, on the drier side and super black. I noticed instantly that it took next to no time to build up volume with the texture of this mascara formula. It could be borderline clumpy if it wasn't for the brush which does a fantastic job of combing through the lashes. I adored how black it was, which is something drugstore mascaras can lack sometimes. It definitely gave me the drama around my eyes I wanted to make them pop.
Now moving on from formula my fourth and final point is the wear time - here's where it faltered. I noticed the mascara built up well, though felt a bit heavy after the second coat. My left lashes also wilted their curl a bit due to this (for some reason only my left eye likes to do this, which is bloody annoying!). Because this is a drier formula I was worried about flaking, and rightfully so. By the end of the day I had smatterings of black flakes under my eyes that didn't want to wipe away without a bit of smearing. Thankfully it really was truly the end of the day and a good 8 hours in, but they'd obviously been there a while by the time I got to a mirror. I didn't notice any smudging in the corners or transfer onto the lid, but the flaking was enough of a bummer for me. It's worth noting though that I tried layering this over top of another mascara to give it a bit more oomph and it didn't flake then. So perhaps it just doesn't like to be built up much on its own.
Left-Right: Curled bare lashes, one coat, two coats
So final thoughts are this - for $5 the Essence Lash Princess False Lash Effect Mascara is a decent mascara. It builds up really fast and is super black, however, it is not a long wear mascara in my opinion due to the flaking. I feel like this would be one that would dry up quickly too due to the drier formula, so keep that in mind when purchasing. I loved the look of it on my lashes, just not when I noticed the speckles underneath.
