I’m ashamed.
The title of this post was initially ‘10 Makeup Products I Am Throwing Out For The New Year’, instead of one solely for mascaras. But as I rummaged through my mascara drawer, I easily grabbed 10 mascara tubes that have long been abandoned or have expired.
I’m a hoarder, as is my entire family, so my mum has such a hard time clearing out stuff during the annual house clean-up that we Chinese call ‘da sao chu’.
Decluttering can start anytime, from a month before Chinese New Year, to probably a week, depending on how much clutter you have and/or want to get rid of. People practise it due to the belief that cleaning sweeps away all the negative luck of the preceding year and invites good luck for the new year.
The first day of Chinese Lunar New Year 2012 falls on 23 January this year. It usually falls in late January or February as can be seen here, so 23 January is a little early which means I have to start cleaning up my messy table, wardbrobe and other territories soon!
Getting rid of old mascaras is a great start, isn’t it? =)
So here are the 10 mascaras I’m throwing out to welcome the new year!
Estee Lauder Sumptuous Waterproof Bold Volume Lifting Mascara
As sophisticated as it looks in its shiny, metallic exterior, this mascara doesn’t do all that it claims. Okie, maybe it does – some - but I had much higher expectations of this mascara. Other than being waterproof, the other claims are unfulfilled. Volume is bare, and so is lifting. On top of that, it isn’t as black as what I expect of mascaras.
This would make a good natural-looking lashes look, but I love mine dramatic and bold enough to not have to wear false eyelashes.
Full review on Estee Lauder Sumptuous Waterproof Bold Volume Lifting Mascara!
Buy Estee Lauder Sumptuous Waterproof Bold Volume Lifting Mascara
Pop Beauty Smokey Lash Kapow
I got this mascara during my very first trip to Sephora couple of years ago at Ion Orchard (*gasp! Why am I still keeping it???). I remember spending 3 hours in the store just walking up and down, from counter to counter, and back again, making my arms a crazy mess of colors, and walking out with a receipt of more than SGD300. :O
If I remember correctly, this Pop Beauty mascara costs SGD19 and I was excited to find a mascara at a reasonable price in Sephora. The SA recommended this mascara to me claiming that it volumizes and is such great value for its price.
Well, I’d say it’s not holy grail-material mascara, but it is a good, basic mascara for anyone to try out. It’s a great steal too!
Buy Pop Beauty Smokey Lash Kapow Mascara
Maybelline The Falsies Volum’ Express Waterproof
I mentioned my shock when I finally saw the Maybelline Volum’ Express The Falsies Mascara on our sunny shelves. I love this mascara for its lash volumizing ability, spoon brush applicator, doesn’t clump and stands against water and smudging rather well.
It retails for about SGD20-23 at most Watsons and Guardian stores, which irritates me much because it retails for only USD4.99 on Amazon. @_@
Full review on Maybelline The Falsies Volum’ Express Waterproof mascara!
Buy the Maybelline The Falsies Volum’ Express Waterproof
Chanel Exceptionnel De Chanel
I was excited to try this out. I mean, it’s CHANEL! Which girl doesn’t find her heart beating a tad faster with Chanel? Just saying the name makes me feel so atas. Lol.
However, this mascara disappointed in every aspect. It’s highly likely I got a defective tube because when I opened it at home, instead of looking all glossy and ready to go, the wand looked like it had been used for months! Completely dry, it was impossible to coat my eyelashes with this mascara. I did try to apply some on, but it flaked on me and made the lashes clump. GAH!!! There was no thickening or lengthening of the lashes.
Fortunately, but also unfortunately, this was a gift so I couldn’t return it to the counter without a receipt. =(
The only good thing you’d get out of it is a really posh-looking makeup product on your dressing table.
Anna Sui Super Black Volume Up Mascara
The Anna Sui Super Black Volume Up Mascara was my super favorite mascara, well, up till the Lancome Oscillation Vibrating Infinite Powermascara came along, that is.
This mascara encompasses everything I could possible ask for in a mascara tube – pretty packaging, great lash volumizing ability, some lengthening, waterproof, smudgeproof, GREAT SCENT!
Full review on Anna Sui Super Black Volume Up Mascara!
Buy Anna Sui Super Black Volume Up Mascara
Clarins Wonder Length Mascara
Samples are great inventions when it comes down to experiencing products. The Clarins Wonder Length Mascara did nothing to my lashes – no lengthening, no thickening, is a little dry and clumpy.
Rimmel Glam’ Eyes Waterproof Mascara
I loved using this on the lower lash line in combination with the Maybelline The Falsies mascara coz the latter had too fat of a brush to properly hug my sparse lower lashes.
It does a great job at lengthening the lashes with its comb-like bristles!
Full review on Rimmel Glam’ Eyes Waterproof Mascara!
Buy Rimmel Glam’ Eyes Waterproof Mascara
Smashbox Layer Lash Primer
I use lash primers one tube at a time. The Smashbox Layer Lash Primer was my first ever lash primer and I must say, what a great difference it made!
If you have oily lids and eyelashes that point defiantly at the ground, then an eyelash mascara primer is a must! It helps to keep the curl longer than just curling with an eyelash curler, prolongs the wear of mascara, and acts as a shield to prevent/minimize smudging.
Full review on the Smashbox Layer Lash Primer!
Buy Smashbox Layer Lash Primer
My second tube, Shiseido Nourishing Mascara Base is drying out, and I need to get a new one. Any recommendations? I’m thinking of getting the Dior DiorShow Maximizer Lash Plumping Serum & Primer. Anyone tried that before?
The Face Shop Sparkling Diamond Mascara
I got this as substitute for the expensive Anna Sui Glitter Mascara I saw my friend wear.
Erm, please don’t waste your money on this.
Quite different from the picture, the glitter actually emerge from the tube in sporadic amounts, and only a few pathetic bits of glitter get on to the lashes. When it dries, the glitter gets all over the eye and you end up looking like you got your eye makeup all wrong.
MAC Zoom Lash Mascara
Don’t know how I managed to forget to take pictures of this mascara. You didn’t notice there were 9 mascara tubes instead of 10 in the top picture, did you? 
Anyhow, the MAC Zoom Lash mascara was a disappointment. This was the first MAC mascara I owned, and it has kept me skeptical of all MAC mascaras. It smudged terribly, made my lashes look clumpy, was too wet to hold any curl and dried up in less than a month! WOW!
Then again, Zoom Lash has its loyal following and found people repurchasing it. I’m just not one of them.
There! These 10 mascaras, a mixture of those that have served me well and those that were banished quite immediately after purchase, have got to go! Gotta make room for new stuff in the new year, please!
Which ones listed above have you tried before? How about sharing which top 3 mascaras made it to your list in 2011?
Oooo I adore Maybelline The Falsies Volum’ Express too, but my tube is also drying out so it probably has to go soon! You definitely make me want to try the Smashbox primer out now!
I’ve been using and loving Maybelline Magnum Volum’ Express recently. It’s in the same vein with The Falsies, so if you like that you should give this one a try!
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I liked the Smashbox primer, but I LOVE the Shiseido Nourishing Mascara Base, which I am still using. It dries clear and keeps the curl longer. =)
I now have the opportunity to acquire some Asian makeup products from Japan, and I am having a hard time choosing. I was wondering if you could give me some recommendations – like if you could only get 10 Asian makeup products, what would they be?
Wow… Hmmm, I guess I could rattle off some for a start.
Kate Gel Liner is my favorite gel liner to date. It surpasses MAC and Bobbi Brown in terms of intensity, smoothness, pigmentation, and affordability.
The Face Shop has really nice skin care products. Love the face and eye masks. I have The Face Shop eyebrow cake, which I have been using on a daily basis.
Majolica Majorca is popular for their shimmery and glittery eyeshadow quads and they’re well-made for the Asian market – meaning lower in pigmentation but very high quality shimmer finish. I wrote about MM products in this post.
Ah…. let’s see… what else…
I love the Canmake Cream Blush for its natural, peachy shade.
Higher end brands would be Shiseido (mascara base), Shu Uemura (eyelash curler)…
I have included the links, so you can take a look at the respective posts! Enjoy reading!
Thank you so much, I am so grateful for these recommendations!
Woops!! The Face Shop is a Korean brand, not Japanese. Hee..
That’s a lot of mascara to accumulate, girl! The real question is, how many are still in your drawer?
I love the idea of de-cluttering, I could use some good luck in 2012!
My top 3 mascaras for 2011 would have to be Fairydrops platinum, Majolica Majorca LEFP and L’oreal False Fiber. I’m a big fan of the KATE mascara base, does a great job for me. However it does contain fibers, so if you don’t like that then stay away.
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Yeah, I’m not a fan of fibers. I tried the Fiberwig mascara, TWICE, just to make sure I didn’t get a bad tube since everyone was singing praises of it, but ended up not liking it at all. Oh, does the KATE one dry clear or white?
The fibers are white but the primer itself dries pretty clear. It holds my curl like a dream. <3
Hi BunBun (do people call you that?), I am a new reader/subscriber to your blog. Oh my god, I LOVE LOVE LOVE all your posts…especially the series about Asian eyes. It has got to be the BEST tutorial/explanation that I’ve ever come across with online. My only regret is that you don’t do videos. It’ll be so helpful if we can see your step by step application live on videos. Have you consider it?
Anyways, sorry that I’ve gone a little off topic. The only mascara I’ve tried on your list is the Maybelline Falsie one. I do like it for its volume boasting and separation abilities, and even more so when it dries up a little. HOWEVER, after 1.5 months of almost daily use of this, I found that the mascara caused some lash fall out! I don’t have super sparse lashes in Asian standard. But still, seeing my natural lashes falling out is very traumatic. Now I’m not sure whether it was due to the daily usage, which I’m not used to…or it was the mascara itself. But I’m definitely not repurchasing it.
Thanks for such a great post. Please keep on writing and posting!!
Hahaha, yes Sarah, my blog readers do call me Bun Bun. My boyfriend likes to call me Bun Bun sometimes too. And when my friends ask me questions regarding products reviewed on my blog, they’ll unintentionally say ‘Bun Bun said…’. You know, like Bun Bun is a third party – which is kinda true if you think of it, since she’s my blog mascot.
GOSH! Lash fallout!? I can imagine your shock. Whenever I rub my eyes (which I try very hard to do less now) and see ONE lash on my finger, I’ll be very sad already!
Thanks for the LOVE LOVE LOVE. I can feel your virtual hugs and kisses flying from where you are!! Heehee. But yeah, I’m not doing videos at the moment. That’s why I always try and make my product reviews and makeup tutorials as detailed as possible.
interesting post
i was wondering how much did u buy that anna sui mascara for? maybe i’ll give it a try someday!
Ermmmm……. I can’t remember exactly…. I think it was about SGD40+?
Hello dear! OMG its been too long and I have neglected my blog for the last part of the year but I am back (for now!)
Oh that’s a lot of mascara…I’d like to see what your mascara drawer looks like but…throwing things away makes room for more 
I want to wish you a happy new year!! (only a week late so yay
) and can’t wait to see what 2012 brings to the both of use cheers
x0x0
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Welcome back to the blogging world, my dear!
Yup! Time to get rid of the old and welcome the new! Cheers to a new year ahead!
Nice to get started on the cleaning early! Haha!
I love mascaras… and have tried the Chanel (agree with you – the packaging & brand’s the main draw
), Maybelline & Lancome ones. Thanks for the reminder…time for me to clear the makeup drawer too! Haha!
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How was your experience with the Chanel one? Was it bad like mine? Mine was just plain awful. Sheesh.
I haven’t been to 112 Katong, in fact, I’ve never even been to Katong Mall. Hahhaa, that side of Singapore is just too far away for me. I visited PP a couple of weeks ago though, and it has changed quite a bit!
Sadly… same experience as yours! Hahaha… what a shame
And it wasn’t cheap either! LOL!
Reading makeup blogs aint no good for my wallet… I always get inspired to buy too many things! Haha!
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I know!! HAHAHA! But then we also know exactly what to buy and what not to buy, just by reading reviews. I think I’ve saved quite a lot of money otherwise spent on products that are not good at all but are advertised like they are heaven’s essence.
Oh my, yes, the pain!! At how cheap some mascaras sell in the states at below $10! Loved the short reviews…I think I may have my holy grail with the kiss me herione and maybelline magnum but I’m definitely going to be trying out new ones this year…just cant get enough of a good mascara!
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Have you tried Covergirl Lash Blast? I’m thinking of getting it… hmmm… By the time it gets shipped to Sg, I’d have paid double for it, but that’s how it is, living in this side of the world. Lol.
My all time favourite mascara is the Shu Uemura Precise Volume mascara. I have probably gone through 5 tubes of this. It is waterproof, smudgeproof, and holds a curl all day. Which is the most important factor i look for in a mascara. Our wimpy straight asian lashes need mascaras that can really hold a curl!! I hope Shu doesn’t discontinue this formula, like they did the basic mascara, which is also good =(
I recently discovered Dollywink volume mascara and can i say it is LOVE! It volumes, separates, doesn’t clump, waterproof, smudgeproof and holds the curl all day! And it is half the price of Shu. I bought back-ups coz it always seems to be sold out..haha.
I’ve also tried Majorlica Majorca, but don’t really like them…they have a tendency to clump and it’s tough to remove, even with cleansing oil.
And Bun Bun, Happy New Year to you. I love your blog. Your reviews are detailed and a pleasure to read! And so relevant because it is from an asian perspective =)
Wow, 5 tubes! That says a lot about that mascara! What I mainly look for in a mascara is the volumizing factor. I must go look at the Shu Uemura Precise Volume mascara when I’m out some day. I like to do both online and ground research. Heh heh.
Yeah, I’m not a big fan of MM mascaras. I used two kinds before but both weren’t my cup of tea. Something about its formula just didn’t work for me.
Thanks so much for your last sentence, Mel! *HUGZ* I’m glad to have achieved what I sought to do, which is to create tutorials that Asians can relate to, by an Asian who lives in Asia and who looks 100% Asian. Lol.