Product Review: Tarte Cosmetics -- Picture Perfect Eyelash Curler & Lights, Camera, Lashes! Mascara

My first ever review for Meg's Makeup! Thank you, readers for being a part of this momentous occasion! My reviews for Meg's site will be sort of a summary of my longer reviews here, because I know that her readers might not have the inifinite patience that you lovely people must posess to get through my rambly reviews. So if you're pressed for time (or have run out of patience), check out the condensed version over there.

Today, my lashes are presented to the world courtesy of Tarte Cosmetics. I first curled them using Tarte's Picture Perfect Eyelash Curler:




Don't that look hi-tech! I'm used to using curlers with the 'scissor-like' handles, like the one you see here, so grappling with the purple-squeezy thing was a bit awkward at first. The mechanism did seem to give a bit more control over how hard you squeeze, and thus you get more control over the amount of curl you end up with. It takes more time than usual to position the curler properly (again, this could be because I'm unfamiliar with the design), but once there, it catches the small "outer" lashes a bit better than my usual drugstore curlers. Some of them still manage to escape, but a few more clamps usually takes care of them.

I had to use a light hand with the clamping, or else I'd end up with bent lashes. (although this is true of every curler I've tried). Used properly, this gives a natural looking curl. I also tried using this after I put on mascara (go gently, lest you rip out your lashes), and ended up with a more dramatic fringe. Overall, this is a nice, girly looking curler that is effective, but I don't find that it inspires manic devotion like the Shu Uemura curlers apparently do (I wouldn't know, I've never tried those). I'm quite happy with Tarte's version, but it's not like it out-performs drug store curlers by leaps and bounds or anything. Except in the looks department, of course!


Next, I applied Tarte's Lights, Camera, Lashes! mascara, which promises to deliver length, volume, and curl:




Will you just look at that thing? It's shiny purple faux snakeskin! And it has an exclaimation point in its name! Just holding it made me feel like one of those glam rebel chicks. It's the RuPaul of the mascara world, dressed in (the artist formerly known as) Prince's suit. Do I even care if it works?

Well... yeah. I do care. Why else would I have a makeup blog? Fortunately for Lights, Camera, Lashes!*, its cute name and bad-ass packaging do not make up the entirety of its merits. It's also a pretty darn good mascara! I have the sparse straight lashes typical of My People**, but have been blessed with a fairly long fringe. My mom always (randomly) said that having long eyelashes means that you're lazy, so if you slack off a lot like I do, maybe you can have long lashes too!

Anyway. This mascara added some length, but not crazy amounts, which is actually good, since I don't want my lashes to be knocking against my glasses. It gave me a moderate amount of volume... no one will think you're Liza, but it does add a nice oomph. Interestingly, I found that it actually deflated the curl in the lash a bit. It still maintained a nice flirty lift, just weighed down a little. Not a big deal, but I certainly didn't see any added curl.

The staying power is quite impressive. I do get a bit of smudge under one eye, but every single mascara I have ever tried does this, and always in the exact same spot. Maybe I have a weird eye. Maybe I unconsciously wink a lot. That would sure explain why all these creepy men think it's a good idea to have a conversation with me. ("She's either hitting on me, or has a facial nerve disorder! Either way, hook me UP!") Aside from that, Lights, Camera, Lashes! stays put. No flaking or smudging. I even fell asleep in it last night (shut up! I had Thai food! It made me sleepy!) and awoke to find that almost all of the mascara stayed on my lashes.

Lashes don't feel brittle either when you wear this, and I think you could build it up for Rock Star Lashes should you so please. It is a thickish formula though, so have that lash comb ready. FYI, when I apply mascara, I usually wipe excess product off on a tissue beforehand. I find this gives me greater control and more brush strokes to work with (i.e., I can do 3 or 4 strokes without clumping or heaviness). Definitely a good idea for thicker mascaras like this one. Applying it straight from the tube gives a "bigger" look, but at greater risk of clumping if you're not careful. I do notice a tiny bit of itchiness at the end of long days, but after 16 hours of wear, that's not really unexpected.

Overall, this is a pretty good mascara. I'd like to experiment more with a more dramatic look for nights out, but so far, it's fine as a day mascara. And you KNOW that your product-obsessed friend would just squeal with delight if they got this as a present from you. Since mascara is one of those "only when I feel like it" items for me, I wouldn't go out and spend $18 US on this, unless it was as part of a bitchin' present for someone. And it does look awfully bitchin', doesn't it?

And that's a wrap! Come back in the next couple of days and see what I thought of Tarte's Park Avenue Princess Bronzer!



*Because you just KNOW I'd have taken out its kneecaps if it failed to perform. Or maybe laid the brutally-torn-off head of a lash comb next to its pillow. Don't toy with me, mascara. I'm watching you.
** Is that term offensive? One friend always makes uncomfortable eyes at me when I say it. "My People"... it's just another way I refer to Orientals. I don't mean it in the 3rd Reich sense. Oh wait, that was probably way offensive. Man, I suck at this PC stuff.