Prouct Review: Rimmel Magnif'eyes Mascara

It's no secret that I'm a fan of Cover Girl's Lash Exact Mascara. Clump free and non-smudging, it leaves lashes separated & defined -- a very natural, pretty look. However, it is not a va-va-voom mascara. It does not give a whole lot of volume or drama. It will not give you heavy, sooty lashes that beckon your beau(s) to come hither with nary a flicker.

So I was intrigued when I saw Rimmel's new Magif'eyes Mascara. It claims to "boost volume and length to the limit", while providing separation and control. The brush was like that of Lash Exact's, with plastic, spikey-looking bristles. A badass mascara that would be as clump-free as Lash Exact? I had to try it.




Okay, first and foremost, this is NOT clump free. It's not terrible, but while Lash Exact separates with very little effort, Magnif'eyes can leave small clumps on the lash, and make lashes stick together, especially if you use a heavy hand. I think this is due to the brush... the bristles are not as "sharp", and they are of varying lengths. Maybe this helps in the volume department, but it doesn't do much for separation.

But! There are many redeeming qualities. This baby does give my lashes that sooty darkness that was missing from Lash Exact, and lengthens a lot better too. It also adds much more volume, enough so that if I pair this with a dark shadow (or liquid) liner, I end up with what might be called "Geisha Eyes". (Wouldn't THAT be a great name for a mascara!)

Magnif'eyes also holds a curl well, and stays put rather tenaciously. My regular cleanser alone won't cut it -- I have to use an eye-makeup remover to get it off. A teeny bit of smudging sometimes, but it's far better than any other volumizing mascara I've tried. To me, this is a great thing. When I want big drama lashes, it's usually because I'm going out on the town or doing something fabulous*, and my mascara needs to keep up.

So, moderate clumping issues aside, I quite like this one. If you use a light hand and keep the lash comb handy, even the clumping thing isn't a huge deal. I'll be really interested to check out Max Factor's Volume Couture and Cover Girl's Volume Exact Mascaras (because you know they are the same company, with the same ingredients in the same products, right?). We probably won't see them in Canada until well into the new year, but if they do what Magnif'eyes does, but with less clumping, it may well become my daily favourite!

[Note: I'm pretty sure I first heard about Volume Exact from Yummy411's review. Reading it again now just makes me want to try it more!]



* Please note that "fabulous" for a grad student often means Cranium parties. Humdingers is my secret super-power.