My Quest for the Holy Grail
By Glinda
Of mascara, that is.
It seems that in my decades of wearing makeup, the product satisfaction that has eluded me the most is mascara.
I’ve found perfectly lovely cleansers, shampoos, lipsticks, foundations, moisturizers, you name it.
But the perfect mascara?
I’ve yet to find it.
For a while, I actually did achieve mascara nirvana. Yeah, I’m mixing religious symbolism here, sorry. I used LORAC mascara, back when they only had one kind. Then they went and reformulated it, and I bought a tube in vain hope, but was sorely disappointed. I HATE when that happens.
Since then, I have searched high and low for a mascara that is waterproof but easy to remove, doesn’t clump, doesn’t flake, plumps and lengthens, and doesn’t look totally fake. One product that does all these things, not three.
I’ve yet to find it.
Too much to ask, I guess.
What is your Holy Grail product?
May 10th, 2011 at 10:12 am
When you find that mascara, PLEASE post about it. I think I’ve tried every mascara made and have not found that combination: waterproof ( I live in SWFlorida, aka hell’s sauna), easy-ish to remove, not clumpy and/or flaky. I’m using Falsies by maybelline now, which satisfies most but difficult to remove. Diorshow isn’t bad, but not perfect.
May 10th, 2011 at 10:41 am
Diorshow is the best I’ve found. I live in hot and humid Central Texas and it doesn’t come off when I, um, glow, nor does it flake (I wear hard contacts so I’d know).
I’m dubious in a general sense that ‘designer cosmetics’ are better than what I can pick up at the drug store, but I’ve gotten a disproportionate amount of attention about my great lashes since I started wearing Dior.
May 10th, 2011 at 11:18 am
The perfect mascara is so elusive. I like almost everything about a Clinique Mascara I found in college- I cannot remember the name of it and in a cleaning frenzy I threw out the last tube I had- sigh.
More than the mascara search, I am after the perfect body lotion- one that is not sticky, oily, smelly or drying. I have tried everything from generic to $$$$ department brand and have failed to find one that works- oh well.
May 10th, 2011 at 1:01 pm
I second the mascara search. Everything hurts my eyes.
May 10th, 2011 at 2:31 pm
Mascara definitely seems to be a common Holy Grail. The closest I’ve come is Too Faced Lash Injection. I’m also searching for the perfect foundation — one that evens my skin tone and hides my sun damage, but that still looks like skin.
Hair colour is another tricky one — it’s HARD to find a nice shade of light red/dark strawberry blonde. Everything is copper or auburn.
May 10th, 2011 at 4:29 pm
Well, I haven’t found the perfect mascara, but I LOVE Clinique’s Lash Building Primer. I thought primer would be a waste of money but after trying it I definitely notice that it makes mascara work better. My lashes are coated better and they look longer. Mascara also seems to stay on better and not flake as much, if at all. I’ve used it with Clinique mascara as well as other brands (mainly bought from drug stores) and they all seem to work well with the primer.
May 10th, 2011 at 9:49 pm
and if anybody has a Holy Grail treatment for undereye circles that
1. actually covers the circles
2. doesn’t crease up in 10 minutes
I’ll worship you as a diety -honest!
May 11th, 2011 at 9:26 am
I think I’ve commented about this before, but I’ve found Le Metier de Beaute’s (I’m probably misspelling that) products to be incredible. I use their mascara and eyeliner. I don’t use the waterproof, but it has great staying power on my oily skin (even when I, er, neglect to take it off at night it still looks good in the morning). They do have a waterproof version as well. Sephora doesn’t carry it, but fancy department stores sell it online (like, Neiman Marcus) – it’s expensive but for me it’s worth it to know that when I put mascara on in the morning, it will still be there when I leave the office.
May 11th, 2011 at 2:21 pm
Well, I don’t know if it’d be good for y’all, but my HG mascara is Maybelline Full n Soft Waterproof. It does give a soft, full, feathery look, which is what I like, because I hate the plasticky, clumpy, stick-like look that so many people seem to be into.
May 12th, 2011 at 1:51 pm
I’ve fallen deep in like with Benefit’s Bad Gal Lash (I would be in love if I’d been thinking and willing to spend the little extra for waterproof). It doesn’t clump, doesn’t flake, and gives my lashes the extra length I need without other stuff. I may switch to a MAC mascara when this tube runs out/expires – their stuff has yet to disappoint me on other things, so maybe the mascara will be awesome as well.
May 14th, 2011 at 8:07 am
I love the Blinc Kiss Me mascara…it’s the original tube masacara and the only one that is done right (I’ve tried the drugstore versions). It’s brilliant, comes off with water and rubbing together (but not one or the other, and I’m a-weepa). I’m surprised that it doesn’t show up in magazines as a go to mascara more often, it’s brilliant. Sephora carries it, btw.
May 19th, 2011 at 7:18 pm
Diorshow is my vote for mascara. At one point I went through a mascara buying frenzy to pick the perfect mascara for me and this won hands down.
My holy grail product though is Laura Mercier Eye Caviar liners. They stay on forever, you can use them wet or dry, and they can be strong or smudged. They are so rich and versatile I have them in every color. And bonus: it doesn’t rip the first three layers of skin off my lash line putting it on like so many pencils do.
The product I miss most is Smashbox Brow Tech in Auburn. They discontinued that color a few years ago. They chose poorly.
May 20th, 2011 at 4:34 am
Fiberwig. Hands down.
June 1st, 2011 at 5:25 pm
I, like Kimks, am looking for the perfect body moisturizer. I have super dry skin, and while there are lotions I like for their moisturizing power, they don’t stay on and I have to reapply a lot because it rubs off. (And that’s awkward when you have to reapply a lot and everyone can see your legs and it doesn’t sink in fast.) I’ve gone over to body oils, and those are better then creams, but still looking for the perfect one.
As an extension of that, I want a body wash that a) doesn’t strip my skin but b) cleans well and c) smells good. I’ve heard some good things about L’Occitane’s shower oil, but haven’t taken that plunge yet.
As for found Grails, I found the perfect deodorant last fall. Again with the dry and highly sensitive skin, I found that normal deodorants that could stand up to my cycling everywhere, busy lifestyle (the true test: does it take the edge off of a 3-hour test for a higher belt in my martial art?) made me break out in a slight rash. The deodorants without the harsh chemicals didn’t hold up at all. Eventually, though, I found (after long trial and error) the Herban Cowboy deodorant. It’s aimed at guys, so some girls may find the scents a bit “manly”, but I really like them, and it works really well for me.