Opinion Page: A Mascara for the Ages

To paraphrase Carrie Bradshaw, every woman is either looking for love, an apartment, or a new mascara at all times.  There’s just something about finding the right mascara that is always such a challenge.

First, the mascara you need depends heavily on your individual lashes.  It’s as subjective as fragrance of skincare.

Second, we’re all searching for a different look.  Some women want falsies in a bottle, others just want a hint of darkness.

My lashes need a little bit of length and a lot of volume to look their best.  So when Charlotte Tilbury launched her Pillow Talk Push Up Mascara, I wanted to give it a fair review.  So a month after purchase, here it is.

This is the promotional image that CT is using for the Pillow Talk mascara.  Usually these images are WILDLY exaggerated.  This one is actually pretty close to accurate, and that rarely happens.

My lashes are darker, longer, fuller and more defined with the CT mascara than with any other mascara I’ve tried since my beloved Max Factor was discontinued (RIP).  But I have two small caveats before I recommend it whole heartedly.

First, application is a bit different with this mascara.  To apply it, clean the excess product from the brush.  Apply using the “mascara wiggle,” getting as close to the lash line as possible.  Then, let the first coat dry completely before going for a second coat.  I usually put on my first coat before my blush, shadow, etc. to give it ample time.

Second, when I first started using this mascara, my eyelids were afflicted with tiny white bumps.  Clearly, I wasn’t getting all of my makeup removed before bed and it was clogging the pores on the rim of my eyelids.  Not good.  But I like the mascara so much, I wanted to try a different eye makeup remover before tossing it out.

I’ve never had good luck with an eye makeup remover.  I’ve found some okay ones, but over time, continued use has always left my eye area dry and irritated.  So I decided to try a “clean” beauty eye makeup remover to see if that did the trick, but I couldn’t find one I liked.

Eventually, the clerk at Sephora recommended Farmacy’s Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm.  It melted the eye makeup right off, in a good way.  And following up with my usual cleanser for a very on trend “double cleanse,” has my eyelids makeup and irritation free.

Bottom Line // I love the Pillow Talk mascara.  It’s really fantastic.  Five-star recommendation, but you need to remove every bit of it every time you wear it.

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