My quest lead me to a secret source, on a sunny coast, who works for one of the Bigs. I can't say the name of the company, but I can tell you he works in R&D (research and development) and has been instrumental in some of the most popular selling mascaras recently. When I asked what ingredient made the mascara have curl power, the answer I got was a little surprising. Ozokerite? Filmifying polymer? Magic dust?
He said that while there are some ingredients that can enhance curl, what really creates the curl is the type of brush you use. A brush that is firm and helps coat the lash - actually forcing the lash to bend as you apply the mascara is muy importante. Another factor is how the water evaporates out of the product as it dries.
Think of hair mousse from back in the day - it dried crunchy and curly, but you had to let it air dry. The curling action happens as the water evaporates, causing the polymer or film to shrink, forcing your precious lashes to curl in response to the mascara tightening as it dries. So the key is the brush and how it interacts with air?
Not the answer I was looking for. I was hoping I could isolate some wonderful ingredient like Magic Curl Polymer 6B and only buy mascara boasting that ingredient, thus having pretty, curled lashes ever after. Sigh.
Are there any options guaranteed to work? If serious curl is what you are after, you can have your lashes permed, which my secret source says he has done (and really liked). You can have it done in a salon in the states, but in Europe, you can do it yourself at home.
In the meantime, I am currently digging Lumene Blueberry Curl, Blinc, Rimmel Glam Eyes and Max Factor Lash Perfection Volume Couture. Let me know what you think!
Copyright 2009, Gouldylox Reviews
Of course you don't get such an easy answer - wouldn't life be great if scientists could give straight, easy to understand answers?
ReplyDeleteI use (and sell) Blinc mascara, and love it! It won't curl your lashes on it's own, but they make an incredible heated lash curler. It's a little battery operated thingamajig that separates your lashes and curls them using heat (but not so hot that you burn yourself when you're a klutz like me). Think about it - you curl your hair with a curling iron, setting your curl using heat. Why not the same principle on your eyelashes? They're hair too! I like it much better than the "traditional" lash curlers - I pinch myself, bend my lashes, and end up with masacara on my eyelids using those crimpers. The heated lash curler from Blinc can be used before or after applying mascara. Personally, I use their primer, let it set (30 seconds), curl my lashes, then apply my mascara. It works really well!