Eye Spy - In Search of a Greater Lash


Shopping for mascara can be an "eye opening" experience. Who knew there were so many formulas to choose from? Thickening, lengthening, volumizing, maximizing and separating, only to name a few; it's no wonder a tube of "Maybelline Great Lash" is being sold somewhere in the world every 1.5 seconds. It's bright pink and green tube stands out from all the rest, saving us from the myriad of eye lash options, without batting an eye many of us grab the familiar and alas another sale for Great Lash the best selling mascara for 33 years. I do own a tube I admit but because I read it was a "must have", plus it adds a little color to my make up bag.

In search of a greater lash I secretly spied into the makeup bags of my most well painted friends, casually slipped in "so what mascara do you use" to unsuspecting co-workers, and polled long lashed strangers to uncover their mascara of choice. To my surprise, friends and strangers alike were wide eyed and bushy tailed to share the secrets of their lash life. So if you're interested in peaking into what's keeping these women's eyes wide open? read 'em and wink:

For Lengthening, Volumizing and Separating -
Lancome Definicils $21.00 Splurge
Iman Perfect Mascara $13.00 Midway
Max Factor Maximizing $5.99 Value
Maybelline Great Lash $4.99 Value

For Volumizing and Thickening -
Estee Lauder MagnaScopic $21.00 Splurge
Fashion Fair Volumizing $12.00 Midway
L'Oreal Volumizer 4x $4.24 Value
Avon Astonishing Lengths $2.99* Steal
* sale price www.myavon.com

For Lengthening and Separating -
Lancome Definicils $21.00 Splurge
L'Oreal Lash Out $5.99 Value
Max Factor Stretch & Separate $4.99 Value
Avon Astonishing Lengths $2.99* Steal
* sale price www.myavon.com

Dramatic Lashes - One Coat
Christian Dior Show $23.00 Splurge
Benefit Bad Gal $18.00 Midway
L'Oreal 3 D Architect $6.99 Value

Sensitive eyes & Lens Wearers
Clinique Long & Pretty Mascara $13.50 Midway

Hard to reach & bottom lashes $4.99 Value
Maybelline Lash Discovery

Best Mascara to sleep in (wink)
Kanebo Mascara $23.00 Splurge
Most waterproof mascaras

Here are a few lash seccrets to help you get your lash-on right:
· Clean your mascara wand at least once a month to get rid of clumps and prevent build up of bacteria on bristles. Coat the wand with a little Vaseline and gently wipe mascara from the bristles but don't damage the wand. Vaseline works best. Water won't remove all the mascara residue and soap can irritate your eyes. Shelf life of mascara is 3 - 4 months.

· Always have a dampened Q-tip handy when applying your mascara to clean up any smudges before they dry!

· Fashion Fair Cosmetic Manager Dewayne Moore recommends using a lash conditioner to improve brittle, dry lashes, extend the life of the lash and to help mascara adhere better and longer. Look after your eyelashes just like your do your hair and skin

· If necessary curl lashes using mascara curler before applying mascara.
· For best results "draw the mascara wand out of the tube and gently scrape off any clumps on the side or wipe with a tissue before applying, says makeup artist Brandi Williams.
· Oprah's make up man Reggie Wells, says "start at the lash roots and gently sweep mascara to the ends"
· Allow lashes to dry between coats. Use lash comb or spiral brush to remove any clumps.
· Reggie Wells believes applying mascara to bottom lashes is not necessary and only draws attention to dark circles and wrinkles below the eye area. Try brown on bottom lashes for subtle definition.
· Remove before bedtime with a gentle eye make up remover like Lancome Bi-facil Eye Makeup Remover or Andrea Q eye make up remover pads.
· Mascara merge?did you know Fashion Fair is black owned by Johnson Publishing Co. (Jet, Ebony) but L'Oreal owns Lancome, and Maybelline. Proctor & Gamble owns Cover Girl & Max Factor. "Don't Sleep"

Okay beloveds, I hope you found this F.Y. Eye enlightening and helpful in choosing the best mascara to maximize your lashes and bring focus to your eyes?the windows of your soul.

Bold indicates highly rated!

Cathy Gatson is a freelance writer and owner/operator of Yada Beauty Lounge, a hair and body salon in Northern California.

In The News:

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In this April 22, 2008 file photo, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, left, followed by current Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., right,  smiles on Capitol Hill in Washington.  Democratic officials say Daschle has accepted President-elect Barack Obama's offer to be Secretary of Health and Human Services.  (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File )AP - President-elect Barack Obama promised the voters change but has started his Cabinet selection process by naming several Washington insiders to top posts.



Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2008 in Washington, before the House Financial Services Committee.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)AP - Pounded by a fierce financial crisis, the country is sinking deeper into economic despair and is likely to be in the hole well into next year, forcing more Americans into the ranks of the unemployed.



Auto industry executives, from left, General Motors  Chief Executive Officer Richard Wagoner; Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Robert Nardelli; and Ford Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally, testify on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008, before a House Financial Services Committee hearing on the state of the auto industry.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)AP - A plan to give troubled U.S. automakers billions of dollars in government-backed loans is on life support, leaving the fate of hundreds of thousands of workers and Detroit's once-venerable car companies hanging in the balance.



Passers-by watch the electronic stock board of a securities firm in Tokyo Thursday, Nov. 20, 2008. The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average plunged early in the day and never recovered, finishing down 6.9 percent, or 570.18 points, at 7,703.04. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)AP - World stock markets tumbled Thursday, with benchmarks in Tokyo and Seoul losing almost 7 percent each, after recession fears sent Wall Street plunging and Japan suffered its biggest drop in exports in seven years.



A gopher frog sits in the hand of Audubon Zoo curator Nick hanna  in New Orleans, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008.  For the first time in 10 years, a pond in south Mississippi got enough rain this year to let gopher frogs, one of the nation's most endangered animals, turn from tadpole to frog without human help.  (AP Photo/Bill Haber)AP - With the Bush administration on the verge of relaxing regulations protecting endangered species, Democratic leaders are looking at ways to overturn any last-minute rule changes.



In this image provided by NASA Astronaut Steve Bowen participates in the mission's first session of extravehicular activity Tuesday Nov. 18, 2008 as construction and maintenance continues on the International Space Station.(AP Photo/NASA)AP - Astronauts vowed to double-check, even triple-check, to make sure a bag of tools is properly tied down during a spacewalk Thursday so it doesn't float away like one did earlier this week.



U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt speaks at the opening for the new U.S. Food and Drug Administration office in Beijing , China, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration opened a new office Wednesday in China's capital, its first outside the United States, as part of a new global strategy to ensure the safety of trillions of dollars of imports.(AP Photo/ Elizabeth Dalziel)AP - China announced a complete overhaul of its dairy industry Thursday to improve safety at every step — from cow breeding to milk sales — saying its worst food quality scandal in years had revealed "major problems" in quality control.



In a photo provided by The National Book Foundation, National book award winners, from left; Mark Doty, Poetry winner for 'Fire to Fire:New and Collected Poems;'  Annette Gordon-Reed, winner for best Nonfiction book for 'The Hemingses of Monticello:An American Family;' Judy Blundell, winner for Young People's Literature for 'What I Saw and How I LIed;' and Peter Matthiessen, winner for Fiction for 'Shadow Country' pose at The 2008 National Book Awards on Nov.19, 2008 at Cipriani's Wall Street in New York. (AP Photo/Robin Platzer)AP - The economy hung like a cloud over the 59th annual National Book Awards. Barack Obama was the silver lining.



AP - Three male and three female inmates at a southern Indiana jail face charges that they devised a way to sneak between cell blocks to help pass their time behind bars by having sex.

Miguel Garcia, 16, a junior at Jones College Prep in Chicago, is seen Oct. 29, 2008, during an interview at his school. Jones College Prep, where the 16-year-old is a junior, has the city's largest Gay Straight Alliance, an organization of more than 100 students that he and other members say wields more influence at their downtown campus than even the student council.   (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)AP - As far as Miguel Garcia is concerned, Chicago already has a gay high school. Jones College Prep, where the 16-year-old is a junior, has the city's largest Gay Straight Alliance, an organization of more than 100 students that he and other members say wields considerable influence at their downtown campus.



An employee works behind a monitor displaying stock information at a securities company in Taipei November 20, 2008. (Nicky Loh/Reuters)Reuters - Global economic misery spread on Thursday with the Federal Reserve predicting U.S. recession well into 2009, Japan's exports to Asia falling for the first time in six years and another sharp sell-off on global equity markets.



A pedestrian walks along a side street in Seoul November 20, 2008. (Jo Yong-Hak/Reuters)Reuters - World stocks dropped to 5-1/2 year lows and oil hit 22-month troughs as investors reacted to dire Federal Reserve warnings on the economy and fears about the viability of major U.S. auto makers and bank giant Citigroup.



Robert Nardelli, chairman and CEO of Chrysler, listens while G. Richard Wagoner, chairman and CEO of General Motors, responds to a question while testifying before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs in a hearing on 'Examining the State of the Domestic Automobile Industry,' on Capitol Hill in Washington November 18, 2008. (Molly Riley/Reuters)Reuters - Chances dimmed that a last-minute plan being crafted by Republican senators, with White House support, to provide $25 billion to bail out U.S. automakers would receive enough backing from Democrats to pass before the end of this week.



Pedestrians are reflected in the window of a Citibank branch in Hong Kong's financial Central District November 18, 2008. (Bobby Yip/Reuters)Reuters - The U.S. financial system still needs at least $1 trillion to $1.2 trillion of tangible common equity to restore confidence and improve liquidity in the credit markets, Friedman Billings Ramsey analyst Paul Miller said.



Reuters - A pact allowing U.S. troops to stay in Iraq for three more years has a chance of being approved by parliament despite some heated opposition, Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said on Thursday.

Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano speaks during closing ceremonies of the 26th Border Governors Conference at Universal Studios in Los Angeles August 15, 2008. (Fred Prouser/Reuters)Reuters - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's top choice to lead the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, CNN reported on Wednesday, citing multiple sources.



A computer keyboard is seen in this 2005 file photo. (Catherine Benson/Files/Reuters)Reuters - A Missouri woman established a fake identity online to torment a vulnerable teenage girl who later committed suicide, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday in a trial that is being closely watched by the burgeoning social networking industry.



A man waits to be served at a petrol station in Dhaka October 27, 2008. (Andrew Biraj/Reuters)Reuters - Oil fell for a fifth straight session to approach $50 a barrel on Thursday as the fallout from the credit crisis hits the global economy, hitting demand for fuel.



US auto giant executives wait to testify before the House Finincial Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Fears of an implosion of the US car industry have continued to weigh heavily on investors' minds as the AFP - Global markets suffered fresh turmoil Thursday, with Asian stocks plunging as a sharp drop in Japanese exports added to gloom about the outlook for the faltering global economy.



A picture taken in 2007 shows the Delight cargo ship anchored in the port of Hamburg, Germany. Somali pirate attacks have spun AFP - Russia announced Thursday it would send more warships to combat piracy in the waters around Somalia, as the Saudi owners of the Sirius Star negotiated with the pirates holding their oil tanker.




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