Being a beauty addict means being constantly on the watch for the next big thing - the cult product that's going to make it big, or the under the radar item that's set to be a new hot favourite.
So even though I definitely have my holy grail items when it comes to beauty, I'm always keeping one eye open for the latest to see if it becomes my next must-have.
One area where my head is easily turned is mascara. I think it's fair to say I'm lash obsessed. Long, fluttery lashes are an essential for me- an instant mood booster and something I don't feel right without.
As a lash addict, I wear subtle falsies almost every day, but I'm always hoping that one day a mascara will come along that really will live up to the hype a lot of them have about making you throw your false lashes away!
My current holy grail mascara is Too Faced's Better Than Sex, but although that's pretty damn gorgeous, I decided to give this new beauty from Soap and Glory a chance to topple its crown.
The hype
Thick and Fast was a mascara success for the S&G brand, and this new take on the line promises a turbo-charged version of the original.
As usual with S&G, the description is full of hyperbole and capitalised, trademarked Science Words promising volume, intensity and DRAMA. I may not want drama in my life but I certainly welcome it for my lashes!
It does seem like the buzzword at the moment when it comes to mascara- there's so much drama out there, someone's lashes should be winning an Oscar.
The packaging
A shiny gold chrome tube with bold black lettering is a bold move and really looks sleek.
Although I really like S&G beauty products, I'm glad that they've toned down the cutesy, pin-up girl approach a little in recent years.
It's a cleaner, more confident look for the brand. The packaging here looks very premium. It matches the casing of the brand's Sexy Motherpucker lipsticks, and looks great in a beauty bag, easily holding its own alongside higher end products.
The brush is arguably the major component of a mascara's success, and the brush here is a medium sized bristle brush. According to the S&G hype machine this is a '7 SIDED FAN FLARE-180™ brush with a V-groove to lay down volume & intensity, and a network of combing & curling surfaces to give length, definition and DRAMA.' Always with the drama!
I have to say I'm unconvinced by this- the brush is actually pretty average here. I don't see any evidence of a 'v groove' or anything especially original. The brush works fairly well for gripping and coating the lashes without clumping, but it's nothing that's a game changer in my opinion.
The product
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| One coat |
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| Two coats |
So I was really intrigued by the promise of a collagen loaded formula. Although this isn't the first mascara to make the most of that ingredient, I wondered whether they'd managed to find an interesting new way to use it and give me mega lashes!
The formula boasts both 'pre-peptides' - which I thought were an anti-aging ingredient most often found in face creams - and 'long-stretch polymers'. These promise to coat lashes in a 'flexible, lengthening film' which sounds pretty exciting to me!
With 24/hour technology to keep lashes looking perfect all day and a 'collagen coat' for lashes boosted with all those goodies, how could this fail?
The performance
Although this is not the worst mascara I've ever tried, I was left a little disappointed. Drawn in by the breathless marketing hype (I work in marketing and PR. I'm supposed to be wise to all this. I am not:) and the shiny, shiny gold tubing, I wanted to believe that this would be the drugstore lash companion of my dreams.
Alas. Far from enabling me to merrily boot my Ardell multipack off the shopping list, this left my lashes lacklustre.
Although it gave them some length, the va-va-voom volume I was expecting never showed up. This is a decent mascara for day and I've been using it most mornings before work.
There is a little flaking for me (as you can see in the second picture), it delivers a nice dark tint and there's nothing wrong with it. But it certainly isn't the earth shaking lash must-have it's sold as.
The verdict
For those who want a natural looking formula that stays in place, separates and lengthens lashes and gives them a subtle boost, this could be for you.
Sadly for me, my version of subtle and everyday is still a lot more amped up than this tame mascara can manage. I really wanted to like this, but it just doesn't go far enough, for all it's shiny gold swagger.
One that will leave true lash lovers waiting for more.
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