Maybelline Lasting Drama Black Shock Gel Liner Review

It seems that people have been loving and loathing the Benefit Push Up Liner in equal measure so I figured, rather than risk spending the big money on something that might not work for me I'd try the more affordable drugstore version.

I've used the Maybelline Eye Studio Gel Liner (the one in the pot) before but found I'm not disciplined enough to clean the little brush after every use and let's just say that things got a little ... crusty.
I absolutely loved the gel formula though so I was pretty stoked when I saw that Maybelline had come out with another gel liner - this time with the gel built in to a handy twist up pen. The lazy liner enthusiast's dream, surely?

Well at the risk of sounding like the cheesiest of the cheeses, this stuff kind of is a dream. To use the Maybelline Lasting Drama Black Shock Gel Liner, you just twist the bottom of the pen (multiple times on first use) until a small amount of the gel appears at the end. Then, with the help of the little nib on the end, you simply line the eyes like you would with a regular pen eyeliner. The gel goes on smoothly and dries pretty quickly so my advice is to clean up any smudges asap!

The result is a gorgeously dark, opaque liner look that has pretty decent staying power overall, though I have slightly sunken eyes so I did end up with some transfer that needed checking every few hours. It's worth mentioning that I wore this all day on the hottest day of the year so far and didn't end up with this half way down my face. A bonus indeed.

If you haven't picked this up already (why not?!) you can do so at Superdrug, Boots and anywhere else that sells Maybelline. RRP £8.99

Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Mascara - More Drama than it's Worth?

I purchased the Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Mascara about a month ago now but I've been wanting to rant about it from the moment I first swiped it over my brows.

Now, 'mascara' for eyebrows is not exactly a new invention but I think the marketing for this product was particularly effective as many people have gone a bit crazy over it. I was one of them and while I won't say it's a complete waste of £4.99 I will say that it comes pretty close.

I bought the Brow Drama in shade 'Dark Brown' and found that while the formula is nice, the shade isn't really what you would call dark brown. More like 'safe brown' or 'barely there brown'. In fact, it took a good few swipes for it to deposit any real colour at all.

The brush? I JUST DON'T GET IT. Why is it this weird bobble shape? The brush is big, bendy and just plain weird. The size and shape of it means that the colour deposits itself wherever it likes, which is usually just below or just above my brows. Not really a look I tend to go for.
I don't understand why Maybelline didn't just include a good old fashioned spoolie brush which would be much easier to use.

While I'm not impressed with the Brow Drama all is not completely lost as I've been using it as a 'setting gel' over my brow pencil (Rimmel Professional Eye Brow Pencil £2.99) and it seems to hold any strays in place quite well.

I would also say that if you're after a barely-there brow effect, Brow Drama could work quite well for you, so long as you don't mind spending the time tidying up any awol colour.


Have you tried Maybelline Brow Drama? Do you rate is or do you think this is one product that's more drama than it's worth?

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Maybelline Volum' Express Mega Plush Mascara

Maybelline are very, very good at Marketing and the latest addition to their Volum' Express collection is no exception - A mascara called 'Mega Plush' is obviously going to fly off the shelves because that's what women want from a mascara, a touch of plush and bucket loads of mega. Whatever that means.

It wasn't just the greeny-blue packaging with shiny pink writing that made me pick this up, but the promise of plushy goodness caressing my lashes rather than stiff, brittle crumbly stuff.

Mega Plush mascara promises 'Massive & Soft Volume' and while I wouldn't agree that this is exactly what it delivers, it does make a pretty decent everyday mascara.

Once dried (which doesn't take long), lashes actually do feel surprisingly soft. Not baby-bum soft, but almost as soft as they feel in their natural state, sans makeup. This is down to the gel-mousse formula of the mascara that contains 40% less hard waxes than your stock standard mascara.

My only real gripe with this mascara that I simply can't let fly is the 'flexor brush'.

 The jointed part of the wand is very bendy, and intended to work in a shock-absorber like fashion, but I like to have absolute control when it comes to putting things anywhere near my eyes so I find this aspect of the product more gimmicky than useful. Will someone also please tell me why a shock absorber mechanism is required for mascara...

My final verdict is this: Maybelline Volum' Express Mega Plush Mascara is nice, but it's not worth beating someone over the head to get the last tube in Boots. I ended up doing about 5 coats on each eye just to achieve the rather low key look you can see in the pictures. I think Maybelline have definitely nailed the Plush aspect of the mascara but I was expecting a lot more Mega ;)

Maybelline Volum' Express Mega Plush is available in washable and waterproof formulas and has an RRP of £7.99.

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Maybelline The Rocket Volum Express Mascara

I don't know how I managed this but I actually ran out of mascara a few days ago ( nothing but a few scrapes left in my Jemma Kidd mag freebie) so I popped into Boots and picked up Maybelline's latest offering -The Rocket Volum Express Mascara.

While I find the name of this utterly hilarious and slightly irrelevant, there's nothing funny about the product itself. It's actually pretty awesome.

I found that I only need a couple of strokes of the 'jet glide brush with flexi-fine bristles' to achieve long, thick, glossy lashes.

Comparable to Diorshow New Look mascara, the smooth formula of the Rocket is awfully good at lasting all day on my lashes rather than around my eyes and is virtually clump free, which is always a bonus, though of course it does stick the lashes together if you use more than one coat.

Here are some before and after shots featuring my eyes and The Rocket.

No Mascara!

With The Rocket

With The Rocket

With The Rocket

I'm seriously impressed with Maybelline The Rocket Volum Express - have you tried it??

I picked mine up at Boots for an introductory price of £5.99 instead of the rrp of £7.99.

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Giveway! Colour Tattoo + Lip Butter + L'Oreal Liner

Hello!

I thought that since I've just passed the 100 follower mark, I should celebrate by giving one of you lovely people a token of my appreciation.

Though I wish I could give everyone a little something, I am but a lowly bookseller on a budget so there can only be one winner ;)

Here's what I've got for you:

A Maybelline Colour Tattoo Cream Gel Eyeshadow in Eternal Gold

A L'Oreal Super Liner in Black Crystal

A Revlon Lip Butter in Sweet Tart

Want to win these goodies (and a couple of little surprise extras)?

All you have to do is use the form below to enter, then Sit back and wait with your fingers and toes crossed sending positive vibes into the universe

*This comp is open to UK readers only. Sorry :(

Good Luck