Sunday, February 01, 2009

My take on L’Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara

I’ve been approached by Matchstick (a word of mouth marketing company) to do product reviews several times. Unlike most of the companies who contact me, Matchstick required me to complete a survey first to ensure I’m part of the demographic they are targeting for their clients. In the past, I’ve never made it past the survey stage because of my age.

Things have changed. This time around, I wrote back and asked Danah, their new blogger relations co-ordinator, why they keep contacting me since it was a waste of everyone’s time. I also mentioned that you – yes, all of you reading this post right now – don’t belong to one age band and it was short-sighted of them to discount Bargainista because I am older than the top of their age band for most products. (People who follow this blog are anywhere from teens to at least mid-50s.) She approached me because of a mascara program for L’Oreal Paris. I assured her women their 40s still wear mascara. ;-)

Danah and I met at a Toronto Fashion Bloggers’ Brunch. I talked to her about blogger influence, the next day she had a chat with her client and they decided to include women in my age group in the program. Well, I’m still not convinced they made this decision for the right reasons but I was happy to participate, get a better sense of what Matchstick was all about and try some new make-up.

I was quite impressed when I received a cosmetic bag (“The Glam Kit”) filled with two containers of L’Oréal Paris European version Double Extension Beauty Tubes Mascara. the product I was asked to review and some other stuff:
• 1 x L’Oréal Paris Cosmetic Bag
• 1 x L’Oréal Paris Cosmetic Brush
• 1 x L’Oréal Paris Eye Shadow Quad in Grey
• 1 x Carbon Black Liquid Liner
• 1 x Guide to Smokey Eyes

You may remember it wasn’t that long ago I reviewed another new mascara. So I hope you don’t mind if I make a few comparisons.

I’ve been spending a lot of money on mascara so I wasn’t expecting much from L’Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara – it’s available for $14.99 at most drug and grocery stores. I’ve been using this product for about a month now. (I figured I needed to try it for a while to give it a fair shot.) At first, I was pleasantly surprised. The biggest benefit was this product didn’t smudge. I wear contact lenses and usually buy waterproof mascara. It still smudges. Guess what this cheap stuff that isn’t waterproof doesn’t smudge at all.

Similar to the Lancôme XXL Cils Booster, the first step of the L’Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara is a white cream I applied to my lashes. The second step is a black mascara. I like how both tubes are part of one package but I found the application awkward because the two brushes emerge from the middle and the cream and mascara products need to be screwed apart from either end. It would be easier if the brushes were contained in the tops like typical mascara tubes.

I really liked the staying power of this product. It lasts all day and stays on all night if you’re like me and sometimes to tired to remove your make-up before bed. (shh!). My eyelashes looked long and lush. It also washes off very easily with soap and water.

What I didn’t like was my eyelashes looked a too thick and unnatural. (I much prefer the appearance of my eyelashes after an application of Lancôme Oscillating Mascara.) I also found my eyelashes were more likely to fallout while I was washing it off.

At first, when the product was fresh it had a perfect consistency. Not to thin or thick. After two week, it became very gummy. I guess that’s where it shows the difference between premium beauty counter products and drugstore brands.

I’ve had a lot of eyelash experience in the past few months. Coincidently, I wore professionally applied lash extensions for my cousin’s wedding in December. If you watch this video, the make-up artist claims you’ll get the same results from Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara. The lash extensions looked natural. They made me look like I had more lashes. I disagree that Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara produces the same results.

Expert Advice

Over to you…
I’m not ready to give up on L’Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara entirely. I don’t miss raccoon eyes. So if you know of another mascara that also staying power but maintains a fresh consistency until the last application, please leave a comment and let me know.

Save $5…
If you’d like to try L’Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara and get a coupon mailed to for $5 off, you can sign up online and enter the code “2HMT” in the upper right-hand corner. I’m not sure about you but I think it would make a lot more sense and be more eco-friendly if you could print a coupon right off their website. Don’t you? Besides, then you could buy it right away

If you’ve tried L’Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara, Matchstick would love to get your feedback too. Please take a couple minutes to complete this survey.

One more thing: Matchstick, I’m so glad you let me participate in this program but I find the process you put your bloggers (and “influencers”) through to onerous. I much prefer trying products without any strings attached. Oh ya, and I haven’t received follow-up phone call from you yet. Your instructions stated you’d be calling me for feedback about a week after I received “The Glam Kit”. Several of the links you’ve sent me are broken too.
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9 comments:

  1. Anonymous8:50 pm

    I haven't tried the products you've discussed here, but I really like Clinique Lash Power, as does my teenage daughter.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous10:06 pm

    hey Eden, have you tried Xover Girl mascara? I use the Volume Exact and it doesn't give me raccoon eyes. Lash Exact might be fir you if you like a more natural look.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Donna and Henna, Thank you both for stopping by and making recommendations. I'll have to take a look at your suggestions. I haven't used either of them before.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous5:46 pm

    First, thanks for sticking up for the not-in-our-twenties crowd! I'm 40+ and I Wear Mascara! :)

    The price appeals to this money coach and I'm out of mascara so I'll give it a try.

    I've never paid for the pricier kind, and am interested that you find it really does give additional value. Any reco's and approx price? (eg. any opinion on Mac mascara?)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nancy, Henna is the real expert on make-up. I've been a fan of Lancome products for years. I haven't tried Mac. I'm guessing it's between $20-$25 per tube.

    I'm wearing Great Lash by Maybelline in my new photo - it was professionally applied when I was in Vancouver. It's a long-standing fave with make-up artists and it's less than $5.

    Let us know what you decide and how it turns out for you.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous11:13 am

    Hi Eden,

    Thanks for standing up for those of us who are committed to ageless style! I have not been able to wear mascara for years because of smudging, but the Clinique Lash Power has been a gift from the angels. No smudging and lasts the whole day.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Deidre, Thanks for stopping by.

    Of course I have to stand up for those us of who believe in ageless beauty and style. With two votes for Clinque Lash Power, I think I'll have to give it a try.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous9:57 am

    Eden,

    Thanks for the product info on the mascara. My son is getting married this fall and I have a real concern about my eyeliner and mascara. I cry watching strangers get married on TV, so I am fairly confident tears are going to be a given on this special day. I need to find the best cry proof eyeliner and mascara so I don't look like a racoon in the family pictures. I am considering using a professional makeup person for the day of the wedding, but if I could do it myself that would be awesome. Thanks for you help.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Anonymous,
    Congrats on your son's upcoming weddding!

    I ended up having some trouble with L'Oreal Double Extend Tubes and Lancome Oscillating mascara. I've switched to Clinique Lash Power because I needed to use a hypoallergenic product. Instead of using a primer or booster (the white goop in Double Extend Tubes and Lancome's CILS Booster, I've been using a product by Clairns called Double Fix Mascara - a transparent gel that goes on over mascara.

    This new combination is more expensive than L'Oreal and less expensive than the combination of Lancome products I'd been using. It's a lot less goopy too. I recommend it highly - you can use it on top of any mascara and even as an eyebrow tamer.

    ReplyDelete

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