Makeup Monday: Milani Easyliner Glitter and ELF Exact Lash Mascara

 

 The world of nail polish has slowly but surely pulled me into the world of makeup over time. I am well on my way to adding "makeup junkie" to my "nail junkie" status.  Whereas I used to only buy and read about polish, I now enjoy reading makeup reviews and watching videos about makeup on You Tube. One of the deficits I've noticed since I've started buying more makeup is that there are so many varieties of makeup, some items just slip between the cracks. They don't have any information, good or bad, out about them on the web. I tend to pick up my makeup at bargain retailers like the Dollar Tree, so oftentimes if I can't find info on a product, I take a plunge and buy it. I've decided to start posting more about these kind of products so that more people like me can find out if makeup is worth buying or not!
     The 2 items I want to share with you today are Milani Easyliner Glitter and ELF Exact Lash mascara, both of which I found at Dollar Tree. In a nutshell, I'd say spend the dollar on the eyeliner but skip the mascara. If you would like to know more about each product, plus see some pictures, jump!

ELF Exact Lash mascara wand compared to a typical wand from Wet n Wild

The E.L.F. exact lash mascara is a product designed for getting to the lower lashes or the hard to reach corners of the upper lash line. It’s supposed to be similar to products like the Clinique Bottom Lash mascara. I found it for $1 at Dollar Tree, and since I had been thinking about buying a mascara for my lower lash line anyway, I went ahead and purchased it. It’s from the studio line of E.L.F. products, so it usually retails for $3.  However, after watching this You Tube review of the product, I’m ready to return it. I’d say it’s not worth the effort.

Here is Josh’s review in a nutshell.  E.L.F Exact lash mascara is water based, so it tends to smudge very easily. It has a wet formula, and its ingredients don’t have parabins but do have other preservatives. In addition to smudging easily, this mascara clumped very quickly in Josh’s demonstration of it.  I found the review to be very thorough, and will be checking out more of Josh’s videos.   He does not begin the review of Exact Lash mascara until halfway through, so just scroll to the halfway point if you do want to watch the review just for his thoughts on the Exact Lash.

To switch gears a bit, here is a swatch of the Milani Easyliner in Precious Silver. I neglected to take a picture of the applicator itself, but the Easyliner pen is a retractable pen that does not require sharpening. It features a smudge brush on the other side of the pen for smudging out your liner. For another review of this collection of eyeliners, including pictures of the pens themselves, check out this post from Vampy Varnish.

My opinion of this product is that it is pretty good, especially for a dollar! It smudged slightly on my arm after rubbing it, but not so drastically that I think it's unworkable. It has soft and smooth application to the eye.  I actually quite like the silver color- I feel like it has some of the brightening effect of a white liner, but makes for a more interesting and glamourous look. I do think it there's some smudging after a full day of wear, but nothing super drastic. It's not enough to stop me from recommending this eyeliner, which has been popping up recently at various Dollar Tree locations.

Bottom line:

ELF Exact Lash mascara......................skip
Milani Easyliner in Precious silver....... splurge