Maybelline’s Pulse Perfection

aybellAs it’s pretty clear from here, i’m not a fan of Maybelline’s mascaras. But it so happened that a friend had received samples of this mascara which I was more than happy to try out since it was free.

I have to say that Maybelline’s Pulse Perfection is actually pretty good. The brush, according to Maybelline, vibrates 7,000 times per minute in 7 synchronized actions, which is meant to separate all the lashes and coat them evenly.

The mascara was quite successful on that count, perhaps partly due to the mascara comb which I quite like. The vibrations left a slightly itchy tingle though, but that sensation faded in a few seconds.

Pulse Perfection also claims to achieve 7 effects including curling and lengthening, while its bold black formula promises to have a striking result.

I’m not so sure on all those claims, but it did lengthen and the waterproof formula did not smudge or fade. The latter especially is one of my pet peeves with Maybelline’s (and Loreal’s) mascaras in general, and the fact that there were actually two aspects of a Maybelline mascara which i was satisfied with was success in itself.

Hence, let me take a moment before making this historical statement of (more or less) endorsement – the Maybelline Pulse Perfection will not disappoint if you’re looking for a lengthening mascara and can’t resist the temptation of trying out its vibrating wand.

Nivea Angel Star Soft Souffle – avoid!

When will i learn not to trust products that are attractively packaged? Especially when some internet work post-purchase reveals that the product is marketed at teens – and i’m well past that stage.

I was at Watsons hoping to buy some body cream as I’d decided that the aircon in The Office is doing too much damage to my skin. Nivea hasn’t let me down before, and when i saw this really pretty Angel Star Soft Souffle with raspberry scent that claimed to moisturise for 24 hours, I thought I had to give it a go.

I should have bought one of the really small samples available on hindsight, but there and then I thought, ‘How bad can Nivea’s products be?’. Well, there’s a first for everything, as this Angel Star Soft Souffle is quite a let down.

The scent is alright enough, though I think some might find it just a tad overwhelming. Its ‘youghurt-like consistency’ really means that to scoop it up you have to poke your finger into the cream, and that it’s thin, watery and glides over your skin.

I suppose this sort of cream works alright to retain moisture in one’s skin, but it does very little to actually moisturise parched, dry skin. The cream doesn’t seep in but instead sits as a layer – a greasy one – atop the skin, a quality which was my beef with the Vaseline Intensive Moisture Locking Lotion too. The cream also warmed my skin for about 10 minutes after application, which would be useful in colder climates but less so in Singapore.

My favourite Nivea product for dry skin is still the Nivea Soft Intensive Moisturising Cream below. It’s thick, rich consistency moisturises really well; too bad I didn’t notice it in the store today.

Oh well. At least the soft souffle smells nice?

NB: It’s been nearly 2 months since I made this review. The smell is milder now and after the first few applications, the cream no longer had that warming effect. My skin still isn’t as moisturised as I’d like it to be, but i suppose Nivea Angel Soft is a so-so product. I’d not condemn it, but wouldn’t recommend anyone buy it – would suggest they purchase the Nivea Soft Intensive Moisturising Cream instead.

one chance too many

i used Maybelline’s mascaras many years ago when i first started wearing makeup, but gave up fairly quickly as Maybelline’s mascaras smudged, didn’t hold the curl and in general just weren’t very good.

i experimented with several higher-end brands like Elizabeth Arden (holds the curl, volumises), Estee Lauder (overrated), YSL (lengthens, volumises and smudges like water on ink) and Dior (nice smell, volumises but smudges), before going for and staying with Majolica Majorca (downright awesome and cheap to boot) for about 3 to 4 years.

A few weeks ago, Urban ran an article reviewing some of the new mascaras on the market, and i felt the old itch again – i was once quite obsessed about mascaras.

I immediately eliminated those that were too expensive – no point spending $45 on shu uemura when Majolica is already wonderful and $20 cheaper – and was left with Rimmel’s 3-way mascara and Maybelline’s Magnum Volume Express Super Film. A quick search online revealed that Maybelline’s had better reviews than Rimmel’s (and cheaper too); itching to buy new mascara, i decided to ignore past bad experiences with Maybelline and give it a second chance.

Alas, it was one chance too many. Despite its claims otherwise, Super Film clumped quite badly – which I attribute to the poorly designed, overly huge brush that failed to coat my lashes properly. More shockingly, not only did it fail to hold the curl in my lashes, they actually drooped (!!) because of the collagen and super film crap in the formula.

I’ve sworn off Maybelline forever – I even gave Super Film two tries - and never will I have the urge to try it out again. Thing is, I never understood why Maybelline gets such raves on mascara forums. There’s no point buying a cheap drugstore brand when it doesn’t work at all; mascaras like Fibrewig are also drugstore brands though slightly more expensive, but i’m sure one can afford the extra $5 or so to get something actually that yields results.

My absolute favourite mascara is Majolica Majorca’s Lash Expander Frame Plus.

 

It comes with a two-way wand, which is a lot less hassle than I’d initially feared. It volumises and lengthens, and holds the curl the entire day without smudging. To me, the ability to maintain the curl is very important in a mascara as my lashes slope downwards; Majolica’s mascaras are the only ones that actually perform as promised. And the ‘Plus’ in this Lash Expander is that the formula is jet black, which gives ultra definition and colour to my eyelashes.

I’ve also recently tried the sample version of Clinique’s Lash Power Volumising Mascara.

This holds the curl pretty good, and although the volumising effect is less dramatic than Majolica’s, it does the job and feels lightweight and barely there. It’s good for girls who like to feel as if they’re not wearing any mascara, and the brush does an excellent job of evenly coating all the lashes – you can actually feel your lashes being coated nicely as you move the brush in a zigzag motion!

I’m not sure of the retail price for this one, but I have another brand new sample sized (3ml) tube for anyone who’d like it :)