Mascaraland

Marisa Berenson. Vogue, September 1968

Mascara is an essential part of my beauty regime. Through trying practically every brand on the market over the years, I have sought out the brands and wands that are best for my eyes. Last year I spent weeks trying natural brands, but this is a place where non-toxic beauty is just not as effective. I try not to use makeup remover, so washing away mascara with a standard facial cleanser is important to me. I have always used two different mascaras - one for the upper lashes and a different, usually more subtle version for my lower lashes. 

My favorite upper lash mascaras are made by Kevin Aucoin Beauty. Aucoin was one of the first celebrity makeup artists and died tragically in 2002 at the age of 40. My first makeup bibles were the books he published in the late 1990s: The Art of Makeup, Making Faces and Face Forward are classics. His company, Kevin Aucoin Beauty, makes three mascaras. I switch between two types: Volume and Curling. I always like to experiment with dark brown or navy blue mascara, but these are only available in black. 
 

Kevin Aucoin with Christy Turlington

The Curling mascara goes on easily and has a brush shape that will be familiar to most women. The makeup itself washes off as tubes, so the clean-up is very easy. It gives a full but natural look and can be amped up by applying several coats. 

The Volume mascara is a little bit trickier and takes some practice to perfect. It has a very thin brush, so using a lash curler first makes the application easier. It can seem a little spidery at first but has become my favorite as I've learned how to use it. Removal is easy as it also comes off in tubes. 

Elizabeth Taylor

Lisa Eldridge's video on mascara introduced me to some new brands, and while I like all of her recommendations - especially the Chanel Le Volume De Chanel Mascara in Prune, a very cool purple shade that helps my blue eyes look green - my favorite bottom lash mascara is DHC - Mascara Perfect Pro Double Protection. This is also a tube mascara and comes off easily with cleanser. 

A few years ago, I went to a salon for eyelash extensions. While they looked dramatic and cool - a bit like the Marisa Berenson photo above - I didn't like it. They felt very strange and once they fell off, it felt like they stole my real eyelashes away too. It took almost a year for my eyelashes to go back to normal.  

I haven't tried Latisse, the prescription-only lash regrowth serum, but I bought a tube of neuLash, which helped to add both length and volume to my upper lashes. I liked the results and am thinking about buying another. 



Photos from Pinterest.