Mascara? I barely know her!
- Samantha Lee
- Sep 10, 2024
- 6 min read
Sike, I actually know mascara really well, we've been friends for years. If there was a gun to my head and I was forced to choose only one makeup item for the rest of my life it would be mascara. I've tried at least 20 different mascaras in my young life and have yet to find my GOAT, so of course I had to snatch up all the most popular ones from Japan and field them in the Great War of Mascaras.
I have long and thick eyelashes for Asian standards (am a lucky girl), but also do a lot of shit in the day that often makes my mascara transfer onto my under-eyes (light crying, shoving sunglasses on and smushing my eyelashes, taking naps on public transport, sweating in pilates etc). So here are my reviews on the quality of some Japanese mascaras and how they hold up against the stress I put them through.
Judydoll Volume & Curling Mascara Duo #1
I've always heard good things about Judydoll mascaras and, while it's a Chinese brand, when I saw it at Don Quijote I had to grab one of them. I honestly didn't even fully read the description for this one before buying it so imagine my surprise when I opened it up and found that it had two ends.
If you look at this picture, you'll see that one end is a lash comb, but when I looked closer I realised that the comb has mascara on it as well! I actually used just the comb on one eye first just to see what it would do and I was surprised that it still gave a volumising effect even though I only expected it to separate my lashes.
I used the wand first on the other eye. It was very thin with short bristles, which allowed it to do an amazing even and non-clumpy application. The wand gave a good lengthening effect and still looked super natural, I didn't even feel the need to use the comb because there were no large clumps.
I wore it out and about for 4 hours with no transfer, fallout or clumping. I then played badminton for a super sweaty hour, wiping my face with a towel and all, and STILL the mascara stayed on! I couldn't really see much left on the lower lashes anymore but it was still holding strong on the top with no leakage. (Probably won my game because my opponents were stunted on by my lashes).
Lengthening: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Volumising: 🪄🪄🪄
No clumping: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Waterproof: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Longevity: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Price: $$
Kingdom Tabakan Curl Mascara CB (Clear Black)
I'd never heard of this brand before but it was Number 1 on the Cosme wall of fame for mascara so obviously I had to buy it because these Japanese girls really know their mascara. I was also curious about this wand that didn't look traditionally bristly but more comb-like with ridged plastic instead.
The lack of bristles mean that the mascara liquid comes out quite thick because there's no absorption into the wand, so when I first touched the wand to my lashes there was a brief moment where I was like 'oh shit it's gonna fall into my eyes'. It obviously didn't, I was being dramatic for no reason. It was thick and dark upon application but the little ridges ensured minimal clumping and zero clumps after a few passes with the wand.
I used the smaller side for my lower lashes but it wasn't great because the formula transferred to my lower eyelids immediately. Although it might work well for those with shorter and straighter lower lashes.
It was banger on lasting power though, still looking tight after 8 hours of sunglasses, sweat, a smattering of rain and squinting through dust blowing in my face.
I think the only issue with this would be that it'll be hard to put on on the move or without a steady hand in front of the mirror because the moment the brush touches your skin it won't be a little speck you can brush away but a i-have-to-redo-my-whole-base larger speck.
Lengthening: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Volumising: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
No clumping: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Waterproof: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Longevity: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Price: $$
KISSME Heroine Make Volume Up Mascara Super Waterproof 01 and 02
Unless you've been living under a rock, you would know that Heroine Make is quite goat-ed in the mascara world. Literally being sold at every single department store, you're going to have to take some time to look at the packaging to figure out the differences between the variety this brand carries (seriously, all the packaging looks the SAME between products). That's actually how I ended up with two of the same ones albeit in different shades (01 black and 02 brown).
Despite the hype and reputation of the brand, I wasn't blown away by this. The bristles of the wand are larger than I expected for a Japanese mascara and it had a bit of clumpiness that I couldn't fully comb out with the wand. I like that the formula wasn't too wet and dry enough for me to be able to apply multiple layers.
The brown one really didn't look very different from the black one once applied and was only noticeable when I looked very closely (although may be because my lashes are aggressively black and thick).
Although there was a definite lengthening and volumising effect with no transfer or leakage, there really isn't anything too innovative or outstanding about it - kind of like other western brands I've tried before (e.g. Rare Beauty, Maybelline) but with a much better price point. Very good lasting power though, no leakage or fall out, still looking good after many hours and a sweaty walk through the neighbourhood.
Lengthening: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Volumising: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
No clumping: 🪄🪄🪄
Waterproof: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Longevity: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Price: $
Canmake Metalook Mascara 01
I've seen a lot of people enjoy applicators with no bristles and just a metal bit with ridges, especially for a more natural and unclumpy look, so I picked this up while loitering around the Canmake area at Cosme.
I had my eyelashes lifted a month and a half back so I haven't had to curl my lashes before putting mascara on (also my lashes are more straight than droopy so I hardly curl them anyway). So I really cannot speak on how lifting this one is despite reviews of this type of applicator claiming they provide good lift. That being said, I really found this fascinating! There really were no clumps when I applied this and there was no excess formula that made it runny or hard to apply. Each lash was coated evenly although there wasn't much lengthening. It was a bit more difficult to use on the lower lashes because of how close the applicator had to get to my lower lids and the lack of bristles.
This is perfect for a natural look even though the bottle is kind of small (probably on account of the lack of absorbing bristles). I wore this out and about with sunglasses I could feel poking the ends of my lashes with every blink, yummy brunch, and a very sweaty advanced pilates class. After about 6 hours I came home to apply another round before going out for the night and it gave my lashes even more volume!
Lengthening: 🪄🪄🪄
Volumising: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
No clumping: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Waterproof: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Longevity: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Price: $$
UZU BY FLOWFUSHI MoteLash Clear Black
This one was proof that I'm a sucker for good marketing because the packaging for all of UZU's mascaras was so unique and innovative. They have such a wide variety of types as well as colours but I'm boring so I chose Clear Black. There were other types of black mascaras by the brand but I just chose the one that seemed like would clump the least by virtue of the pictures on the display at Loft.
I had heard nothing about this brand and the brush really looks quite average so I had no expectations when I used this, but I really liked this. Somehow there were no clumps at all when I applied this mascara even though it was bristly and carried a thick amount of formula. It was really easy to use from the inner to outer corners of my lash line and visibly lengthened and increased the volume of my eyelashes. It worked just as well on my lower lashes and looked really nice.
The true test was getting drizzled on while I was outside and WOW not a single run or leak. I was really quite impressed by this mascara and once again by Japanese technology. If you're looking for a more evolved version of the Heroine Make mascara this one is a good shout. I think this might become a staple for me from now on!
Lengthening: 🪄🪄🪄🪄
Volumising: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
No clumping: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Waterproof: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Longevity: 🪄🪄🪄🪄🪄
Price: $$
Thanks for reading my reviews! Despite my great love for mascara I also have to give a shoutout to lash lifts and genetics. Also, it might be more economical for you to just get extensions instead of buying 6 types of mascara...
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