Pammy Blogs Beauty: L'Oreal Double Extend Eye Illuminator: review





Friday, April 8, 2011

L'Oreal Double Extend Eye Illuminator: review

Hello dolls! I am here with another mascara review for you today! Have ya'll tried this new mascara by L'Oreal?

Mascara is such a "must have" item for me. What can I say, I "need" it! My short, blond, and sparse lashes need all the help they can get!

So, what do I look for in a mascara?










  • It must be smudge-free! I can't stress this enough!!! Most mascaras smudge *terribly* on me. This is usually single biggest deciding factor on a mascara. I mean, it could do wonders for my lashes, but if it smudges, then I won't ever wear it. I mean, why risk ruining your painstakingly applied concealer with under eye smudges! FYI: I have terrible dark circles and really put some time and effort into my application and selection of under eye concealer (see my Top Concealers for Dark Under Eye Circles post). The "smudge factor" is the total "deal breaker" for me. So, yes, the Ultimate Determining Factor is the "Smudge Factor"! 
  • Volume and Length: Yes, I am looking for both! I need volume, length, and color for my "puny" lashes. I need all the help I can get! My lashes need some "oomph"! 
  • Clump free: I want to get nice separation of the lashes with minimal "work" and no clumping. I don't want to have to comb out my lashes after mascara application. I want separation while applying. 
  • Brush preferences: I generally prefer the "rubberized" brush heads over the spoolie/bristle style brushes. I find that these rubberized heads provide ideal separation of lashes. Otherwise, I just generally prefer a large brush head. The bigger the brush head the better. I just "feel" like my lashes are getting bigger when using a bigger brush.   

For my review of L'Oreal Paris Double Extend Eye Illuminator Mascara, Black Crystal please keep reading after the jump!


Okay, I'll admit, its been awhile since I have tested a L'Oreal Mascara. Now, I must mention, L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara is my former HG mascara. But, my ever since discovering the joys of using a mascara with a rubberized brush head a-la my recent HG Cover Girl Lash Blash Fusion and HMM (Honorable Mention Mascara: HM=one step away from HG, tee-hee, new term!) Maybelline Volum'Express One-by-One, I have strayed from my former HG Voluminous. So, needless to say, I was excited to test this out!!!

The Mascara Itself:
  • This is a double-ended mascara. This product contains two brush heads in one mascara tube. So, this mascara has two brushes one on each end of the tube. 

  • The "step 1" side contains the base mascara formula and a basic spoolie brush. The brush is pretty big, fat, and dense (which I like). The formula itself is your basic mascara formula. You get pretty good separation, as well as some length, and volume from this side's brush and formula. You are not going to get massive length or volume, but I am pleased with the results. Overall, it is a very natural look. 
  • The "step 2" side contains a unique ball-tipped spoolie brush with a topcoat mascara formula. The formula itself contains micro shimmer particles that are visible on the brush. However, once applied, I really can't detect the shimmer/sparkle. I found that I actually prefer wearing this mascara without the "step 2" coat. When I do apply the "step 2" coat, I think it works better if you apply "step 2" to just the tips of your lashes, otherwise you might get some clumping.  
The Wear:


Well my dears, I am happy to report that I am totally pleased with the wear of this mascara! As I mentioned previously, I have a terrible time with mascaras smudging on me. Well, not the case with this one! This mascara wears all day without smudging underneath my eyes!!! So, a big "yay" for that! However, I did notice some very slight flaking towards the outer corner of my eyes at the very end of the day when I wore the topcoat. So, my preference is to wear this mascara without the topcoat (as I find that the shimmer effect of the topcoat is hard to detect anyway).

Overall impression: I like this mascara (the "step 1" side only) and will continue to wear it! Its not HG material, but the "step 1" side gives good separation and some decent length and volume. I have no issues with clumping nor smudging, so I am super pleased about that.  While the topcoat was hard to detect in the Black Crystal shade, I am curious to try the other shades including the "Black Copper" formula which is supposed to bring out "blue eyes" (and it might show up a bit more). I must admit, the Black Crystal "step 2" coat is pretty useless. You can't really see it and I prefer the look and feel of my lashes when I wear  the "Step 1" mascara on its own.

As always, thanks so much for reading! Stay beautiful!!!


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6 comments:

Sara said...

WOW! sounds great :) will try it out sometime.

Unknown said...

@Sara-Hey! Thanks for stopping by! :) I hope this product works for you!

@Priscilla-Yes, agreed, it is pricey for a drugstore mascara....esp with Step 2 not really being worth it...however, I am curious to try the other shades as they may show more and I like the formula #1 part. :) xoxo girl!!!

MakeupByAngel said...

Thanks for the review. I have been looking at buying these for a while now. I love the idea of it but wasn't sure of the formula. Thanks again

Unknown said...

@froggistyle73-You are welcome! :)

Phyrra said...

Thanks for the review. I'd been curious about this mascara.

Unknown said...

Anytime Phyrra!



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