Salma Hayek Nuance Full Effect Ultra-Volumizing Mascara Review

So I am sure most of you know that CVS recently had a big introductory sale for the Salma Hayek line, Nuance. It's a fairly extensive line, and exclusive to CVS. She has cosmetics, skincare, haircare, and body care.  Although the cosmetics range isn't huge, she still has everything from primer to lipstick and translucent setting powder. Basically, everything you need from head to toe. Naturally, with a buy one get one free sale, I had to stock up. I got a little from each of the 4 areas, and overall I was impressed with her products. And I love Salma, and I enjoyed the reason she was inspired to do the line. 

"My line is inspired by my grandmother, who dedicated her life to keeping women beautiful. My products are designed to help every woman enhance the nuances that define her individual beauty, and make my grandmother proud."

She used very interesting ingredients in her line, like agave and meadowfoam.  If you have not had a chance to pick up anything, I would definitely recommend several items. I will post more reviews soon. There were also some samples on some displays. I managed to get some for tinted moisturizer, body cream and firming body cream. And the body products came with a  $2 off coupon. Nice!  And I have to comment on the packaging. She really paid attention to detail on the packaging she used. She kept the design consistent throughout and it is very understated yet elegant.


Onto the review. Unfortunately I am starting with a negative review.  I am a mascara fanatic, and the more volume the better. I typically do not prefer a light, day look. My current fave is Maybelline the Falsies mascara. 


Salma had two mascaras in her line, a defining and volumizing. So I went straight for the volumizing in Black.  It seemed to be a pretty good formula based on the information on the CVS site. 

"Silk powder thickens and strengthens your lashes without clumping. Vitamins A, C & E condition and nourish. Meadowfoam, chamomile, sweet almond oil, sodium hyaluronate & panthenol prevent your lashes from becoming dry and brittle."

The packaging was nice, seemed pretty sturdy and pretty.  Sadly, this is where my being impressed with this mascara ended.  I could tell by the brush that it would not deliver on the volume claim.  The bristles were just too far apart. I do like that it's not the increasingly popular molded brush, and is the traditional bristle.  I also like that its on the shorter side. I don't really like really long brushes. My eyes are not that big! lol. I digress.

The formula seemed nice, not too thick or dry, and it did not clump at all. I applied three coats, and still could not build up this formula. The brush did provide some length and definition, but this is a volume mascara.  It is nice for someone looking for a light day look. On the plus side, it did not flake, and was easy to remove.  Sorry for the creepy eyeball but I didn't pluck the brows.

Overall I would give this mascara a C. It has a nice formula (didn't flake or smudge and easy to remove) and package, but it did not provide the volume I was expecting even after 3 coats. My lashes looked sparse. If you like a lighter mascara that does not give that full on false lash look, then this is for you.  Otherwise, this was a pass for me. 


Luckily, there were way more positives to her line than negatives, so look forward to reading more!


This mascara retails for $9.79 on cvs.com.

Maybelline The Falsies Flared Review

Sorry it has been FOREVER since my last post. I am still getting used to blog updating. I wanted to share with you a review on Maybelline's Falsies Flared mascara.

I dont have any personal pix so here is the site:
http://www.maybelline.ca/products/116/eyes/mascara/volum-express-falsies-flared-washable/very-black/0?shadeId=607

I want to start by saying that I love the first falsies mascara so really wanted to love this one as well. I wasn’t thrilled with the formula at first so I tried it for a week to see if it would settle in. It didn’t really.

Formula/Brush: Formula seems ok. Was on the wetter side which is typical for Maybelline. I dont like dry mascara so I was happy. And it was washable so I really like that. The brush seemed like it would be nice. The first falsies is curved like a spoon top to bottom if that makes sense. Now they switched the spoon so that its' side to side. So it's basically a flat wall of bristle coming at you. The brush is good for length and curling the lashes. It’s a regular brush, not molded plastic so that’s also nice. It also has a flexible middle that allows the brush to bend, which is interesting..so the brush gives with your lashes.

Application and Wear: This is where it all went downhill. It seemed to apply ok. At first it wasn’t as dark or deep as the regular falsies. Almost too light of a look. But I think that’s because it gave a more separate and defined, lenghthened lash. So with the definition it lost the bulk volume. I would say its more length than volume. I used three coats. It didn’t flake at all so that was good. But it did curl the ends of my lashes down, so it seems the formula is heavier than the regular falsies. This really was a let down.
Overall…I thought it would give more of a full look, but it didn’t. It gave more length which is ok but I don't like mascara curling the lashes down. I give this one a C.