Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Extravagant: A Beautiful Disaster

This review has been a long time coming, but it took me a while to formulate my thoughts on the product. Make Up For Ever’s Smoky Lash Extravagant ($28CAD) is the brand’s newest mascara offering, and I was stoked to try it out when I received it about a month ago.  Before I get to the review, let’s see exactly what the product is all about, shall we?

Described as a ‘precision mascara that adds volume, length, and curl,’ Smoky Lash Extravagant claims to deliver ‘long-lasting wear with no clumping in one stroke.’  Without getting too technical, it is supposed to contain ultra-black pigments, and the cone-shaped brush allows the tip to separate lashes while the rounded base creates ‘extravagant volume.’  The difference between the original version and the Extravagant (aside from the visible differences in the brushes) appears to be the ability of the latter to separate the lashes more effectively, as well as offering even more volume.

Being a pretty serious Make Up For Ever fan, I was eager to try the mascara out right away.  Sadly, my first (and several subsequent) tries with the product were less than ideal.  After application, in which I spent several minutes trying to correct the ‘damage,’ my lashes looked tangled and not all all what I had hoped.  I simply could not get it to work for me with any success.

First attempt – see, wonky!

Discouraged, I spoke with the PR rep for the brand about my disastrous experience, and she suggested a few tips (which included applying the original Smoky Lash first and then adding the Extravagant version on top) to see if they would improve the performance.  Happily, I did find success during my second go-around.  While I didn’t find using the original Smoky Lash in combination with the Extravagant effective, I did discover that after a few uses the formula seemed to ‘settle’ somewhat (a phenomenon I’ve noticed with a few mascaras) and it applied fairly nicely to the lashes.  They look separated and yet somehow full, and the brush gives a nice rounded shape to my lashes that I really enjoy.  It’s relatively tenacious and I only notice slight smudging at the outer corners of my eyes (which are leak-prone as it is) on really hot, humid days.

My apologies for the difference in lighting – the photos were taken on different days.

To be clear, there are still times when I use this mascara that my lashes just do not seem to behave.  If I fuss with it too much, or go in for a second coat, all hell breaks loose.  I don’t know if it’s the shape of the brush or the formula (I think it might dry a little too quickly), but every so often my lashes get bunched up and look a mess.  However, despite that hiccup, I find myself reaching for this mascara the most out of the handful of other ones I own, so clearly I must like it 😛  Its a bit tempermental and unpredictable at times, but that can make for the most interesting relationships, no?  😉

For those interested, here’s the ingredient list (click to enlarge):

Have you had an experience with this mascara?  And does anyone else find that mascaras tend to improve after a few uses?

*Products were provided by the PR company/brand for my unbiased consideration.