Blinc Kiss Me Mascara and Lash Primer Review

Blinc Kiss Me Mascara is one of the top selling mascaras in Japan. Rather than being oil based, like most mascaras, this mascara is water based, containing an "acrylic copolymer" which coats and forms tiny "tubes" around your eyelashes that do not come off until you wash your face and apply light pressure (read: no smudging or smearing). This mascara is also great for contact wearers or those with sensitive eyes. Celebrities like Rachael McAdams and Lucy Liu swear by this mascara. From the official Blinc website:

"Kiss Me Mascara is the original mascara invented to form tiny water-resistant “tubes” around your lashes rather than painting them like conventional mascaras. Once applied, the tubes bind to your lashes and cannot run, smudge, clump, or flake, even if you cry or rub your eyes.

Kiss Me Mascara will add both volume and length to give you a radiant natural look that lasts all day. Only when you are ready for removal, the tubes will effortlessly slide off your lashes into your hand without the use of a harsh makeup remover.

All it takes is the combination of lots of warm water and gentle pressure, from your fingertips, a washcloth or water pressure (i.e. shower) and the tubes will slide off your lashes effortlessly. Upon removal you will actually see the tiny tubes in your hand!

Kiss Me Mascara has been clinically tested to be non-irritating making it ideal for sensitive eyes, contact lens wearers, and active people in search of a mascara whose look, hold and ease of removal is without compromise."

--http://www.blincinc.com/us/kiss_me_mascara.php

I picked up a tube of this along with the Blinc Lash Primer from beauty.com during their Friends & Family event (yay for discounts!). I really wanted a mascara that would not smudge under my eyes while lengthening my lashes. I have oily eyelids, and somehow my eyeshadow always ends up under my eyes, even when I apply eyeshadow primer.

I've been using this mascara for a good one to two months now and I am very impressed with the no smudge factor. Though this mascara does not particularly lengthen or volumnize my short little lashes as it claims, it does a fairly good job of darkening and defining the lashes. However, I can't use as many coats as I'd like (only one or two) or my lashes will clump. Also, the product doesn't dry too quickly, so remember not to pile on the coats, or you'll get little smears under your eyes when you blink (unless you're an owl and can hold your eyes open for long periods of time. =p ) The good news is, though, that any messes or mistakes can be easily wiped away. I personally am horrible with applying mascara on my lower lashes, so touching the wand on my skin is not surprising. To remove it, you wait until your mascara has dried, get a clean cotton swab or tissue, and just gently brush it away. The mascara will come right off your skin without needing water or makeup remover. Amazing, right?

I took a nap with this mascara on and the stuff stayed in place. Amazing. But though the mascara doesn't smudge, it CAN flake off if you rub your eyes or apply it too heavily. The good thing is these flakes are easily brushed away and you don't have to fret over using makeup remover, only to be forced to reapply your makeup. However, despite the tube/no smear technology, definitely do NOT treat this mascara as a waterproof mascara--if you cry or your eyes tear, it's possible the tubes will slide off when you blink; at best, the lashes will begin sticking to each other in little spikes.

As for the primer, it goes on cloudy-white (semi viscous?) as reviewed by users on beauty.com...the formula is more like a clear mascara or mascara base, if anything. It doesn't use fibers, which is good for me, since the white fibers in primers still show on the tops of my lashes no matter how many coats of mascara I apply. However, this is also a con, since the fiber-less formula means that there isn't a huge difference in length and volume when the mascara and primer are applied together. The directions also say to wait 30 seconds between coats of primer, and it's important to apply additional coats when the primer is still slightly wet, and not dry (unless you want stiff spiky lashes). Another downside is that I can't curl my lashes before applying the primer, since it undoes the curl. I'm still working that out, but I'll continue to use both because I have the suspicion that Blinc mascara alone is probably pretty drying and harsh on the eyelashes. The primer actually doubles as a conditioner, so it seems logical to apply it prior to the mascara.

To remove, I simply wash my face like I normally do, and then run my fingertips gently down my closed eyelids. The tubes slip right off onto my cheeks. Be REALLY gentle when you apply pressure, cause you don't want your lashes to fall off. This is where I don't like this mascara, because my lashes fall out really easily. When washing off the product, I've noticed the lashes coming off with the tubes, which is NOT good when you have short stubby lashes like me.

I want to compare this with Clinique Lash Power Mascara and Imju Fiberwig Mascara (which is apparently the #1 selling mascara in Japan!) soon, so I'm going to purchase and do an update soon. I like that these two mascaras don't have the tube technology, but are also formulated not to smear or smudge, so they should be easier to remove/easier on my wee lashes. Updates soon.