I can no longer afford Lancôme mascara. What's the next best thing?

[StrangeDream]

I'm on maternity leave and need to adjust my budget accordingly glares at DH

Have used Lancôme Grandiose since it came out and I LOVE it. However, I can no longer justify £25 on a tube of mascara now I'm on maternity pay so I'm looking for an alternative, under £15.

What's best? I have half decent lashes but they need fattening and lengthening.

Thanks in advance

What if every penny counts? What if this is one of many spending changes I need to make over my mat leave?

Strange nothing shocks me on here but even I was surprised to see an innocent make-up thread flipped like that. I think it's very useful. I'm a beauty addict and always looking for champagne products with lemonade funding. :o Mind you if a product works for you, you like it and love it then why not treat yourself? You could always pretend to cut back on other luxuries. Or ask loved ones to give you gift vouchers for whatever store you buy it from. I can't ever imagine being parted from my Nico Rodriguez perfume which is dear for me. So dh or my mum treats me for birthdays or Christmas.

Ooh it's actually just shy of £21 on Amazon. The mascara that is. Is the wand any good? It's like a s shape.

Maybelline - the one in the black tube or Max Factor are fab mascaras! Love either of them and they're usually on offer somewhere like boots or sainsburys

benefit theyre real

sharon Glad you have found the thread useful and don't think I'm a mascara troll

The Lancôme one is lovely indeed. Wand takes some getting used to but it does pick up the straggly eyelashes on the inside and outside of my eyes. I think I mentioned earlier that it dries out rather quickly though which isn't great for £25.

I've still not tried my new Maybelline one. Went swimming today so no need for it. Will give it a go tomorrow.

I get the whole 'treat yourself' logic. If these lower price mascaras turn out to be shite I'll be stealth-buying Grandiose again

Have tried Benefit They're Real and was totally underwhelmed.

Like a pp, I love L'Oreal telescopic, the one in the silver tube. Have tried many others, but always come back to it. The only other one loved as much was a Bourjois one that had a battery operated rotating brush. Sadly they discontinued it and I haven't been able to find anything to replace it. Have tried the Avon ones but found they seemed dry from the minute they were opened.

I hate Avon mascara. I had a gorgeous one a while back. It did look like I was wearing falsies. However it dried out within a week. I tried reviving it but it just wasn't the same.

It's a shame you don't really get samples of mascara. I know by the third/fourth use if I'll be faithful. :o

I always go back to maybelline pink and green. Find it doesn't clump or irritate. One coat, let it dry and recoat.

I thought that about samples but then I used a sample of an Estée Lauder one that was really amazing so bought the full sized and it was rubbish. 😕 Very strange. Maybe it was just the small brush that I liked.

Update from me...pretty pleased with the Falsies. Not as black or intense as the Lancôme but tbh for £8 I'm happy. Thanks MN

What brand is the Falsies?

I've never got this huge variation in mascara.

It's just black stuff that coats your lashes, how different can it be?? Brushes are different shapes but the actual mascara....

Try No 7 or even Rimmel, they're all pretty good.

Nope, it's all very different.

dancer There's huge variation in mascaras.

The Falsies is a Maybelline one.

Thank you

I've been meaning to ask (and this thread seems as good as any other) how do you 'revive' old mascara? Do you add something to the bottles or heat them up in a glass of warm water??

You should by new,if it's dried up it's old and therefore needs to be chucked.

Whatcha You can stand the tube in hot water and it sometimes revives it enough for a couple more wears. Handy when you can't get to the shops or have to wait for an online order.

Max Factor Masterpiece for me too, the brush separates properly, it covers well but not too thickly. Also it comes in a real brown, not brown black.
Only problem is that the tube does dry out fairly quickly, not sure if this is because there isn't much in there or because of the consistency/ingredients. But then we're supposed to change our mascara regularly anyway I suppose.