It was a sad day when my favourite felt tip eyeliner finally dried up and I couldn't ignore it any longer - it was time to look for a new one. Given my beloved eyeliner was a random brand from a Memebox (O& Easy Brush Liner) I wasn't going to be able to just pick that up on my next trip to the high street. It's not even available online, which is saying a lot.
So it was high time for me to find an alternative that doesn't involve scouring Memeswap boards and paying international postage rates. To that end, I did a bit of a Google to find out fellow bloggers recommendations before heading down to Boots.
I ended up coming home with the Maybelline Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner Pen and the Maybelline Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner, both in black.
Maybelline Lasting Drama Black Shock Gel Liner ¦¦ This is the much-hyped 'dupe' for the Benefit They're Real! Push Up Liner, and I had to hunt around a fair bit to find a Boots that had this in stock. I haven't tried the Benefit product, but I've read a lot of mixed reviews about it. So I approached this with a healthy amount of caution and an open mind. I gave it a go on a few separate occasions, and here's my opinion on the matter: I think this is a fairly decent product if you are the kind of person who has endless patience for eyeliner, and can afford to spend a good 15 minutes perfecting your cat flick. But that's just not me. One of the reasons I loved my O& eyeliner so much is that it was so quick and easy. The Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner is actually more effort than whipping out an actual gel liner and brush (my favourite here), and for that reason I just can't see me getting a lot of wear out of this.
Maybelline Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner ¦¦ Whereas the product above was a fail due to personal preference, this is a fail because I just think it's bad. I'm surprised, because I've seen so many good reviews of this - and it leads me to think I may have a faulty product on my hands. The tip is too dry, it skips across my eyes, and is really difficult to apply never mind get a smooth line. It also does that thing where, when you try and apply it over the top of a line you just drew, it ends up wiping off the existing product rather than putting more on top of it. Does that make sense? Anyway it's basically a disastrous experience from beginning to end. I've tried adding some moisture to the felt tip, shaking it, applying over a primer, no primer, no eyeshadow, all kinds of things. The same thing happens. As you can see from the swatch above, the line is inconsistent at best and absent at worst. Sadly drugstores in the UK don't accept product returns so I'll be putting this straight in the bin. Despite the good reviews elsewhere, I'll be trying other products from other brands before I dare try this one again.
What's your opinion of Maybelline eyeliners? Do you have an alternative you can recommend to me?
-Rachel
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