Mary Kay haul and Review of Lash Intensity Mascara and Lash Primer

~ stashy

I have a friend who sells Mary Kay and knows about my makeup addiction – she reads this blog!  So when Mary Kay launched a new, much-raved about mascara, she informed me that I must try it. Of course, I had to place an order. But wouldn’t you know it, the mascara is such a hit that they were back ordered. 😦  After about a 2 week delay, I finally received the mascara, along with a few other goodies:
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• Lash Primer
• Lash Intensity Mascara
• Mineral Eye Colour in Rosegold
• Rose Gold Limited Edition compact
• Undereye Corrector
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She gave me the eye shadow and lash primer for free. 🙂 I’ve decided that I’m not counting mascaras toward my Low-Buy because I replace them so frequently. And um, that under eye corrector, let’s call it part of my birthday haul, ok? 😉  The Undereye Corrector is a new product too, and I’ll be devoting an entry to review that.

So, the mascara that prompted me to place this order – how did it perform?

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This is what Mary Kay says about the mascara:

Get wow-worthy volume plus irresistible length with Lash Intensity™ Mascara. Featuring a specially designed, asymmetrical Double-Impact™ brush, lashes look multiplied and exaggerated with all-day wear that resists smudging. Plus, mineral-rich, high-impact pigment delivers the perfect shade of black for stand-out lashes.

So to summarize, it claims to:
• Provide both volume and length
• All day wear
• Resist smudging
• Deep black colour
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I find that I can quickly gauge how a mascara is going to perform after the first wear. And that first impression wasn’t stellar.  The bristles are made of silicone and point every which way – this does help to coat the lashes pretty well, but it also has a tendency to gets onto my lids. The wide spacing between the bristles also meant that the mascara would deposit in gobs onto my lashes. I find the formula to be quite clumpy and didn’t provide too much length.  It did hold my curl decently, but the smudging I experienced on my lower eye area was horrific!  The only way I can wear this mascara is with a hefty coating of Clarins Double Fix mascara top coat, or else it is smudge city by noon. Also, a good metal eyelash comb is imperative to combing out the clumps.

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A closer look at the wand – is this giving you the heebie jeebies?

I was informed that there’s a special technique in using this mascara. Get out of town! A special technique to apply mascara? 😛 I always found it funny when companies try to fancy up something that just doesn’t need to be.  So apparently one has to put their thumb over the “Mary Kay” embossing on the wand handle to make this work. *insert hardcore eyeroll*  And there are 2 “zones” of bristles. I tried it and it still didn’t make a difference in how clumpy it was, and how much it smudged under my eyes. Go figure!

This chick is demonstrating the technique but she’s not selling me on it. Look at how clumpy her lashes look and she gets the mascara onto her lids too.  Now check out this official video that MK released. Looks different, huh?
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Next up, the whacky bulky tube design. I couldn’t even fit this in with my usual holder for mascaras / eye liners – the tube is so wide and squat, making it hard to dig out. I just lay it on its side on a flat surface. One blessing though: it doesn’t roll off a table. And the wand clicks when shut. 😛  This mascara retails for C$22 and contains 8g of product.
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Edited to add: here’s how the Lash Intensity mascara stacks up against my favourite mascaras:
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Pros:
• Volumizing
• Holds curl
• Dark black colour
• Doesn’t flake

Cons:
• Smudges badly
• Clumpy
• Not very lengthening
• Bulky wand design
• Pricey

Stash worthiness: 5/10

And here’s a quick and dirty review of the Mary Kay Lash Primer, since I tried it with the mascara:
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It literally uncurled my carefully curled lashes right before my eyes like this:

wilted
Source.

I used it once and I’ll never use it again. Such a disappointment! Granted, my friend says she didn’t experience this but she likely has naturally curly lashes. I did really like the wand though – it’s a mixture of natural bristles (black) and a plush velvety material (white) that really coats each lash.
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So I might try to re-purpose it like this tip that Laura of Looking Joli Good shared recently. This primer gets a 1/10 from me. And that 1 point is for the possibility of reusing the brush. 😛
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So both the mascara and the primer were busts for me. I really should stick to my rule of not paying more than $10 for mascaras. I just don’t find the correlation between price and performance when it comes to mascaras – what are your thoughts on paying more for mascaras?

PS. You may think I don’t like Mary Kay products based on this post – not true! These 2 products just didn’t work for me, but I have proclaimed my love for their moisturizer, blotting paper, and concealer. And… just wait for my review on the Undereye Corrector. 😉

43 thoughts on “Mary Kay haul and Review of Lash Intensity Mascara and Lash Primer”

  1. Eek the woman in the video has terribly clumpy lashes. I have to admit I do pay more for mascara as I really like Lancome’s one but a lot of expensive mascaras are not worth the money in my opinion x

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    1. I know, she’s not doing that mascara any favours… I wished I’d watched the video before buying this!
      I’ve tried a lot of higher end mascaras through samples and I haven’t been impressed with any of them. I still love my CoverGirl LashBlast which costs $7!

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      1. My favorite was the Kiss Me Fermé mascara in brown, but I just ran out! Now I’m using my stand-by CoverGirl Clump Crusher which works well too, but it’s a spikey wand and it scares me a little!

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  3. That mascara sounds terrible, the wand is so far apart it was never going to apply well! I don’t like how it looked in the video at all! The primer wand is interesting, shame it didn’t peform so well. Don’t think Mary Kay is a brand we get here – I don’t know much about it, other than I think I heard someone saying in a video that “people who don’t know about makeup buy from mary kay”

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    1. Mary Kay has a bad rep because it’s basically a pyramid scheme. The company makes money by getting “Directors” to recruit more and more people to sell Mary Kay products underneath them. I don’t get mixed up in all that, I just buy the products to use – no one has tried to recruit me!
      I think Mary Kay products are quite decent, if not a little overpriced for what it is. I own a bunch of their eye shadows and they’re excellent quality. Their lipsticks are pretty good too. Overall, the brand image is a little dated too – probably stuck in the ’90s.

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  4. I love this post! My favorite line is “This chick is demonstrating the technique but she’s not selling me on it.” I love the rose’s depiction of your lashes uncurling! That’s happened to me so many time, I hate it. Also, thanks for the shout out 😉

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    1. Thanks! I just don’t see how her clumpy lashes were helping her case with this mascara. Unless that’s the look she was going for! Your tip Tuesdays are very helpful! 🙂

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  5. All those clumps in the up-close shot of the wand…yikes! How could it NOT be clumpy with the way that looks?
    What a disappointment that primer is…1/10, lol! Well, I suppose when a product does the complete opposite of what it’s supposed to do, that’s what you get!

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    1. I knew it was going to be problematic as soon as I opened it – you know how you can just tell? I was just so disappointed at how much it smudged on top of that!
      And the lash primer – I asked if I could possibly use it as a lash conditioning treatment at night instead and I was advised it had no lash conditioning properties… so that’s going into the trash!

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        1. Yes in general the makeup is good. I’ve tried just about one of everything. I really liked their concealer – which I think they recently discontinued – boo! And their eye shadows are really nice – they come in refill pans and you have to get the compact separately. Their lipsticks are nice too. The pricing is all over the place though, I find. For instance, this mascara was $22. But a foundation is $23.50. An eye shadow refill pan is $9 which is about on par with MAC’s (and you get more product with Mary Kay). A lipstick is $18. So overall, not too pricey.

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  7. I’ve been seeing quite a lot of posts about Mary Kay lately and I used to buy their products too but havent used them in ages.. That Rose Gold Limited Edition Compact looks gorge…

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    1. I do like some of their products, but some are really overpriced for what it is. I do really like their eye shadows and own a bunch of them – they come in refill pans and you have to buy the compact separately. I have just the plain black one, but that rose gold one is going to replace it!

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      1. I used to love their lipstick. They are good but yes you are right they are just overpriced compared to Avon.. The only MK that I use til now is their retractable lip liner brush..🤓

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    1. I don’t mind silicone brushes, but the way these are arranged make them not well suited in depositing mascara onto the lashes! I also like regular bristles, it all depends on how they are arranged!

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  9. i’m giving the clarins double fix a 2nd try after my sister raved about it but i find the new brush so HARSH!! >:0

    Any tips on applying this? how can you tell you even got any on?

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    1. Hmm I don’t find it too harsh. You’re so delicate! I just make sure to coat my lashes thoroughly… it’s a clear product so you just have to make sure you wiggle through the lashes. I’ve been using it for so long, I don’t even know how to advise you! 😛

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  11. Nothing worse that a smudgy mascara – that’s my number one gripe. I’ll take flaking over smudging because its easier to brush away at least. I didn’t even realize Mary Kay was still around – do they still give Pink Cadillacs to their highest sellers? 😀

    I recently tested out a sample of Givenchy’s Phonomeyes Mascara with the big spiked ball at the end of the wand. Horrible stuff!

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    1. Apparently they do still give cars – not sure if it’s a pink Cadillac! 😛 I’m not sure how the company is doing in terms of growth but it’s just a pyramid scheme…
      That’s shocking a Givenchy mascara would suck so badly. I would be so angry!

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  14. Yeah you nailed it, that wand looks SUPER CREEPY close up. I seriously love your chart for your favorite mascaras though! I definitely need to look into some of your faves once I get some samples used up.

    Also, you know you nominated the right person when you come to tell them about their One Lovely Blog Award… and your internet cuts out and makes you think their site is down and you start swearing some very non lovely words involving the theme of “I have seen her posts in my feed don’t you tell me its not up!!!!” *cough* so you’ve been nominated 😀 😉

    One Lovely Blog Award!

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  15. I want to try the Loreal Bare Naturle!! OMG, I wish I could go get it right now LOL – I have always doubted these commission based, pyramid type companies that sell stuff. May Kay, Younique, Avon… Everyone raves because they get paid to do so and can’t be honest. And if the product is 18.00 USD… imagine what you are really getting after the company takes their cut and all the commission are paid out. I don’t know, I have always looked the other way from this stuff. I got some of hat Younique 3D crap from BrandBacker and I told them it was essentially crap, and they never approved my post. So, I posted it anyhow. Oh Motives is another one that has made all their products look fabulous on and another blogger friend of mine bought some and it was cheap packaging and one shadow was broken. OMG

    I am going to try the the Loreal Bare Naturale though asap. I can’t go out right now because of my eyes but as soon as I can!!!!

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    1. I’m really sorry to break it to you but the L’Oreal Bare Naturale is discontinued! 😥 I should put a disclaimer on that chart!
      I hear you on the pyramid scheme type of beauty companies – it’s all based on how many people they can get to SELL your products, not actually on how many USE the products! That is why the products aren’t that stellar in general.

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  18. As a marykay customer you should know that all products are %100 satisfaction guarantee. You should have simply return your purchase if not satisfied and would have received full refund.

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