Now i know this is something a lot of women spend a lot of time on, as i am definitely one of them. I have to admit i’m a trial and error type of girl, i feel like i’ve tried almost every product there is on the market in an attempt to find my perfect mascara. I think over the years I’ve tried more than 30 different types of mascara and i think I’ve found my favourites…but i must admit if a new product hits the stores i do still try it just to make sure my favs are still winners.

With modelling makeup is very important, but whether I’m going to a casting, heading to the office or just hanging out with friends I want something that is easy to use and achieves my objective. I’m looking for something that will enhance my features the best and last the longest because I don’t want to be reapplying 3 or 4 times a day to maintain the look – once its on I want it to stay on. In my opinion mascara is one of the single most valuable cosmetics a model or any woman can have. If i am extremely pressed for time and I have to choose only 2 items of makeup to use they would be foundation and mascara. Mascara can make you look more awake, open your eyes up and can really enhance your  overall look.

Lets face it theres just so many options out there claiming to solve every possible problem you can imagine and of course the price range is incredible – you can pretty much spend anywhere from $8 to $80+. To be perfectly honest in my experience the cheaper mascaras have done the best job for me. I do think though that different occasions call for different mascaras, depending on the overall makeup look so I have my favourite daytime mascaras and my favourite nightime mascaras.

Here are my fav’s for under $25:

Daytime/Casual:

1. Maybelline Full & Soft – this does everything i want in a mascara, lengthening, thickening and no clumping. I find during the day one coat is plenty. Its a great multipurpose mascara too so if you just add a few more coats it gives you an extremely glam look for nightwear.
2. Maybelline great lash
3. Covergirl LashBlast
4. Maybelline Lash discovery
5. Max Factor False Lash Effect

Nightime/Dramatic:

1. L’Oreal Telescopic
2. Max Factor 2000 Calorie
3. L’Oreal Lash Architect
4. Maybelline Volume Express Cat Eyes – I have only found this is Singapore…not available in AUS so i’ve resorted to buying on ebay, well worth it trust me!
5. Rimmel Volume Flash

I admit I’ve never been a fan of the two step mascaras that include primer before the mascara coat because I don’t believe them to be user friendly. From all the two-step mascaras I’ve tried i’ve experienced clumping and really i would prefer to apply two coats of your normal mascara than having to use one coat white primer and then attempting to cover the white with mascara. Too much effort if you ask me and if you’re in a rush its too easy to miss spots leaving you with spots of white on your lashes.

So overall I’m a big fan of Maybelline mascara’s in general as you can tell. If you’re looking for the one mascara to cover all occasions you can’t go wrong with Maybelline full & soft. Just apply as many coats as the occasion calls for and to boot its one of the best value mascaras i’ve tested so its not too hard on the wallet. Also something to note it is recommended that you throw out your mascara after 3 months, yet another reason why I don’t want to break the bank for a tube of mascara.

Another alternative i am a huge fan of is lash tinting. Perfect alternative to mascara especially in Summer when you will be likely to go swimming or in Winter when its raining where you don’t have to worry about your mascara running & I’ve heard good things about lash perming but I have yet to try it. Let me know if you have any suggestions on mascara’s you have good reviews on so I can give them a try…

My overall favourite

I was recently asked by a friend of mine what tips I had to maintain clear skin. I haven’t always had good skin, my skin went through a very bad patch and I was put on Roaccutane a very strong drug with a long list of side effects but it does achieve its objective and that’s to clear up problem skin. I would only recommend this option in very extreme cases, which mine unfortunately, was.

Having said that these are my basic tips for keeping healthy, clear skin:

• Cleanse and moisturise every morning and night. Both your face and body need moisturising. Every night i make sure to put extra moisturiser on my elbows, knees and feet (the driest parts of my body) and slip on a pair of cotton socks to help retain the moisture
• I don’t believe in toner, I don’t see the benefits and I personally think its a waste of money
• Exfoliate once a week
• Use a face mask once a week
• Get a bowl of boiling hot water put your head over it n put a towel over the top for about 30seconds to open up your pores and clean out all the buildup once a month (great for blackheads), than exfoliate and follow with a face mask
• If your skin is oily use an oil free moisturiser (but still always moisturise or your skin becomes even oilier)
• If your skin is dry use a rich creamy moisturiser, after Roaccuate my skin went from oily to dry and i use either a very rich cream or a night cream
• Always remove makeup before going to bed, no matter how tired you may be, it’s a MUST!

These simple tips should help in keeping your skin clean, beautiful and healthy and will help to reduce the chances of breakouts.

These are the makeup items I can’t live without and recommend to anyone wanting to build a multipurpose makeup collection to achieve a variety of looks:

1. Eye liner
2. Mascara
3. Foundation
4. Bronzer (as a blush)
5. Finishing powder
6. Quality brushes
7. Lip gloss

With these 7 basic items you can achieve a daytime/casual look all the way to a super dramatic/night look . Its really up to what look you want to achieve…the possibilities are endless! Let me know if there’s anything you would recommend or couldn’t live without…

I will be following up with a review of the items I have used and the ones I personally recommend.