Who wants wimpy lashes? I don’t, I don’t! If you say ptooey! to lashes that look anything less than false, Benefit’s betting their new They’re Real (“The mascara that’s beyond belief!”) mascara will satisfy your lash-tastic lust.
Coming this July to Benefit counters, stores and online, the new $22 jet black mascara promises dramatic length, separation, curl, volume and lift — pretty much the whole shebang. And to help it deliver on all these fronts, Benefit built a special brush with staggered bristles (to enhance volume) and a spiky tip (for lift, definition and curl).
The lashes I’ve been sporting this week have come courtesy of a new mascara combo. I like the look, but it takes a lot of work, so I’m hoping They’re Real delivers results just as good as my combo or better. 🙂 Gotta love streamlining, ya know?
To put They’re Real to the test, I applied it in several different ways — a single coat applied with the brush held horizontally, a single coat with it held vertically, then a double coat horizontally, etc. I felt I got the best results when I applied two coats while holding the brush horizontally, and then added a bit of the product with the brush held up and down.
The finished lash look actually resembles the one I get from MAC Studio Fix BoldBlack Mascara — jet black and lightweight, yet it looks thick, with a moderate increase in length, coupled with a tendency to relax the curl from my lash curler.
Does it deliver in each of the areas Benefit said it would? Maybe not, but I still love the overall look. I like how thick and dark my lashes look with it on, and the wear time seems good so far. I’ve already had it on for about six hours today without a single smudge or flake, and from using it this week, I found that it’s also easy to remove.
Before (top) and after two coats (bottom)
Before (left) and after two coats (right)
But as much as I like They’re Real mascara’s color and volume, Benefit could have pushed it in the length, separation and curl hold departments. I think my lashes do appear longer with it on, but not nearly as long, separated or curly as they appear when I’m wearing the Urban Decay Cannonball/Buxom Amplified combo.
NOTE: It seems to be tricky to layer. The marketing suggests really piling it on, but when I go beyond two coats, my lashes start clumping and sticking together.
I plan to spend more time getting to know They’re Real, but as of now I consider it a good thickening mascara in a darker-than-dark black. I’m betting that gals who already have naturally curly lashes (lucky!) will find it’s a great fit.
PRICE: $22
AVAILABILITY: Coming this July to Benefit counters, stores and also online
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+
Not sure you can make it till July? Well, mark your calendar for June 10. That’s when Benefit will host a one-day “flash sale” on They’re Real Mascara at the following locations in Canada and the US.
California
Macy’s Union Square
170 O’Farrell Street
San Francisco, CA 94101
(415) 397-3333 x4886
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Bloomingdale’s Santa Monica
315 Colorado Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 985-6400
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Ulta Laguna Gateway
9141 West Stockton Blvd.
Elk Grove, CA 95758
(916) 478-2610
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Ulta Creekside Town Center
1232 Galleria Blvd.
Roseville, CA 95678
(916) 780-1117
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Ulta The Promenade at Sacramento Gateway
3591 N. Freeway Blvd
Sacramento, CA 95834
(916) 285-6450
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New York
Sephora Times Square
1500 Broadway #304
New York, NY 10036
(212) 944-6789
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Illinois
Benefit Boutique Armitage
852 West Armitage
Chicago, IL 60657
(773) 880-9192
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Canada
Sephora Eaton Centre
220 Yonge Street
Toronto, Ontario M5B 2H1
(416) 595-7227
Almost as awesome as Trader Joe’s Mango & Cream Bars!
No, really. I have to thank reader Instant Karma (a cat mom to two kitties, Gizmo and Tigger) for introducing me to the wonders of Elliot Stabler: Rage Cop.
The premise is simple (and simply brilliant). Visitors to the site place captions on a menacing picture of Detective Stabler from Law & Order: SVU. 🙂
Ha! Here are a few of my favorites…
All sorts of rad, right?! Hmm…thinking, thinking, thinking.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen Â
During the Flash Sale, will the mascaras also be on sale, or full price?
Full price, thanks!
The mascara sounds, uh, just okay. They make a whole lot of promises there that seem rather unrealistic to get all in one mascara. I do like the look of the brush, though.
How was your trip to The Village, Heidi? Did you get anything from Surf Baby? I ended up going to Northgate and snagging Hibiscus lipstick at the MAC store.
I had a great day, except for the traffic going home, ugh!
Anyhoo, my friend Mark sort of messed up on when my birthday was, he was thinking April, not March (he wrote it down wrong on the calendar) and then April got busy for him at work, so this was my very very belated birthday celebration. We got to the Village and said “pick three things you like, my treat!” Seriously? He knows not what he says! So, I decided that I would select things from brands that I can’t get in Sonoma County since I was down there. I went to Nordstroms and selected a YSL lipstick (I don’t remember the color number, but it’s a nice peachy color — shocker!) They didn’t have it in stock so they’re sending it to me. Then we went to Banana Republic and I got a really cute slate blue top with a woven trim along the v-neckline. THEN, we went to Macy’s, I saw that they carried Dior, and I am now the proud owner of a supposedly “lifting and firming” eyeshadow quint in Lifting Amber. We’ll see how it works as far as lifting, there are serums in the primer and shadows, but the colors are GORGEOUS! Peaches and browns, and I love that the palette includes a primer. I’m all about saving time by not having to open up multiple things in the morning.
After all that power shopping we went across to Corte Madera Town Center and had a great lunch at Il Fornaio. Some seafood ravioli. Yum!
Oh, and a funny story — we went into the Kate Spade store at The Village, Mark took one look at the previously discussed giraffe item, and whispered to me “now, seriously — who’s going to wear giraffes all over themselves? Cats, maybe….” THIS is why he’s one of my best friends!
I still can’t believe Christopher Meloni won’t be returning! *sobs* It just won’t be the same!
Oh, some of my favorite Stabler quotes are:
Neighbor: Do I need a lawyer:
Stabler: For being a peeping Tom? No, you just need a shrink.
Benson: Your one night as a bachelor and you choose to go to the grocery store? That’s lame.
Stabler: A grocery store with strippers.
*investigating the case of a popular teen murdered by her three friends* “I love these little cliques. They’re like the Mafia – nobody knows nothin’. ”
Oooh, my favorite RageCop is the “Twss-Twhsss That’s what she said–That’s what he said she said–until I punch the rapey grin off his face” one. That one is good because he does that ALL the time.
Did you see the Cragen pics? Hilarious!
Yea, I saw those ones. They are funny (My office NOW!). They need to put up some Finn ones because Finn is funny. Usually whenever Finn talks it’s pure hilarity.
Sounds like something I might need to try out. But before that, I definitely need to try out your cannonball/buxom combo, it sounds good 🙂
Thank you for spending so much time on your photographs. They’re great! 🙂
Looking good, Karen! I am going to order my beloved Smashbox Bionic later on this week. I love Benefit Bad Gal, but alas, there is no sort of discount for me.
SVU is one of my favorite shows and Chris Meloni is one of my favorite actors. He was so awesome in OZ (one of my favs!) and then SVU. I am so sad he’s not returning because finding someone that can fill Stabler’s spot is going to prove to be very difficult. And I’m not sure all of us SVU fans are going to be on board with someone new.
PS – I was hunting for a new mascara recently (mostly inspired by your Cannonball and Boxum layering) and decided to pick up Tarte’s Gifted and I love it! (I searched MUBB to see if you reviewed it hoping to not be annoying, haha! I didn’t find that you had.) I just wanted to suggest it cos I know you, Tabs, me and my dog Misha enjoy the cruelty free aspect and I love that it’s all natural and works effing awesome!
Hope you had a nice long weekend!
OH MY GOD, OZ. It’s my favorite television series of all time, and not nearly enough people know of it. It’s great to see someone else who loves the show! On a related topic, have you seen the Mayhem commercials? They always make me laugh because it’s like Ryan O’Reily has escaped from Oz and is now having fun destroying everything.
I totally agree with you about SVU. I’m thinking that it might end after next season, even if you discount the rumors about the show phasing out Mariska. SVU is so dependent upon the interactions between Benson and Stabler — and even more so now that there isn’t a steady ADA to follow like Novak or Cabot — that losing even just one of the main cops is a huge problem for the series. I mean, I hope they can find a good replacement, but I don’t know if it’ll happen :/.
Karen –
Sorry if I’ve just missed a post but have you tried out Fairy Drops yet? It’s amazing! http://www.sephora.com/fairydrops
Length AND volume!
This definitely looks like it’s worth a go! I love Benefit, but haaaaaaaaaate BadGal Lash, so I hope it’s much better than that.
cute! love benefit! will try to test this in the store, see if its worth the $$$ 🙂
i might try this, because i dont mind curl- relaxing mascaras (my lashes are not thick at all but they sure are curly) -i currently use MAC zoomlash. i love a deep black and a thickening formula… wonder how it matches up in volume compared to the classic Bad Gal!
thanks so much for doing this review since I was super excited for this one! I love the BadGal and some other Benefit products but I’ve felt like most of their makeup is gimmicky
Looks like they made their replacement for their Bad Gal mascara! I’m using the original one right now and it’s…actually surprisingly good, considering the hit-or-miss reviews. I might try this one out since Benefit’s mascara appears to agree with me!
Oooo I hope it is as good as BADgal 🙂
BadGal is pretty good so I’m thinking this is worth a try!
I once had a benefit makeup counter gal suggest that, when applying Bad Gal Lash, to wait for the mascara to dry between coats. Maybe the same applies to They’re Real?
in terms of really building the mascara up on your lashes! sorry… I realized this wasn’t very specific 🙂
det stabler approves of the lashes. 😀
Is this a tubular mascara, like Clinique High Impact Curling Mascara?
is this waterproof?
HAHAHA, thank you for the shout out :D. I thought you’d like it! I also totally agree that the “Reads perverts their rights with his fists” is quite possibly the best one there. Ineffectual Cragen makes me smile, too.
Ooh, so I had to go to the doctor’s today, and hit up the MAC store on the way back (just two blocks away from the office). I managed to mostly behave myself and just bought a 217 brush and Lucky Green because I’ve been getting more into bright greens lately. I figured it’d pair well with all the golds and bronzes I wear so much! 🙂
P.S. Your necklace is really cute!