The Mega Plush Maybelline Mascara

Hi all, this is a well overdue review of the Mega Plush Volum'Express waterproof mascara by Maybelline! I took these photos back in November last year and decided to retrieve them and finally write up this post which was requested in the comments section of my Maybelline haul.

I'm sure by now that many makeup enthusiasts like myself out there have heard of or seen this mascara before, but just in case you haven't, here are some pictures:

Maybelline Volum'Express The Mega Plush Waterproof Mascara in 275 Very Black (Noir Intense)

RRP: $19.95 AU

Size: 9mL

What Maybelline says about this product:

Now, mega volume goes mega plush. Our first gel-mousse mascara, for lush lashes soft to touch, never brittle or flaky.

Patented flexor brush (it's bendy)

When I first looked at the cardboard packaging with the fluffy brush I thought, "wow, it's going to be hard to use" because I prefer mascara brushes to have narrower bristles to coat my short Asian lashes better. But thankfully the brush wasn't as big as I expected! Compare to the above image to this:

That looks exaggerated to me, it ain't a scrub brush!

Before I curl my lashes, I curl my lashes using my favourite eyelash curler by Shiseido. It actually makes my lashes visible and holds the curl all day long.

Before, no mascara

Third and final coat

My thoughts:

Although there is some indication of lengthening, this is definitely more of a volumising than lengthening mascara. Normally I would comb my lashes to remove any clumps after applying my mascara but for the sake of the review, I didn't. One coat gives me a very subtle change compared to wearing no mascara, and that's expected. A second coat made my lashes look thicker (voluminous) but the length stayed the same. A third and final coat thickened my lashes further with a bit of clumping on the ends which I'd comb out with a lash comb and it'll all be good. As you can see, not a lot has been done to my lower lashes - they're clumping more than lengthening.

The gel-mousse formula means that it's quite wet and needs to be applied on the lashes quickly without letting it dry between coats. I'm one who prefers to coat my lashes on slowly with a drier formula (but not so dry that it starts flaking) so I can really work on my lashes, coating them and separating them as I go along. I'm glad that this gel-mousse formula wasn't too heavy on my lashes and held the curl all day/night. It gets a big tick for being waterproof.

The flexor brush wasn't a feature that stood out for me or wasn't something that I felt made a huge difference with my lashes. I couldn't see why it was necessary, to me it seemed more like a marketing gimmick. Without the flexor feature on the wand, I probably would've gotten the same volumising results.

Repurchase/recommend?

As my short Asian lashes is more of a problem for me than the thickness of my lashes, I wouldn't repurchase this mascara because it volumises more than it lengthens which is not what I need. I love mascaras that make my lashes look extra long and thick, such as the Maybelline The Falsies mascara which is one of my favourite mascaras of all time. The Mega Plush volumises more than The Falsies so sometimes I use both (one coat of one, one coat of the other). I did a review of it here back in 2011 (wow, was it really that long ago?!) but unfortunately my pictures are missing from my accidental deletion so you'll just have to read the text!

But this doesn't mean that I wouldn't recommend it if this is what you're after! Us girls all have different needs depending on our features - you may have long but thin/sparse lashes or short but thick lashes and if you're the former rather than the latter, I would recommend this mascara because it can make your long lashes look fuller. There are lots of positive aspects about this mascara and I'd say it isn't pricey. If you can get it when it's on sale, that's even better!

Questjen of the week:

Choose one - thicker or longer lashes?

My answer: Longer lashes! That way they'd stand out more, in my opinion :)

Disclaimer: Product was purchased by me with my own money. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with the company mentioned in this post. All opinions are are stated by me with 100% honesty.

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