I have been using the L’Oreal Lash Architect for a while, and really love it – but was swayed by all the positive comments about the new Benefit They’re Real! Mascara. I went to a Benefit counter where the MUA tried persuading me that when she layered the mascara over my own that it was so much better – yes well it’s going to be – cos that eye now has an extra layer over them! Even so, I decided to splurge as my last mascara was on its way out and I needed a replacement anyway. (Well actually I already had a replacement bought from one of my trips through Swiss/UK airports, but decided to get They’re Real! as well).
So lets start with the basics, the Benefit They’re Real! costs 22Euro (something like 37CHF in Switzerland!), for 8.5g of product, normally mascaras are recommended for use between 3 – 6 months. Benefit claims this mascara can
‘Lengthen, curl, volumize, lift and separate. The jet black, long wearing formula won’t smudge or dry out!’
The L’Oreal Lash Architect 4D costs between 10 – 14Euro depending on where you buy it and contains 12 ml of product, again the recommended usage is between 3 – 6 months for mascaras. The L’Oreal website claims this mascara has
The power of sculpting fibres for lashes that look volumized, lenghthened, texturized, curved.
L'Oreal Lash Architect 4D Mascara
Compare and Contrast: The They’re Real! is a nice black mascara which I tried verses my L’Oreal Lash Architect 4D – I even tried both mascaras over one day to get a good feel for how they directly compare.
Benefit They're Real! Mascara
As you can see the They’re Real mascara does look a little fuller and I would say slightly more curled (I haven’t used curlers here), both have good lengthening properties though (I have blonde, almost non-existent eyelashes naturally) and both pick out a load more eyelashes than other mascaras I have tried in the past. The They’re Real! has a really black almost glossy appearance and while the Lash Architect is also a very black mascara, but it has more of a dry look directly after application. While the They’re Real! leaves my lashes flexible, the Lash Architect leaves them feeling quite brittle (but importantly does not flake over the day – hate that!).
The They’re Real! wand has a modern, moulded shape that can pick out the smaller eyelashes if you’re careful – but the Lash Architect traditional fluffy wand can do that too with care. The newer wand style looks nicer and probably won’t get gacky, and could be washed if necessary, unlike the traditional fluffy wands, which I ALWAYS seem to get random bits of cotton attached to which then transfers to my eyelash – how the heck does that happen!!?.
Benefit Wand: Modern, moulded, thick and short, with extra bristles around the end.
L'Oreal Wand: Traditional, fluffy, long and thin.
The They’re Real! wand is shorter, so if you have a problem with shorter wands and having to get your hands right up into your face for application, this might be a pain. The They’re Real! lid is not a difficult to keep shut tight (you can feel when it has closed properly) and I have found that the Lash Architect can be a bit more difficult to screw up really tight. Both claim to give that ‘false lashes’ effect and they both do to some degree – no mascara is ever going to replace actual perfect false lashes, but for daily use I like both.
Overall: Well, even though it looks like the They’re Real! has alot more positive features I can’t say that I would buy this again. At 22Euro this is just a splurge purchase for me – not a waste of money, but definitely a treat. I’m not going to pay an extra 10Euro for a product where the benefits (excuse the pun) are negligible, and mascara is something that you really do have to replace so often, that going out of your way to pay extra for it is not really necessary when a product like Lash Architect is widely available in most drug stores and supermarkets. Especially when you live in area where high-end cosmetics are less widely available – OK they are widely available in Geneva, but pay 37CHF?? Never gonna happen.
So Lash Architect have it for me on this one – although don’t get me wrong I will be using the They’re Real! until it is well and truly gone :lol:. I now have my eye on the BADgal mascara in Plum, yes I know another high-end, expensive mascara – but come on: IT’S PLUM!! I’m really loving the coloured mascara trend of late :smile:. I hope this comparison was useful for you. Catch you later! Sarah x
This costs £8.19 to buy and you can pick them up at most Boots / Superdrug and I think most grocery retailers carry a good selection of L’Oreal products too now. I like the gold case and the fact that the lid is slightly stiff to remove (and won’t fall off in my bag). The lipstick bullet comes with L’Oreal Paris embossed in it, which is a nice touch, my only one niggle with the packaging is that the lids are slanted, so I can’t store them upside down, which is the easiest way to pick a colour from my lipstick holder (but then the MAC ones are a pain too, and that won’t stop me buying them!). (If you follow my twitter feed, you’ll have seen that I have already managed to smooch the tip of this lippie into the top of the lid, which hasn’t destroyed it, but it definitely ain’t pretty anymore, :lol:! duh!! Best be more careful in future). I have a few more colours from the Colour Riche range which I will be adding to the blog and I’ll probably be picking up more of these in the future :smile:. Have you got any of the Colour Riche range? Which is your favorite, or which would you recommend?
blondegirlbeauty 