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| Images from Walmart.com and Ulta.com |
Let's just get this out of the way right now. I am one of those people who wears mascara topcoats. Sure, it would be easier and cheaper to just get a waterproof mascara, but I'm complicated, and I like to test out every mini mascara sample I get from Sephora.
This habit of layering on a clear mascara topcoat over my regular mascara started a few years ago while I was interning at a magazine and helping out with the beauty page. There was a sample of Anastasia Beverly Hills Lash Genius Waterproof Topcoat in the beauty closet, and I got to take it home (with permission, lol). It collected dust in my room for a few weeks before I finally used it to deal with my mascara-smudging problem. After consistent use, I could see that it worked well, but I didn't realize just how well until I found myself hysterically crying at the dentist's office after a painful procedure. I was wearing the topcoat on my lashes that day, and even after all those tears, my mascara was FLAWLESS.
As with all products, there is a downside to this mascara topcoat, and it is the fact that it's hard to remove using cleanser alone (you have to use an eye makeup remover, oil, etc.) and it's expensive at $21. Still, I'd repurchase it if my budget allowed (now I just skip mascara when I can't deal with smudges at the end of the day).
But you know what does work with my budget? A $6 Hard Candy topcoat from Walmart that claims to do the same thing.
Hard Candy Fast & Fabulous Waterproof Topcoat seems like it could be a dupe of Lash Genius. They're both clear mascaras that claim to be water-resistant/waterproof and make your mascara last all day. So I took home the Hard Candy topcoat and it worked fine. . . until summer happened. Humidity, oiliness and sweat, unfortunately, did not seem to stop my mascara from smudging when I wore this. But then again, I have EXTREMELY oily, sweaty skin in the summer, so it's possible it might be ok for people whose skin doesn't rebel against them in the warmer months.
Although Hard Candy's Waterproof Topcoat wasn't a dupe for Lash Genius, they make an awesome shadow primer!!! So yes, I was disappointed, but I'll still probably keep looking for dupes in their collection.
