The other day, I decided to buy and test the new CoverGirl Lash Blast Luxe Shimmery Volumizing Mascara in Black Royale in hopes that it would live up to the expectations of the original CoverGirl Lash Blast that I love so much.
I knew something was wrong from the start. The first thing I noticed about Luxe is that it did little for my lashes and that the formula seemed much thicker and clumpier than the original. Next, I tested the color on my hand with a quick swipe of the mascara wand - and a weird feeling of deja vu swept over me.
I went to grab the mascara my mother had just bought herself a few weeks before; coincidentally, CoverGirl Exact Eyelights Eye Brightening Mascara in Black Sapphire.
After swatching both mascaras side by side, I discovered that, lo and behold, these two products are the exact same color. Not being very creative with these "new" colored mascaras, are we?
Well, no big deal, right? They could've easily just used the same coloring, I suppose. They couldn't actually be the same product, right? ...Right?
I hate to say it, but I was wrong. Comparing the ingredient lists for both products reveals something even more surprising about the formulas. Take a look:
CoverGirl Exact Eyelights Eye Brightening Mascara, Black Sapphire:
Water , Glyceryl Stearate , Ammonium Acrylates Copolymer , Disteardimonium Hectorite , Propylene Glycol , Stearic Acid , Carnauba Wax - Copernicia Cerifera , Triethanolamine , Synthetic Wax , Acrylates Copolymer , Mica , Polyvinyl Alcohol , Lecithin , Propylene Carbonate , Oleic Acid , Alcohol Denat , Methylparaben , Phenoxyethanol , Benzyl Alcohol , Propylparaben , Panthenol , Glycerin , Simethicone , Ethylparaben , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Xanthan Gum , Trisodium EDTA , Iron Oxides , Titanium Dioxide - May Contain , Ferric Ferrocyanide - May Contain , Aluminum Powder - May Contain , Carmine - May Contain , Ultramarines - May Contain , Manganese Violet - May Contain , Bismuth Oxychloride - May Contain , Chromium Oxide Greens - May Contain
CoverGirl LashBlast Luxe Shimmery Volumizing Mascara, Black Royale:
Water , Glyceryl Stearate , Ammonium Acrylates Copolymer , Disteardimonium Hectorite , Propylene Glycol , Stearic Acid , Carnauba Wax - Copernicia Cerifera , Triethanolamine , Synthetic Wax , Acrylates Copolymer , Polyvinyl Alcohol , Lecithin , Propylene Carbonate , Oleic Acid , Alcohol Denat , Methylparaben , Phenoxyethanol , Benzyl Alcohol , Propylparaben , Panthenol , Glycerin , Simethicone , Ethylparaben , Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Mica , Xanthan Gum , Trisodium EDTA , Silica , Iron Oxides , Titanium Dioxide - May Contain , Ferric Ferrocyanide - May Contain , Aluminum Powder - May Contain , Carmine - May Contain , Ultramarines - May Contain , Manganese Violet - May Contain , Bismuth Oxychloride - May Contain , Chromium Oxide Greens - May Contain
Is anyone else seeing a problem here? I know many mascara formulas are similar, but this seems like overkill.
Worse still, CoverGirl is advertising and selling these mascaras as two entirely different products - one to brighten, and one to volumize. The only difference I saw between them is that one has mica, and the other has silica... both of which are far down the list of ingredients. The brushes are different, but not enough to affect how well the formula works.
Sorry to call you out on this, CoverGirl, but from a long-time customer: this is wrong.
I, for one, will be returning my tube of Lash Blast Luxe and checking the labels on all the products I buy before purchasing.
Since a comment came up about the brushes being different, here's a picture to show that, truly, they are quite similar.
Thanks to my boyfriend for posing! :)Product and ingredient information from Walgreens.com
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10 comments:
Holy cow!!! that is soooooooooo not cool sister!!!
Write them a loooooong letter.
Thanks for sharing your discovery.
The brush is pretty important when it comes to mascara too though... even w/ same ingredient, they are different products because of brush. I'm guessing that is what the company is thinking. This way, it gets them more profit by simply combining products and not actually making new ones. Yay, my econ class is kicking in!
Bella - I should, huh!
Emilita - Definitely. :)
pipbongbb - I understand your point, but mine is that a.) the brushes are very similar in design, mostly different in size, and b.) even if the brushes are the only difference, the fact is that CoverGirl is MARKETING these products as two separate formulas with different purposes - brightening and volumizing. Their profits come from being untruthful to the consumer, which is something I can't approve of.
Hi Jenn, I found your blog through a google search comparing mascara ingredients. I was looking for a substitute for Max Factor's Volume Couture Waterproof mascara. I found the idential ingredients in Covergirl Lash Exact and CG Lash Blast (same stuff just a bigger brush). So now when Max Factor stops being carried in the U.S. in early 2010, I will have a decent sub for it.
Turns out, Proctor & Gamble manufactures both Max Factor and Covergirl. Covergirl Lash Blast is marketed in Europe as Max Factor False Lash Effect. Interesting bit of makeup trivia.
Cover Girl (P&G) test on animals!
it's just mascara, who cares just shut up
Anonymous - Sorry you didn't like the post, but when it comes to money, many people DO care. My blog is all about saving money, so even if it's "just" mascara, if I can help someone not waste cash... I'm going to write about it.
Thanks for visiting! :)
who ever made the "it's just mascara" comment obviously loves throwing their money away
yes thanks so much for letting us know this...arrr so sick of the great mascara search!
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