I received this mascara through the post a short while back, and there was nothing else in the envelope. I can only assume I somehow won it, however it was a welcome surprise!

It seems like Maybelline release the next best mascara every other month, no sooner or they done with promoting the last one everywhere, then they're onto the next one. The Colossal volume mascara pushed aside, it's now time for the Falsies Volum' Express mascara. In it's bright purple packaging this certainly stands out from other mascaras on the market, but is it any good?

There seems to have been a slight craze around mascaras promising effects similar to wearing false lashes, for example Max Factor released a 'false lash effect mascara.' Whether these mascaras do provide such a finish to down to everyone's own opinion, but personally I find applying a mascara much easier than fiddling around with false eye lashes so I'm tempted by these claims everytime. I have used Max Factor's False Lash Effect mascara and I was pleased with the results. Maybelline's offering is priced at £7.99, a few pounds cheaper than Max Factor's £10.99, so I hoped for similar results, with a smaller price tag.

So what does it promise? Well Maybelline claim this mascara gives a full set of voluminous, bold, fanned out lashes with the appearance of no gaps from any angle. It has a Pro-Keratin and Fibre enriched formula which supposedly delivers immediate results of volume and intensity. One thing which is boasted about on this mascara is the brush itself. They called it a 'spoon brush' as it is a curved brush, and it explains how best to use the brush to give the best results. Using the brush correctly apparently helps to fan out your lashes, helping with the appearance of no gaps between your lashes.

It all sounds very promising however I disliked this mascara from the first time I even used it. One word I will use to describe this mascara is clumpy. There's clumps on the brush and clumps in my lashes, it's hard to separate lashes out and I don't notice any difference in my lashes compared to using their normal volume mascaras Maybelline produce. I try to use as little of this mascara as possible as I find the promise of having no gaps laughable, using a normal amount only results in clumped up lashes and large gaps. I use the patented spoon brush in the way the packaging describes however I strain to see any difference from using a normal mascara brush, and if anything I didn't actually like the idea of the spoon brush. My lashes certainly don't seem more fanned out, and I can't see any benefits in this style of brush head.

If you are looking to buy a false lash mascara then I do not recommend this one, and I would avoid it at all costs. I recommend spending £3 more and getting Max Factor's False Lash Effect Mascara which gives much better results, and no clumps!