I wouldn't say I'm a huge fan of Soap & Glory, I have a few products in the bathroom but there are other brands I'd rather use - for this reason, the fact Soap & Glory now make cosmetics had completely passed me by as I don't tend to pay much attention to the ever-growing S&G shelves in Boots. I received my first Thick and Fast Super Volume Mascara as a magazine freebie but have since bought it again as it's a fabulous mascara which suits my lashes perfectly.

OK, so it might not provide the intense volume I was expecting based on the name of the product but apart from that it's honestly the perfect mascara. To be honest I'm not looking for huge super-built lashes during the day anyway as I'm not one of those women who feels the need to look like a glamour model while on the school run or picking a few bits up in Tesco, I do like dark lashes at all times but am not particularly bothered about volume or length for day-to-day wear.

Application of Thick and Fast takes some getting used to because the brush is much fatter than other mascaras I've used; it collects a lot of mascara with each dip into the barrel, which in my opinion is great as I like to get my mascara applied as quickly as possible, but if you're a mascara purist you may find it collects a bit too much colour with each layer being visibly thicker than when I use another product. Fantastic when you have four kids battling for bathroom time in the morning, not so great if you like your mascara spotless with very little effort! Don't get me wrong, it is entirely possible to get the spotless look even with such a big brush but be aware you may need to spend a little extra time on your eyes until you get the knack. Despite the size of the brush, I find the bristles are nicely spaced to allow it to curl and colour my lashes with the lightest of application - I tend to apply two coats of this mascara, although on the very odd occasion where I wear this to go out I'll use three for a dustier smokey look.

The mascara applies smoothly with no clumping or causing my lashes to stick together, the only application issue I have with this particular mascara is the fact that I'm still not completely used to the enlarged brush so I'll often accidentally touch my cheek with it and end up spending ages with a cotton bud attempting to remove the black smudge without disturbing the rest of my make-up! Annoying, but hardly something that leaves me feeling suicidal. At first I struggled to apply my mascara to my bottom lashes due to the fact that they're naturally so much thinner and shorter than my upper lashes, again this is simply a case of getting used to the brush so after persevering for a few applications I found it became second nature to use a slightly lighter hand at this point of application.

It dries surprisingly quickly considering how much mascara is deposited on my lashes at once so I'm able to apply the second coat pretty much immediately; this mascara never causes my lashes to stick together no matter how many coats I use, something which surprised me actually as it has quite a 'sticky' feel when I touch the colour with my fingers. When dried the finish is very matte as there's barely any shine to this mascara at all, this could be countered by finishing your eyes off with a coat of clear mascara I suppose but this isn't something I bother with personally as I like the dusky matte look (and anyway, I seriously don't have time in the mornings to be faffing with more products than is absolutely necessary!).

Checking my eyes at the end of the day, I'm always impressed by how little colour I've lost when using this mascara - actually, scrap that, I'm always impressed by the fact that I've lost no colour at all when using this mascara! It's excellent! There's no smudging around my eyes even after twelve hours of wear, my lashes haven't drooped at all (something which can happen throughout the day when using heavy mascara such as this) and the colour itself looks as fresh as when it was first applied. Impressive, eh? It's not waterproof so if you're caught in the rain or have a crying session whilst wearing it you'll find yourself covered in black sooty rivulets, but this is true of any non-waterproof mascara so I really can't mark this one down for it.

Removal is a breeze, I use a single cotton wool pad with a spot of baby lotion on it for each eye and that's really all that's needed. Wiping away the mascara from the inner to the outer corner of my eyes works best for me, but obviously this is a completely personal preference! I always remove my mascara (if nothing else!) before I go to bed simply because I wear contact lenses on a daily basis so need to get rid of it before removing those, with this one it doesn't matter how little time I spend on removal as I can always be confident that I've got every last scrap. When I wake up the following morning there's no telltale smudges under my eyes to indicate that I've missed any (unlike a Clinique mascara that I'm using at the moment - I swear it must hide somewhere as despite ultra clean cotton wool pads after cleansing there's still a huge amount deposited under my eyes when I wake up!).

I can't fault this mascara at all, I really can't. Admittedly if you're looking for super volumised lashes you might be disappointed with this aspect but personally I think the fact that it separates the individual lashes so well gives the impression of extra volume and length anyway. I'm impressed with the deep sooty black of my lashes after application, and also by the way the colour stays put for the entire day. As a contact lens wearer I'm happy to report there is absolutely no irritation to my eyes during application or wear, and while wearing it during a particularly irritating bout of hayfever in the summer I was also impressed by the fact that it didn't make my eyes any sorer than they already were.

I've since purchased this Thick and Fast Super Volume Mascara in Boots for £10, which I think is a reasonable price for such a great mascara - I'll definitely buy it again when this one needs replacing and recommend to all.