Double intensity? What a disappointment! (The Body Shop Double Intensity Mascara)

Member Name: dippykitty

Product:	The Body Shop Double Intensity Mascara
Date:	01/09/09 (38 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Slightly increases volume

Disadvantages: Step 1 slightly increases length but is cancelled out by step 2, very overpriced for what it is

I recently ordered some more of my Blemish Fade Lotion from The Body Shop, and this was sent as a free gift as I had spent over £30. Having just looked on The Body Shop website, I was quite surprised to see that this is available to buy at £10.75 as I had assumed that it was an item that was no longer available or something cheap and nasty. Never one to turn my nose up at a free gift, I've been using this mascara for the best part of a week now to decide if it's any good or not.

***The Mascara***
This is one of the two-step mascaras that I stay well away from in the shops when I'm choosing mascara for myself. I usually have enough problems applying mascara without adding an extra step to the process and time isn't usually on my side in the mornings anyway. If you're not familiar with two-step mascaras, they are usually double-ended and have white mascara on one end and the usual black or brown mascara on the other end. In this case, it's white and black at either end.

***Application***
My first thoughts when pulling the brush out were not particularly positive as the mascara had clumped together on the wand and looked like a right mess to be honest. After wiping some of the excess off, I bit the bullet and started applying the white mascara. It went on easily enough and didn't really clump on my eyelashes, despite my initial concerns. Having never used coloured mascara before, seeing white mascara on my eyelashes was a bit strange but it did seem to make my eyelashes look a bit fuller and even a tiny bit longer.

Suitably impressed by step one, I promptly turned my attention to step two. As before, the black mascara was awfully clumpy and I had visions of looking like a spider after applying this but that wasn't the case thankfully. Application was relatively straight-forward, although it still smudged on my lower eyelashes but I suspect that that was more to do with my haphazard application skills. There was the odd small clump, but nothing that a quick whizz with the eyelash comb wouldn't sort out.

***Results***
The overall look didn't look a whole lot difference to my usual Maybelline mascara which is quite fortunate if you've happened to shell out over £10 for this in the shop. Being quite a dark black shade, it made my eyelashes look much more prominent. Volume-wise, they do look a bit fuller but the length was deceptive. Earlier in the review, I mentioned that the white mascara made them look a bit longer than normal. Applying the black mascara over the top must cancel this out as the overall effect looks much the same as normal as far as the length of my eyelashes go. The look is very much the same as my Maybelline Great Lashes mascara, which I don't think claims to increase the length of your lashes - whereas this one does and fails miserably.

***The Verdict***
The volume is acceptable but nothing dramatic. As I've already hinted, the increased length simply does not exist after you have carried out step two, which makes step one pretty much pointless. If you're looking for a mascara that increases the volume of your lashes, you're probably better going for a Maybelline or Bourjois rather than this (and incidentally, you'd be saving a few quid into the bargain). If you're after a mascara that increases volume and length, this definitely isn't it. It works fine as a bog-standard mascara that slightly increases volume, but it's hardly worth paying a whopping £10.75 for. It simply doesn't live up to the claims and I'd recommend staying away from this, especially given the ludicrous price of what is basically a very average mascara!

Summary: Thankfully I didn't pay full price for this!