Going to Great Lengths

Shu Uemura, the "Rolls Royce" of eyelash curlers.

Marsi is back today with another one of her "value-added" posts. See below. . .

So, I've already told you about my thinning eyebrows. Alas, it doesn't stop there. My eyelashes aren't what they once were either, but it seemed like something I just had to live with. I know women get wonderful results from Latisse, but the potential side effects (changing iris colors, undereye discoloration) concern me. I filed spindly eyelashes under "C" -- for c'est la vie.

Covetworthy lashes. 

A couple of months ago, Allure magazine featured an article promising "16 Ways To Look Younger With Makeup." Read this:

Throw out your thickening mascara. Lashes get thinner as you age, so conventional wisdom says you need a thickening mascara to bulk them up, but common wisdom is wrong. "Your lashes can't support the extra weight," says [makeup artist Sandy] Linter. "Heavy formulas flatten the lashes." Instead, use a lengthening mascara, like Lancome Définicils High Definition Mascara, which tends to be lighter on the lashes, and look for mascaras with thin wands so you can easily coat each lash. 

I'd never thought about my eyelash issue in that way: that fewer eyelashes mean less support for the weight of mascara. For me, it was, as the French say, a coup de foudre -- a lightening bolt moment. After decades of using thickening, volumizing mascaras, I'd literally never tried a lengthening formula. I had to give it a whirl.

There are good lengthening mascaras available at every price point, but I'll confess, mascara is the one cosmetic item I never buy luxe. I like to replace it every six weeks so it's always really creamy. I've been really pleased so far with L'Oreal Telescopic Original. It has a nice, creamy formula that doesn't clump a bit, plus it has a slender brush that reaches every lash, even the tiniest ones in the corners. I've always loved L'Oreal's mascaras, and this is no exception.

L'Oreal makes great cheap thrills. 

Another plus: this lighter-weight formula is so much easier to remove at night, and I never find residue resisting my best efforts to remove it.

So tell me: are your lashes getting thinner, or is it just me? Have you tried lengthening mascara, and if so, what did you think?

P.S. I know you're curious about the other 15 ways, so here they are. I'm a little skeptical of some of them and the rest seem obvious, but judge for yourself.

• Moisturize your skin. A lot.
• Click-pen concealer formulas are best for not drawing attention to lines and crepiness. 
• Buy a yellow(ish) foundation. 
• Use a damp sponge to sheer out your foundation. 
• Skip powder (or "use translucent, light-diffusing powder, nothing tinted").
• Keep piling on the moisture -- creamy blush, creamy eyeshadow, creamy lip color. 

• "Rub your blush in along the highest points of your cheekbones -- it makes your bone structure stand out."
• Tweeze, but only if you absolutely must.
• Use a brow pencil that's "a shade lighter than your natural coloring, and hold it at a 45-degree angle."
• Unearth your eyelash curler. 
• Use eyeshadow base. 
• Swap out your black eyeliner for brown. 
• Don't be afraid of a little shimmer, especially in the inner corners of the eyes. 
• Stick to lipstick shades that "enhance your natural lip tone, rather than bringing attention to the area." 
• Try highlighter on the cheekbones.