Roller Lash.

I have been fairly vocal about the fact that I am not Benefit's biggest mascara fan; there was Benefit Bad Gal Lash, which did add volume and length, but smudged terribly on me, fast forward a few years and the brand launch Benefit They're Real Mascara. This is arguably one of the most successful mascara's ever and yet I couldn't hop on board - yes it added length to my lashes but it also weighed them down, flaked and generally irritated my eyes. To say I was less than enthused about Benefit Roller Lash Mascara was an understatement. However after trying it I have to say its nothing short of wonderful.

This mascara is based around hair rollers - the wand handle is a nod to retro, pink hair rollers and the spoolie boasts similar technology to Velcro rollers. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara has been created to grip onto the eyelashes, pull them upwards, curl, coat black and set - I guess a little like an eyelash perm, only temporary. The brush head is both curved and on the smaller size making it perfect for small eyes. The wand features tiny little hooks, which grip onto the smallest eyelashes, somewhat stretching them outwards and upwards, encouraging them to curl - the idea is that you can ditch eyelash curlers. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara also contains an in-built "wand wiper" to ensure that the brush isn't overloaded with product - again to prevent the mascara from overwhelming/weighing down the eyelashes.

Sure the packaging and brush may be novel but does this mascara work? Yes, yes it does! I won't for one moment pretend that it is on par with using separate eyelash curlers but it certainly does open up the eyes. As someone with poker straight eyelashes I was pretty surprised to see a definite uplift and curl, I truly did believe before use that this was just a marketing gimmick. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara has a super lightweight formula so flimsy eyelashes such as my own are not weighed down but it can be applied in layers, should you want a more dramatic look - free from clumps which I personally believe is due to the comb like plastic brush. It is a fairly wet mascara but not really prone to smudging nor flaking, it does leave the eyelashes a little crispy but nothing more than the majority of mascara's out there. It adds length, volume and really opens the eyes but I do not rate it for the bottom lashes, the shape of the brush does not bode well and frankly it just looked odd once applied.

Overall, it lengthens, adds volume, separates, won't weigh the eyelashes down, doesn't flake or smudge and really does open the eyes with a slight curling effect for the lashes. As someone who doesn’t usually rate Benefit mascaras I am more than happy to say this has more than surprised me!