Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt personally victimized by Pinterest.
Beauty Hacks. They’re everywhere. They tell you to do things that you wouldn’t ever dream of, or even consider! Are they lifesavers? Are they going to become your new make up or beauty heroes that get you want you want, with half the effort? I’ll be putting some of the most popular beauty hacks to the test to see if they really measure up to all the hype! Should we love them or leave them? Time to find out!
The Winged Eyeliner Spoon Hack
Initial Thoughts:
Cosmopolitan online calls this hack “life changing” but is it really? I mean, free handing isn’t THAT hard and I’ve gotten pretty used to it by now. Sure, sometimes one eye is a little more winged out than the other but who would even notice that? My initial impression of this hack is that it’s too much work. I mean, who really has a teaspoon lying around their vanity area? Maybe I’ll be pleasantly surprised!
Here’s my step by step imitation of the image above:
(I would have taken the pictures with the spoon but I only have two hands y’all! I just followed the image above for placement!)
Final Thoughts:
WELL. It was too much work for me. If you’re already confident in your eyeliner application skills, you can leave this hack and do you, girls! If you’re a bit on the unsure side, the spoon does help you keep your lines strong, and you can love this hack until you’ve perfected your freehand!
Eyelash Curler Technique Hack
Initial Thoughts:
I am terrified. Can you really be able to do hold your lashes in a curler, firmly squeeze them into place, and then proceed to moving it upward????
Here are my before and after pictures:
Before:
After:
Final Thoughts:
LEAVE IT. Trying to curl my lashes using this beauty hack was actually a little painful. It tells you to grab your lashes at the lash base, and I did. Once I started moving the curler upward, I could feel it pulling my lashes out! Plus, I feel like you get the same level of curliness by curling your lashes the normal way… which thankfully is also the less painful route to go!
Mascara Hack
Initial Thoughts:
This could be promising! It seems super easy to do also so why not give it a try?
I figured that it would be helpful to compare two different mascaras, one that wasn’t cleaned/rolled over a tissue, and one that was. On the left is my L’oreal Double Extend Mascara that wasn’t cleaned, and on the right is my Maybelline Falsies Express Volume that was cleaned.
Double Extend on the left, Falsies on the right!
Final Thoughts:
Meh. I’m pretty sure I like this hack, but love it might be too much of an overstatement! If you were hoping for some dramatic results then look elsewhere. I do think cleaning the mascara wand made a little difference, but not anything life changing. I think it’s effectiveness also has something to do with the type of mascara you use, since some are more prone to making your lashes clumpier than others. But, this hack is so simple that you should just try it for yourself and decide if you want to love it or leave it!
The Rubber Band Manicure Hack
Initial Response:
If this hack works, I’ll finally be able to give myself a French mani!! I am feeling pretty optimistic if I do say so myself.
I thought I would try and do a colour block nail with some new pinks I got! For the rubber band, I used some small elastic hair ties instead of the larger normal sized ones.
SIGH.
Final Thoughts:
Le sigh. I knew it was too good to be true. I guess for touch-ups, this hack would be in the love it category, but as for actually giving yourself a nice clean line to work with, this hack falls short. Sorry to say that I will definitely be leaving this hack. The nail polish seemed to melt through the rubber band for some reason, and as a result I couldn’t get a clean line!
Is nail polish supposed to do that?!
Lip Plumping Hack
Initial Thoughts:
Now this makes sense to me! This plays on the idea that if a feature on your face catches light, it’ll look more prominent. Here’s my before and after:
Final Thoughts:
LOVE IT! This works, and I am so glad that I’m ending this on a positive note. My lips aren’t naturally plump so I think I’ll be using this hack for a long time- they do look fuller!
Final Final Thoughts:
I think I left most of the beauty hacks I reviewed today, and that is pretty disappointing! But I guess it just goes to show you that there isn’t really a shortcut for anything, and that if you want perfection you’re probably going to have to put effort to get it. This was pretty fun though. On the bright side, at least you have an idea about how some beauty hacks might turn out. Sorry Pinterest!
Photo Sources:
http://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/beauty/advice/a6288/spoon-beaut…
http://thebeautydepartment.com/2012/10/pinch-me/
http://www.thegloss.com/2014/07/14/beauty/lip-plumper-diy-tips-angelina-…
http://www.listotic.com/32-makeup-tips-that-nobody-told-you-about/27/
https://www.mybodyskincare.com/wp/diy-beauty-hacks-every-girl-should-know/
http://www.aliexpress.com/w/wholesale-poly-black-hair-rubber-bands.html