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Waterproof mascaras: perfect for straight lashes, days at the beach and those moments when your emotions start “going live” in public.
In 2022, we made our triumphant return to “real life,” and found ourselves… kind of overwhelmed. “I was never much of a crier,” Sarah* tells POPSUGAR Australia, “but the other day I was walking down the street listening to a sad song and realised there were actual tears rolling down my cheeks.”
While COVID gave us plenty to cry about, we got used to doing it in private. Freaking out in a meeting? Turn your camera off. Regina George-level rage meltdown? Scream into your pillow with abandon. An overwhelming sense of existential dread looking at your inbox in the morning. Wail freely!
Very simply, we’ve been released into the wild, and we’ve gotten a little rusty when it comes to keeping our emotions in check. Add to that our third mercury in retrograde for the year, and to quote Chairlift: “we’re sorry we’re crying in public.”
Of course, we’ve actually never been that great at keeping a lid on our tears in the first place. A 2018 survey of 2000 executives found that 45% of employees had cried at work, additionally, 45% of CFOs thought crying at work was totally acceptable (your boss might be in the toilet cubicle next to you).
But, if you’d like to reap the benefits of a quick, efficient weeping sesh without fielding concerned enquiries, here are some tried and tested waterproof and water-resistant mascaras that will take your secrets to their grave.
Image credit: Essence
The Best Affordable: Essence, Lash Princess Waterproof Mascara
This mascara is viral for a reason. The classic Lash Princess is Amazon’s #1 best-selling lash enhancer. Essence, Lash Princess False Lash Effect, Waterproof Mascara, ($7) has a 4.5 star rating from 975 reviews on Influenster. Flake and smudge-free curl, length, volume at a low low price point, look no further.
Image credit: Maybelline
Best Fluttery Waterproof Mascara: Maybelline, Lash Sensational
Want to perfect your siren eye? Maybelline, Lash Sensational Full Fan Effect Waterproof Mascara ($15) will give you the soft, fluttery lashes of your dreams. With 10 layers of bristles, the curved, tapered brush captures every last lash, creating a full lash look that elongates the eye. The bullet proof waterproof formula is perfect for lashes that droop throughout the day, or for those who want to maintain their siren eyes in between sobbing sessions.
Image credit: Ere Perez
The Natural Option: Ere Perez, Avocado Waterproof Mascara
Looking for a waterproof formula that’s also natural and vegan? Australian-made natural beauty brand Ere Perez have you covered with their Avocado Waterproof Mascara ($38).
Not only is this vegan formula a guilt-free option, but it also contains nourishing avocado oils to strengthen and condition lashes and gives a natural, lengthened look to lashes.
Image credit: Mavala
The Strengthening Formula (in Plenty of Colours): Mavala Switzerland, Volume & Length Waterproof Mascara
Mavala Switzerland is best known for its nail polishes – but they actually make fantastic lipsticks and this wonderful mascara. Protein-packed the Volume & Length Mascara ($25) has a long-wearing, the smudge-free formula that gives lashes a natural look, with a soft and flexible hold. An added bonus? If you’re over black ready to experiment, there are 5 colours to choose from: chocolate brown, inky black, royal purple, midnight navy and bright “glacier” blue. You’ll find as many shades as the ’90s mood ring you shouldn’t have chucked.
Image credit: MECCA
The "It" Mascara: Byredo, Tears in the Rain Mascara
Fun fact: Lorde wore this mascara when shooting the music video for her song “Solar Power,” as the formula held up to multiple dunks in the ocean.
An editor’s favourite, Byredo’s Tears in the Rain Mascara ($72) is so much more than just cool packaging. With its curved, ergonomic handle the tiny mascara wand is perfect for detail work, capturing your inner and outer corner lashes without ruining your eye makeup. This 89% natural and 100% vegan formula will have you looking doe-eyed and ethereal through F45 sessions, surprise breakups, and awkward performance reviews.
Image credit: Poni
The 2-in-1: Poni, The White Knight
If your eyes can’t hack intense waterproof formulas, tubing mascaras are a great option.
Removable with warm water, tubing mascaras slip off your lashes in segments rather than flaking or dissolving – which means less rubbing and tugging for you. If you do burst into tears without warning, you just need to brush away the flakes and top up.
If you like to switch up your lash look from full and thick to light and natural, try Poni’s The White Knight Mascara ($32) – one of Zoë Foster Blake’s favourites the mascara comes with an innovative dual brush that allows you to personalise your lash-look.
Image credit: Clio
The K-Beauty Essential: Clio, Kill Lash Superproof Mascara
If you have short, straight lashes, Clio’s Kill Lash Superproof Mascara ($30) is your new holy grail. With rave reviews as long and fan-ed out as your lashes are about to be, choose between Long Curling and Sleek Volume formulas, depending on your requirements.
Image credit: Benefit
The Drama Queen (!): Benefit, BADgal Bang! Waterproof Mascara
Want to inject some Main Character Energy into your beauty look? Benefit’s BADgal Bang! Waterproof Mascara ($44) is the mascara for you. This formula gives eyebrow grazing length and uses lightweight aero-particles for intense volume that never weighs down your lash. Meanwhile, the angled brush leaves no lash behind, providing root-to-tip coverage with an inky black formula.
Image credit: MECCA
The GOAT Tubing Formula: Kevyn Aucoin, The Volume Mascara
We’ve already taken you why tubing mascara formulas are great – now meet the first. Slender and surprising Kevyn Aucoin’s The Volume formula creates an incredibly natural look. With close to 5 stars out of 5,000 reviews on MECCA, The Volume Mascara ($45) is perfect for humid climates, gym sessions and those with oily lids or hooded eye shapes prone to transfer and smaller eyes who find large volume brushes poke and prod unpleasantly. It’s referred to as the “GOAT” by repeat purchasers. If you haven’t tried this mascara, get yourself to a MECCA stat.
Image credit: Lancôme
The False Lash Effect: Lancôme Monsieur Big
Want to slip into something more comfortable? Big, fluffy and soft: Lancôme’s cult Monsieur Big Mascara ($52) is a woolly jumper for your lashes, and now comes in a waterproof formula that’s just as cocooning. One swipe and you have full thick lashes, two, you have a false lash effect, three swipes? Probably unnecessary but you do you. Reviewers love Monsieur Big Waterproof mascara because while it provides a long hold, it wears comfortably and is easy to remove.
Image credit: HUDA Beauty
The Lifehack: HUDA Beauty, Legit Lashes Waterproof Topcoat
Beauty entrepreneur Huda Kattan became a self-made billionaire by answering our beauty pain points, and this is a biggie: when your favourite mascara doesn’t come in a waterproof formula. Her solution? Think of Legit Lashes Waterproof Top Coat ($29) as a rain jacket for your mascara. With a wave of this wand, your staple mascara will have all of its charms, with a more emotionally resilient personality.
*Sarah is known to POPSUGAR Australia but would rather not be known as someone who cries to Adele in public.
