I Had to Let Go of Christain Dior, Diorshow Mascara

Author's Rating:

Pros: Only requires one coat, black color is intense, seems to thicken very well.

Cons: Smudges like charcoal, feels sticky on eyes, more thickening than lengthening, dark!

The Bottom Line: 

I wanted to love it, but I had to let it go. No-go on Diorshow.

Author's Review
Unlike most women, I have quite thick, curly eyelashes, but they are short. And, they can get bleached out in the sun (which is only a problem in summer months in the beautiful PNW). I use mascara because I want to make my eyes to "pop" a bit more, while still maintaining an appropriate, natural look. I've tried a lot of products, from the clear gel formulas of the late 90s (I just didn't see the point), to dual formula mascaras that offer moisture and mascara at the same time. Ultimately there is always something you have to give up--either the only color offered is black (black can be harsh on women with big eyes, or dark eye areas), smudging and/or flaking is a problem, or you can only remove the product with industrial-strength eye makeup remover.

About 4-5 years ago I found my "mainstay" mascara: Neutrogena's weightless volume wax-free formula--hands down the best product out there for the price ($5.99-6.99) for women who just need a little boost to their lashes (see review to come). But sometimes you do want to make a statement, you want your eyes to look gorgeous, and to generate a little drama :-). The Neutrogena mascara is not right for this.

So, around holiday-time last year, off to the hallowed halls of Sephora I went--in search of an optional mascara. After trying to get a rep to pay attention to me (that's a recurring theme at my favorite store, the 17-year old buying lip gloss takes far more priority over the 40-something woman with the wallet in her hand ready to buy $98 Dr. Pericchone moisturizer and expensive mascara--but I digress), I lassoed a young woman who told me that Sephora had actually done a survey and they were displaying the top 3 "best mascara" winners. I ended up choosing the Diorshow, because they provided an option that was not waterproof--I cannot handle trying to remove waterproof formulas.

Unfortunately, Diorshow only comes in black. When I commented on this, the rep asked why I would want a color other than black. She was very attractive, but her heavily black-rimmed eyes felt overdone for the daytime to me. I gently explained that here in the Pacific Northwest, you don't always want to look like you're barhopping during the day. There is a natural, casual approach to beauty here and I think providing a softer color option addresses this. Still, I was looking for a night-time or special event mascara, so I settled for the drama of black.

So one of the cons is that black is the only color offered. Although, I did notice on the Sephora website that they offer a plum option, but I did not see that at the store, and I don't know anyone who was born with plum eyelashes--although maybe its pretty for the right occasion.

The formula felt very thick as I applied it with the very large, heavily feathered wand. For me, these wands do not work. I have to be ultra-careful when applying the mascara because product at the end of the wand ends up on my eyelid, or at the corner of my eye. I prefer a smaller wand that I can control. I have real issues controlling this wand, enough for that alone to discourage me from purchasing this again.

Still the formula goes on relatively easily, but it is THICK. One coat was plenty for me. I noticed that for some reason the formula seems to deposit far more at the base of the lashes--even though I used the technique that the rep described to me, settling the feathers of the wand into the lashes and pulling it gently through to the end. Although I had been very specific about needing lengthening more than thickening, this seems to be much more geared to thickening your lashes--although it does add length, too. My eyelashes certainly did look dramatic--sort of like Goldie Hawn's, and the color was very deep. Their claim is valid in this regard.

But not more than 3-4 hours later I looked into a mirror and found horrifyingly dark smudges under my eyes. Only Clinique's mascara has ever left worse smudges--and I've tried a lot of mascaras. And, the Diorshow product is also somewhat difficult to remove even without being waterproof. This mascara does not flake or fall off in small bits, it just smudges heavily after a very short time. I have used it about a dozen times, trying different things to mitigate the smudging, like putting powder all around my eyes (not too good for fine lines), or using a gel formula eye moisturizer. Still this mascara smudges terribly on me. I do not have this problem at all with the Neutrogena formula. Another thing I noticed is that when I blink my eyes, there's a stickiness to the formula I don't care for--a bit like tar.

For these reasons, I cannot give it a higher rating. I also noticed that once exposed to air, the product thickened quite fast. I have to run the wand under hot water when I use it now--and it's only been a few (3) months.

So for me, Diorshow was a no-go.