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Hearst Owned Beauty Makeup Ask Jenna: Why Is My Mascara Always Running? Ask Jenna: Why Is My Mascara Always Running? The reason is sneakier than you think
Ask Jenna is a beauty advice column from Bazaar’ s beauty director, Jenna Rosenstein. Do you have a burning beauty question that you want answered in next month’s edition? Don’t be shy: You can always slide into Jenna’s DMs on Instagram .
It’s both you and the mascara. When you notice a mascara starts to smudge throughout the day, you probably try another, and another—then upgrade to tubing or waterproof to see if that solves it. But if you’re still running into raccoon-eye issues, there are a handful of other factors that can contribute to this common makeup problem.
“One of the biggest reasons is humidity,” says Daniel Martin , a celebrity makeup artist and the global director of artistry for Tatcha . “Humidity is awful for mascara because it makes the dry-down take longer once on the lashes, and you need to blink—hence the transfer and sometimes mess that happens.” So let the steam out of your bathroom before you start your makeup routine.
If you’re like, “But Jenna and Daniel! This happens to me even in the winter when it’s dry as a bone,” then it’s time to consider your skincare routine as the culprit. Think about the products you’re using around your eyes—especially anything thick or oily, like eye creams. “The emollience can get picked up from the lashes when you blink,” says Martin. If you’re not removing residual oil from lashes, all mascaras will have a hard time latching onto them.
Then there’s the matter of the mascara formula itself. Tubing and waterproof mascaras are both great options, but Martin and I both prefer the former. “I tend to lean toward tubing because it’s generally more comfortable for contact wearers than waterproof mascara,” he says. Tubing mascaras wrap the lash in a tiny “tube” of formula rather than coating it in gloopy pigment, and those tubes slide off lashes easily with warm water at the end of the day. In contrast, removing waterproof mascara day after day can be tough on your fragile lashes. Plus, it usually requires an oil-based remover, which can lead you right back to the slippery emollient issue.
Another sneaky cause of smudgy mascara is passive eye rubbing due to fatigue or dry eyes, especially if you’re using a tubing formula. Keep your hands off your face and your lashes clean. And if all else fails, try a lash primer. “The important thing about lash primers is allowing them to dry down properly before applying the mascara,” Martin says. “If you don’t allow the primer to dry down, the mascara will be messy when you apply it on top since it’s technically still wet.”
You should also practice good makeup hygiene to prevent your mascara from premature smudging: Only apply mascara to clean, dry lashes, remove it thoroughly at the end of the day, and replace your tube every three months. Looking for a new one? Shop some of Martin’s favorite formulas below.
Martin says this mascara is a kit staple if you already have length.
Another of Martin’s kit staples for those with naturally long lashes.
Martin says this J-Beauty mascara is great “for shorter, straight lashes that need some length and volume.”
Martin says this is his “drugstore go-to” for shorter and straight lashes.
This waterproof tubing formula is…