The Ultimate Mascara Quest - Batch 1: Epic Fail

So begins the quest for the ultimate mascara – with batch one.

Even though this was a great learning experience and gave me all kinds of clues as to how to continue, I can't lie: this batch was an epic fail.

Here's a peek at the making of batch one and what went horribly wrong.

24/7 Lash Love

Because the base of this mascara is meant to pamper lashes and encourage growth, I decided to leave the pigment out of half of the batch. My reasoning: if it's going to be a totally lash-pampering product, it may be great to use as a nighttime lash-booster as well.

Off Center Laser Focus 

Creating the formula was actually fun, but I was far too focused on pampering and nourishing lashes and not thinking enough about mascara requirements. In short, I was so busy packing in lash-pampering ingredients I didn't pay enough attention to the texturizers and emulsifiers.

More on that in a minute.

Black Color Without Oxides

As an additional new thing to try, I decided to give activated charcoal a chance at lash-coloring glory instead of using the classic iron oxide pigments.

Why?
To see if I could create a mascara with an efficient, iron-oxide-free black color.

Why?
Because some people with make-up sensitivities may react to iron oxides if they also happen to be nickel-allergic.

Pure activated charcoal is safe for internal use (as a digestive aid) and this activated charcoal is safe for use in products around the eyes – like kohl pencils and mascara.

Here's a peek at the half of the batch with added color.

Below: the colorless half. The texture actually allowed for piping into the container with a plastic bag instead of the usual 'syringe transfer' method (see this post for pics and more about the syringe-transfer method).

Testing

The positive: 

Upon application, the mascara was neither tacky, gummy, lumpy, or sticky. The feeling was actually quite lovely – even after it was removed.

The less positive:

1. Difficult to apply
2. Practically impossible to build up layers
3. Didn't stay where it was applied
4. Didn't 'dry' as mascara normally does, so...
5. ...the color flaked off

Close-up of how it looked 15 min. after application. The flaking and 'wandering color' is particularly evident along the bottom lashes.

And all that wasn't even the worst of it.

The worst of it didn't reveal itself until the next day. Pictured below is the product on day 2.
It separated.

Conclusion

Back to the drawing board. I plan to keep all those lash-loving ingredients in there, so it's 'just' a question of getting the rest of it to work.

Piece of cake, right?

Do Tell

Do you make your own mascara? I'd love to hear your input!

How it Started

The Quest Begins