Writer and lifetime lash junkie Dolly Alderton is a connoisseur of budget mascaras. Here she reveals her favourite five on the high street.
Over the years, I’ve learnt that there are times when you must spend cash on products to ensure you get the best money can buy. These include: coats, boots, bras, face moisturiser, foundation, bedding, bikini waxes, bin bags, eggs and dairy, meat and fish, white wine and vodka. And speakers. Oh, and phone chargers, the cheap ones are no good. Also, a big(ish) telly.
However, I’ve also discovered there are certain things you can buy cheap that do the job just as well as their expensive alternatives. Things like shower gel, nail polish and knickers. Cushion covers, rugs, shower curtains, short haul flights, socks, body lotion, lip balm, books (buy second hand), bikinis (don’t buy second hand), t shirts, tents, chips, crisps, chocolate bars and – really, if we’re being honest – gym memberships (the machines are all the same, if you never go to the cheap gym, it doesn’t mean you need to spend more money on the fancy gym, it means you just don’t want to go to the gym at all).
But the resplendent reigning queen of effective cheap products has to be mascara. Which is a brilliant coincidence as I am addicted to the stuff and seem to get through it with double the speed of any other woman (on average, I buy a mascara a month). I have dipped my toe in the high-end waters, but always return to my favourite one by L’Oreal that costs just over a tenner.
I genuinely believe the mascaras on the stands in Boots to be better than the ones in drawers behind department store counters. In fact, it is something I feel rather passionately about. So here, after a month of rigorous testing, is my pick of the best budget mascaras.
