Review: Maybelline Limited Edition Colossal Volum' Express Diamonds Mascara

I know that a lot of you thought, "Yeah, right" when you first saw the new Limited Edition Colossal Volum' Express Diamonds Mascara by Maybelline. But when I saw the display in person, I have no shame in telling you I was like a little girl again, instantly mesmerized by the bright and shiny images and glittery pink packaging. "What is this going to look like on my lashes? Will it make them sparkle? Twinkle like little Christmas lights? Will everyone around me instantly become mesmerized and hypnotized when they look into my eyes?" These are the silly questions I asked myself, and, naturally, there was just one way to answer these questions: I had to buy the darn thing.

By they way, I have since encountered another Limited Edition Colossal Diamonds display which contains the new eyeshadows AND $1 off coupons (look for this one in your drugstores and grab those coupons because they're good toward *any* Maybelline eye product!):

The colors of these duos are (from left to right) Amethyst Diamond, Copper Diamond and Turquoise Diamond.

For once, the colors in this LE collection didn't jump out to me, and I wasn't compelled to purchase any of them (but Maybelline, if you're reading this, you should know that your other Limited Edition collections make me weak in the knees--Sweet Thing and Poptimistic Pretty are two prime examples).

So let's talk about this mascara, shall we?

(click any image to enlarge)

So...do you see those "luminous sparkles for a diamond effect"? Look closer at the above pic. Do you see that tiny little white dot near the center of the brush? That's a luminous sparkle!

Let me make one thing perfectly clear. I am a HUGE fan of the original Colossal Volum' Express formula. Ever since I saw Lauren Luke rave about it in one of her YouTube videos, I knew I had to get it and I have not been disappointed (click here for my full review). In fact, in many, many of the eye pictures I've posted here on Nouveau Cheap, I am wearing Colossal Volum' Express. I know a lot of you have issues with the original formula of this mascara (the biggest complaint I hear is that it flakes before end of day), but for me, I have yet to experience flakiness. I just get thick and long lashes that I can build for more intensity and no raccoon eyes by the end of day. Plus, it removes easily with my regular facial cleanser, which I love.

So now that I've gotten that out of the way, I have to tell you that I was extremely disappointed with the formula of Colossal Volum' Express Diamonds. First of all, let me show you the best photo I could manage to get to capture the "diamonds":

You can kind of see in this picture that there are, indeed, tiny little specs of microglitter present, and I actually love that they're multi-colored and not just silver. But oh how I wish this translated onto my actual lashes! Sadly, I could not detect even ONE sparkle when I applied this to to my lashes, and I checked in direct sunlight about a zillion times, hoping to see the "luminous sparkle" just once. But nothing. Nada. I couldn't see anything but black mascara.

Also, the Diamonds formula is NOTHING like the formula of the original Colossal mascara. For me, it was much, much drier (which is not a good thing considering the original formula is already on the dry side) and even though the directions warn you to not wait between coats, I kind of found that laughable because even when I tried to apply my second coat IMMEDIATELY after the first one, my lashes were already dry and hard to work with. Just how quickly does Maybelline expect us to apply this mascara? (I'm laughing right now imagining myself looking like I'm in fast-forward mode on a video trying to apply this as quickly as humanly possible!).

Let me show you some before-and-afters to seal the deal (WARNING: I was trying out a new primer and concealer when I took these shots, and after seeing these photos, the colors were all wrong for me. My skin looks dry and gray--it's horrible! So just ignore my skin and look at my lashes--PLEASE!).

My eye, no mascara:

One coat of Colossal Diamonds:

Two coats of Colossal Diamonds:

Another shot after two coats:

This formula was a dry, gloppy, gunky mess for me, folks. And no "luminous sparkles" to make it worth it. I didn't get either the thickness or length that I love in my original formula Colossal Volum'. All I got was a look that I don't care to repeat anytime soon.

So...as much as I was mesmerized by the idea of this product, the reality is that I just can't recommend it. I am sincerely hoping that one of you got the "luminous sparkle" that this product promises, because I certainly didn't.

Have you tried anything from the Maybelline Colossal Diamonds collection yet? Did you have better luck? I'd love to hear your thoughts.