Jordana at Walgreens Part 2: New FabuBrow Pencils & Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara

Continuing my series covering all of the new Jordana products now available at Walgreens (click here if you missed part 1), today I'm going to show you the new FabuBrow Eyebrow Pencils and Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara. I've been testing out both of these products for the past week and I'd love to share my thoughts with you.

The best part about this review? Both products I'm going to show you today retail for just $2.99 each!

First, let's started with the new FabuBrow Eyebrow Pencils:

Jordana FabuBrow Eyebrow Pencils

(retail: $2.99 each, 0.039 oz)

There are three shades in the range:

I always gravitate toward the ashy light brown shades when it comes to eyebrow pencils, so my decision on which one to use here was pretty easy; I went with Taupe.

Taupe is definitely an ashy, lighter brown shade, while Medium Brown is a warmer brown. Dark Brown seems like more of a neutral dark brown to me--it's a little bit warm in certain lights but a little bit cooler in other lights.

I'll be showing you how this pencil looks on my brows a little bit later in the post, but for now I'd like to talk about the consistency and staying power.

Long-time readers of this blog know that I tend to favor automatic pencils when it comes to my brows, only because I prefer a very fine point and I don't like to use a sharpener. So a brow pencil has to be pretty special for me to want to use it if I have to sharpen it. Luckily, it was a pure joy to use this pencil.

If you like super pigmented and slightly creamy brow pencils (as opposed to the harder, waxier variety), then you might LOVE these FabuBrow pencils. They go on with almost no effort at all on my brows, and the color payoff is fantastic for how little pressure you need to use during application.

Usually when brow pencils are a bit on the creamy side, I get scared that they'll fade or smear before day's end (especially since my skin is so oily). I've been wearing Taupe for over a week now and so far, the staying power has been fantastic. I can go all day and not need to touch up. (Note: the weather here in San Diego has been moderate-to-cold lately, so I do not know how these pencils will hold up when it's very warm outside.)

Another thing I love is that this pencil adheres to the areas of my brows where there is no hair. In other words, if you have bald patches and are worried if this pencil might skip or not show up on those bald patches (like some drugstore pencils are known to do--for me at least), I don't think you'll have to worry about that with these. I'll show you exactly what I'm talking about a little later on.

My only complaint, and it's a tiny one, is that Taupe is a teeny tiny bit too dark for me. I usually wear Maybelline Define-A-Brow in Dark Blonde, for reference.

Next, we've got the new Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara:

 Jordana Best Lash Extreme Volumizing Mascara

(retail: $2.99, 0.30 oz)

Not to be confused with the original Best Lash, Best Lash Extreme is a new product and comes in one shade: Black.

I tend to favor mascaras with thicker, slightly drier, volumizing formulas and "real" brushes (as opposed to plastic/rubber brushes). So when I saw that this mascara was on the drier side AND had a "real" brush, I couldn't wait to try it:

When I say this mascara has a drier formula, I don't mean that it's so dry that it won't adhere to lashes. It's just not one of those wetter mascaras that have more of a liquid consistency.

I thought it might be helpful to get some perspective as to the size of this brush, so I compared it to the CoverGirl Lash Blast Fusion brush:

As you can see, lengthwise it's about the same size as the CoverGirl brush, but it's not as wide.

Now I'd like to show you some before-and-afters. Please note: I have used the FabuBrow Eyebrow Pencil in Taupe in all of the following pictures:

BEFORE

BEFORE

Remember how I told you that I was going to give you an example of how the FabuBrow pencil adheres to the areas of my brows where there is no hair? Well look at the left brow (not my left, your left) and notice how I deliberately extended my brow about a 1/4 of an inch below where my brow hairs end (toward my nose). No problems at all with this pencil showing up on my skin; in fact, it looks quite natural to me.

Back to the mascara! Here are some after shots:

AFTER TWO COATS OF JORDANA BEST LASH EXTREME

 

AFTER TWO COATS OF JORDANA BEST LASH EXTREME

AFTER TWO COATS OF JORDANA BEST LASH EXTREME

Now, I realize this look is not for everyone. But because my lashes are basically nonexistent without mascara, I have always preferred a little "clumpage" to my mascaras because I desperately need to SEE my lashes (they're invisible otherwise). And not only does Best Lash Extreme give me some "clumpage", it also gives me length! This mascara gives me so much volume and length after two coats that I feel confident foregoing eyeshadow and liner if I'm in a hurry (and those are words I don't say lightly).

If you are like me and prefer a thicker, drier mascara that gives you serious volume to the point of almost being clumpy, then you might love this mascara as much as I do. I've been wearing it for over a week now and the staying power has been quite good (I can go almost 9 hours before I start to see some fading on my lower lashline). This mascara does not smear or run for me (it is NOT waterproof though so if you cry, go swimming, etc. it will run). And the best part? NO flaking (for me at least).

I love this little mascara so much that I might have to declare it my favorite under-five-dollar drugstore mascara. I sometimes don't get the volume I crave from many under-five-dollar drugstore mascaras, so if you know what I'm talking about here, then I think you might want to give this one a shot. If you already have long, full lashes and you're just looking for definition, this is probably not the product for you.

I hope this review gives you a better idea of these products and whether or not they might be a good fit for you. Please stay tuned because I've got lots more to cover in the weeks ahead.

A sample of this product was given to Nouveau Cheap for editorial purposes, either directly from the manufacturer or from the agency that works on behalf of the manufacturer. All reviews on NouveauCheap.blogspot.com are the honest opinion of its author and editorial samples do not, in any way, affect the outcome of product reviews.