Tuesday Tip | Revive dry mascara with saline (plus: a tip that doesn't work!)
You know how you're supposed to throw mascara away every three months?
Well, Lisey and I had a couple of tubes that were getting dry and clumpy before they even made it to the three month mark.
Digusted, Lisey took to the interwebs to find a good DIY for fixing the problem.
The first fix we came across involved putting the tubes into a mug of freshly boiled water for a few minutes. We tried that, and at first we thought the mascara was looking pretty darn hydrated.
But alas, it got clumpy again as soon as it cooled.
And we are not about to soak our mascara every time we want to use it.
Onward!
We tried another tip, which was to add a few drops of sterile saline solution to the tube, then shake. And that, friends, seems to be working quite well.
My tube is now giving me clump-free lashes whereas before I was getting lumps of mascara.
And since I'm a contact lens wearer, I always have sterile saline in the house. Easy fix for me!
The number of saline drops you'll need will vary depending on how much mascara is in your tube and also how dry it is.
I'd recommend starting with 2-3 drops and then adding more as needed.
P.S. Because an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure: never pump your wand in and out of the tube, as this forces air into the tube and encourages your mascara to dry up.
Wow what a simple yet effective solution! And did I mention it's very frugal as well? I don't use mascara, but this is good to know. Thanks for sharing!
Yes! I do this also and it works beautifully! Though confession...I'm fairly sure my mascara does NOT get replaced every 3 months (ahem :))...My husband is a contact wearer also so there is always a good supply of solution around! Great tip!
Excellent tip, thank you! I have one for you too. Awhile ago you had a way for getting the wax out of candle jars which involved boiling water. It worked but I came across one that's even better. You put the jar in the freezer for several hours and the wax pulls away from the glass and pops out! WD40 takes any sticky labels off perfectly. You really do need to leave the jar for a few hours for it to work really well.
That's good to know. I wear contacts, so I can do this easily. A new use for solution - who knew?
Ooh, thank you! I just tossed a dry tube of mascara in the trash the other day. I'll have to remember this one. 🙂
I do wish there were a way to "refill" mascara tubes with liquid. It seems like such a shame to toss a perfectly good wand.
I clean the wand well then use it to groom my eyebrows.
I thought mascara had to be thrown out because of bacteria multiplication inside the tube after a while, and not necessarily because it gets dry...?? I don't wear mascara, it makes my eyes itchy ever time (and I hate taking it off, so I don't miss it!)
Bacteria multiplication is the reason to throw out after three months. Kristen said hers was drying out before the three month mark.
A tip from back when I sold Mary Kay to keep mascara from drying up: Don't pump your mascara wand into the tube. Use more of a swirl into the tube to load mascara onto the wand.
Pumping contributes to the drying out.
Maybe combine the two tips: warm your mascara to temporarily liquify it, then add the saline so it stays liquid.
About three months in is when my mascara starts bothering my eyes so i chuck it. I keep mine in the car and since we live in a winter wonderland its usually frozen lol. I put it under my bum so me/the seat heater warms it up and luckily we have a long enough drive to town that i can apply before we get there
Haha, I love your method!
The three month advice is because of bacteria. The purpose of eyelashes is to prevent bacteria and debris from getting into the eyes. Hence, they're literally little dirt collectors. Transferring bacteria into a moist, dark environment where they're free to multiply makes bacteria very happy.
If you only use it occasionally, it can be kept longer, but it tends to dry out anyway, so the saline solution is still an excellent tip.
If you want to be super vigilant about this, mark the date opened on the tube with a sharpie.
I use it so seldom that the hot water trick works fine.
If you're really worried about bacteria, the old school way is to use cake mascara, which you use with a brush. Dampen the brush, make a paste and apply. The cake dries out between usings and the brush is easily washed. Fewer places/ways for bacteria to multiply. I just googled it and it's still on the market.
I've never tried this tip since I never have saline solution, so just now I googled it and apparently you can easily make your own. https://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/Article?contentid=3040&language=English
I've never tried it, but plan to now.
I tried making my own saline solution for my mascara and it seemed to work!
Lash Paradise is a very clumpy mascara before it even starts to dry up.
I've been using the saline solution trick for years and you're right. It works beautifully! It stops the clumps and smooths the formula.
Wipe brush with the saline too before putting back into tube Works on eyelash primer as well. Likely wouldn't work on waterproof formulas (which are very bad for eyelashes anyway and I avoid them).