Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara → Style Chicks

I wondered about Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara, how could I not, it’s everywhere, even my Mom said I should try it. But every mascara makes claims, and every mascara had its’ die-hard fans.

Many “BIG LASH” mascaras seem like shellac-like lash-clumpers that turn into fallout and flakes. I want full but defined lashes from a mascara that stays put. I’ll shell out the big bucks if it works, but that’s a big IF.

Here are our thoughts on Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara and how to get the most out of it.

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara comes in regular formula and waterproof

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara comes in a regular and waterproof formula

MY FANTASY MASCARA THEORY

I was a big fan of two discontinued Shu Uemura Mascaras, the Basic and the Fiber Extensions. I’ve never really gotten over them and I haven’t found something I ADORED since.

But as faithful StyleChicks readers know, we’ve tried plenty of mascaras to forget my long-lost mascara loves.

I want it to be BLACK BLACK dark, lengthening and separating, and to be able to keep a curl. I like a major lash, but reasonably natural looking, not a terrible mess of clumps and smudges and flakes.

TOO FACED’S CULT-FOLLOWING

There were the devotees who said this was the best…but I didn’t believe it until became mascara desperate and saw a 2-pack at Ulta that had a full size with a free waterproof mini.

It is also $12 for the mini, which is not so little considering the full size is absolutely huge. With Ulta’s amazing return policy, what do you have to lose?

Picked up Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara with a free Waterproof mini on an Ulta haul.

The TOO FACED BETTER THAN SEX MASCARA Experience

I found the regular and the waterproof to be very similar, albeit the waterproof seems a little drier, not in a dried out way, just a slightly less wet formula.

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara brush has an hourglass shape, clumps tend to accumulate at the tip and require attention to clean

THE WAND: I do like the wand brush that comes with this mascara, and it works well if you do only one coat for the day.

BUT, I prefer to do three VERY thin coats throughout the day, and this way, I get NO clumps and virtually no fallout. I apply first in the morning at home during my typical makeup routine, then a coat before lunch to refresh the curl and add some intensity. Then a fuller, more dramatic lash for dinner and after-hours plans. That sounds like a lot of mascara, but hear me out, it looks natural if applied carefully.

HOW TO APPLY TOO FACED BETTER THAN SEX MASCARA

Each coat I do VERY lightly by dipping a disposable mascara wand into the tube just once per eye for both upper and lower lashes. Then I comb through with a dry disposable mascara wand or my trusty MAC or Paula Dorf Mascara Fan Brush.

MAC 205 Mascara Fan Brush Bristles allow for defined wispy mascara application

A fan brush eliminates any clumps and gives lashes a wispy look. I bring extra disposable wands with me for use during the day, and my trusty mascara fan brush, and a few cotton swabs just in case.

STYLECHICKS hack: Apply wet mascaras with disposable wands for maximum control

FIRST COAT: Thin first coat, lashes feel soft, it is difficult to hold a curl, but it is fine for the morning in the office, gives the effect of tight-lining the upper lashes
SECOND COAT: midday quick one-stroke coat to refresh for lunch plans.
THIRD COAT: A final third coat before dinner plans gives GIANT bombshell eyes. GIANT. For best curl hold all evening, I do a final thin coat of the Waterproof mascara after allowing the final coat to dry, give a quick curl, and the Too Faced Better Than Sex Waterproof Mascara nicely sets the curl.

After application, comb through wet lashes with a dry, clean disposable mascara wand for a well-defined lash finish that won’t clump

USING DISPOSABLE WANDS

I use Wayne Goss’ trick of bending the brush head of the mascara wand, but I use a clean disposable wand, this gives me the best access to upper and lower lashes and allows me to use the least mascara to get the best effect. I can also get in nice and close to the actual lash line, which gives a tight line effect and makes eyeliner use somewhat optional or minimal.

How to Apply Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara

Bend a disposable mascara wand for optimal control and to get in close on bottom lashes

The angled bent brush gives the best access to little lashes even in corners

I Forgo eyeliner other than tight lining or upper rim only for when I really want to bring it. Full-on liner is just too much, like crazy eye kind of big eye. If using eyeliner, do so very gingerly, perhaps something with a soft metallic such as a copper or taupe, or a smudge of shadow for some definition.

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara Pros and Cons

Currently, this is my favorite mascara, I don’t use anything else. At $23 it is a bit steep, but it lasts for as long as one should hold onto a mascara (three months). The $12 mini is not so mini, it can last you a good six weeks to two months.

Lashes can look huge with one coat from the full specially shaped brush, and it is buildable, like how I use it in multiple coats throughout the day. It does not get stiff, so lashes remain workable, but this is more difficult to curl. The waterproof leaves lashes more curl-able, with no discernable difference to me in appearance, only in the feel of the application. I personally found any of the reported Better Than Sex Mascara dupes to be flaky, whereas actually Better Than stays put. It eliminates the need for eyeliner on most days and defines the eye so well, I don’t need much else as far as eye makeup for a dramatic yet natural looking eye.

PROS:

No flaking. I mean none
Dark black that makes eyes look huge
Nice lush looking lashline

CONS:

Removing the mascara at the end of the day. I use safflower oil-soaked cotton pads, let them sit on my closed eyes for about 30 seconds to melt it all, then wash my face. Not dramatically worse than other mascaras, and there is no tugging involved if a proper oil remover is used.

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara has a thick brush with an hourglass shape

WHERE TO BUY Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara

Find Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara at TooFaced.com, Ulta, Macy’s, and Sephora

Our Experience

We tried the Mascara Application hack for ourselves, and it is actually pretty amazing on getting mascara right in close at the lash line, especially on the lower lashes, the shorter “arm” to the handle makes a difference in how much control there is in the application.

STYLECHICKS ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS

Three additional suggestions to make the most of this mascara application hack:

Bend a disposable mascara wand for optimal control and to get in close on bottom lashes

Use Disposable Wands: Instead of using the wand that comes with your mascara, use disposable mascara wands. They are very inexpensive at places like Amazon and Sallys Beauty Supply (under $10 for like 200 of them). The disposable wands are a cheaper plastic and often more flexible, thereby less subject to breaking off the wand head by accident. This way, you can bend your wand without fear of breaking it off and getting stuck, leaving you with no cap for your mascara.

Try angles other than just a 70 to 90-degree angle: You can shape the brush of your disposable mascara wand into other shapes including a c-shape to reinforce the curling capability of your wand.

Curve a disposable wand into a c-shape to enhance the curl of top lashes

FAN YOUR LASHES OUT. It is easier to manipulate the thin brush handle of a disposable wand between your fingers, so let the brush do the work to reduce smudges and fan out lashes. Rotate the thin arm between your forefinger and thumb to move the brush head so that the angle faces outward instead of inward in order to “fan out” the outer lashes, then give them one last brush forward.

CLEAN UP: You can even follow up with a clean disposable mascara wand for combing out any clumps or to get the direction of lashes just the way you would like it. Just hold the clean wand in front of your lashes and blink through the comb to remove clumps.

SIDE BONUS: Disposable mascara wands give much better control and product distribution for very wet mascaras or mascaras with fibers such as Too Faced Better Than Sex, Benefit BADgal, DiorShow, and Urban Decay Perversion Mascaras, to name a few.

Wet mascaras like Benefit BadGal and UD Perversion apply more evenly but with all the glamour when using a bent disposable mascara wand

Got any good mascara application tips to share? Tell us in the comment section below!

How to Use Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara