BADgal BANG by Benefit review

This little tinker has being causing a right scene across beauty land hasn't it! If it's not people being annoyed about that Maldives trip it's clumpgate. I love a good old Benefit press release and the hype that always surrounds a new product launch especially when its a new mascara; I wasn't keen on They're Real but loved Roller Lash, I didn't try the OG Badgal but was keen to try out the re-launch. Once I'd seen some of those lucky PR list bloggers try it out first of course. 

Bigger, Badder, Volumising Mascara

The new and improved Badgal Bang is said to provide 36 hour wear with the help of aero particles to create massive volume without weighing down the lashes. Thanks to the space technology formula, the product should be easy to layer to create full gravity defying lashes. So how did I get on? 

Benefit advise wiggling the Slimpact Brush from the base of the lash to tips notice immediate lift and volume and then build as required. Disappointingly, it's not quite that simple however, I once you've gotten used to the product it's quite easy to create the desired effect. 

Formula and Application 

It is on the wetter side of most mascaras that I'm used to such as Tarte Maneater and Too Faced Better than Sex so it naturally requires a little more care when applying to avoid slapping it all over your face; my good pal and beauty guru Anoushka gave me the very useful tip of allowing the new bottle / pot to air / dry out for a while whilst I applied the rest of my face. Doing this made a huge difference to the application and I now let the wand breathe for a few moments before I apply it - doing this whilst it's slighter dryer makes it much easier to comb through my lashes and manipulate through my shorter and lighter areas. 

I think timing is key when it comes to layering this mascara, you don't want to apply your second layer whilst the lashes are too wet nor do you want to wait until they're completely dry - you need to find that tacky moist stage where your lashes are dry enough to manipulate without going soggy and giving up. This sounds a bit complicated but I promise it's easy to get into the swing of things. 

There's no denying that this product is exceptionally wet and it can easily clump and cause lashes to lose their curl but it's simply not the kind of mascara that you can quickly pop on your face and skip out of the door - with a little bit of care and maybe the help of an extra spoolie brush to brush through your lashes at the end you can achieve a really impressive and almost out if this world look. 

I have very short and stumpy blonde lashes so it takes a longer amount of time to create a dark and intense look, these images were taken after one layer and there is a visible difference in the length of my lashes as well as the darkness. You can see that there are some areas that need more coverage and the lashes overall need another comb through at least but the affect is instantaneous. I probably would buy this mascara again but when I'm in a rush and don't have time to take care, I'll definitely be sticking to my dryer and easier to apply mascaras.