I haven’t tried the two burgundy mascaras that keep going viral—Maybelline Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara in Burgundy Haze (which is no longer available) and L’Oréal Paris Makeup Voluminous Original Mascara in Deep Burgundy—but based on those aforementioned TikTok videos, Benefit’s version seems to be the most subtle of the bunch. It won’t necessarily make people stop and stare (or be concerned you have conjunctivitis), but it might make them wonder why your eyes look particularly alluring.
I like wearing Wild Plum on days when I’m not wearing much other makeup; I swipe two coats on both my top and bottom lashes (without a primer, though I’d bet if you laid down a white mascara first the burgundy would be more noticeable). The slight hint of color makes me feel like I made some extra effort, and I really do believe it makes my green eyes look brighter than regular old black mascara does. Just like the OG Badgal Bang formula, the burgundy version makes my lashes look extra long and lasts all day without much flaking—the only con is that this means it takes some extra elbow grease to remove at the end of the day.
I get why wearing mascara in any color other than black could be intimidating—especially if you’re more of a makeup minimalist, like me. But trust me: This stuff is just plain pretty. Plus, you can take comfort in what makeup artist Fulvia Farolfi previously told Allure about colored mascara: “It’s not supposed to be perfect.” A little smudge of burgundy mascara arguably looks less like a mistake (“Is that eye shadow?” passersby will wonder) than a smudge of black.
Anyone who’s taken a single art class (or was a fellow devotee of those Almay palettes) knows that green and red/purple sit across from each other on the color wheel, so it’s barely a surprise that the burgundy shade works for me. But since TikTok users claim burgundy looks good on everyone, I asked some of my non-green-eyed colleagues to test it out too.
Jesa Marie Calaor, senior editor
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