Originally published in the Spartan Daily April 27, 2010: Click here for link

Lancome's Oscillation Vibrating Mascara.

After trying two different kinds of vibrators over the course of three days, it was the more expensive model that gave me the results most women seek.

I am talking about bigger, bolder eyelashes with new vibrating mascaras.

I tried Lancome’s Oscillation Vibrating Mascara and Maybelline’s Pulse Perfection Vibrating Mascara.

Both of these products have the same idea – at the press of a button, the mascara wand starts to vibrate.

The effect of a vibrating mascara wand is to do the job a hand would when women put on mascara – when women put on mascara, they move their hand to wiggle the wand side-to-side. This motion is supposed to separate the lashes and make them look fuller.

The vibration is not an uncomfortable sensation, even when put on the eyelash line. Lancome’s mascara is said to give 7,000 oscillations per minute and Maybelline’s is 7,000 per application.

Both products are battery operated – inside there is a circular battery, like the ones used for watches.

Lancome found that the motorized applicator acted as a supercharger for the conditioning agents on the lashes, according to Lancome website.

After one week, ophthalmologists who examined lashes under a microscope noted a difference in the density of the lashes while 81 percent of women who used it noticed longer lashes after one month, according to a study by Lancome.

Lancome ran trials both with and without the vibration, and found the most positive results with vibration.

For three days I put Lancome’s mascara on the lashes of my right eye and Maybelline on the lashes of my left to see how each formula would carry on during an 11-hour day.

Both mascara brushes were similar and did not look or feel different from each other. Performance wise, Lancome’s Oscillation had a stronger vibration and made my lashes look fuller, while Maybelline’s Pulse Perfection left my lashes looking like I used normal, non-vibrating mascara.

The packaging of Lancome’s Oscillation is more appealing than Maybelline’s Pulse Perfection. Lancome’s is smooth, black and sleek with only a silver rose as its logo on the cap. Maybelline’s has the name of the mascara and gold lines on the body of the tube, making it look like drug store mascara.

Having the vibration on my lashes felt different at first, but was not unbearably annoying. I could see the difference instantly. The lashes with the Lancome formula looked fuller, thicker, longer and lighter in weight compared to the Maybelline formula. The Pulse Perfection made my lashes feel heavy, and after about five hours, my lashes started to flake.

The one factor that may make or break a purchasing decision for these high-tech mascaras are the price tags. Lancome’s Oscillation Vibrating Mascara is $34 and Maybelline’s Pulse Perfection Vibrating Mascara is about $15.

Lancome’s product seems better, but is double the price of the Maybelline one.

I am a fan of both makeup lines, but when it comes down to which has a better vibrating tube, Lancome wins.