With so many different mascaras on the market you should feel like a kid in a candy shop when it's time to re-buy, but it can be a very confusing purchase. Straight, curved, comb, spherical, vibrating! What do they all do? It isn't so much about the formula of the product but the way in which it is applied. It is all about the shape of the mascara wand and what some of these hi-tech, lash enhancers will do for you. Here's a run down of what results to expect depending on which mascara wand you choose, and the best product of the bunch.

Straight Brush

Straight mascara wands remain popular simply because they are easy to use. They allow easier access to small lashes and inner eyelid lashes. It is also possible to hold the brush at different angles to fully coat the lashes. Try Maybelline Great Lash mascara (£5.19).

Curved Brush 

A curved mascara wand is perfect for those looking for more curl and an extra lift for the lashes. Rimmel Flash The Max Bold Curves Mascara (£6.69) is designed just for this. It claims the product gives instant full body volume and 70% more lift.

Comb

Comb shaped mascara wands are available both straight and curved depending on what look you wish to achieve. Comb brushes are designed to discourage clumping and encourage the separation of lashes. A comb brush with tightly spaced together bristles is perfect if you want to add volume and length, try Max Factor Xperience Volunising Mascara (£10.99). A loosely spaced comb will give lengthening and added separation of lashes, Clinique High Lengths Mascara (£15) curved comb will do just this for you.

Big Brush

Abigger mascara brush will coat more formula onto your lashes giving them more volume. DiorShow Iconic Mascara (£22) has a large wand with tightly spaced bristles which is perfect for extra thickness. If you are on a budget, Models Own Lashed Up Volumiser (£6) is another great big brush product to try. A big mascara brush can be clumpy and hard to use but with some practice easy to get used to.

Small Brush

Small Brushes are generally a small brush is better for small lashes as they can get to each and every lash without any accidents. Smashbox Lash DNA Mascara (£18), has a short wand with thick bristles to thicken lashes.

Long Brush

Long brushes are best for lenghtening as a long wand with evenly spaced bristles won't give as much volume. They are recommended to separate and define lashes, try Lancome Definicils (£20.50).

The Spherical Brush

Somewhat new to the market (and slightly scary looking) the spherical brush allows you to reach all lashes individually and lets you customise how much formula you want on your lashes. The application requires more skill as you need to rotate the brush when applying it and this can also be time consuming but, Givenchy Phenomen`eyes mascara (£20) gives a great final result.

Rubber Wand

The rubber wand won't hold as much forumula as regular mascara brushes so therefore discourages clumping while allowing you to separate and give a natural everyday look. Try Maybelline The One-by-One Volum Express Mascara (£8.49)

Vibrating

Yes, it's true and if you pluck up the courage to try out the vibrating mascara wand you may be pleasantly suprised by the effects, TurboLash All Effects Motion Mascara by Estee Lauder (£29.50) claims to do everything - volume, length, curl and separation. It also claims to make your lashes clump free. Sounds like the way forward to me.

And last but not least lets not forget the....

Bottom Lashes

Often bottom lashes get ignored or smothered with a big, unfriendly mascara brush, but Clinique has recently launched their Bottom Lash Mascara (£10) designed specifically to focus on smaller lashes and define them without clumping and messiness.

Deciding what you want to achieve from your mascara will greatly narrow down your search. Volume, length, curl? Or all of the above? A great bonus for all make-up shoppers today is that most mascara's have a brush on display for you to see, so take advantage of this. It can be hard to find an ideal product that does everything you want it to and more, so choose wisely and know what you want from you mascara.

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