The dreaded ‘panda eye’, freckle-like mascara flakes and late night battles with micellar water are a thing of the past as tubing mascara formulas go from a fun alternative to a mainstream mascara option.
From high street staples like Covergirl and Maybelline New York, to luxury player Chanel, all are investing heavily in the innovation, with millennial-favourite Merit Beauty the latest make-up name to turn to tubing formulas – its new Clean Volume Mascara is set to launch on 25 June.
Tubing formulas “use film-forming polymers that wrap each lash in tiny tubes, rather than coating lashes with waxes and pigments in the way traditional mascaras do,” explains celebrity make-up artist Lan Nguyen-Grealis.
“[These formulas] are removed with warm water and gentle pressure, rather than needing an oil-based remover.”
Aside from application and removal differences, make-up artist and alumni from the BBC’s reality make-up television competition Glow Up: Britain's Next Make-up Star, James Mac, notes: “Tubing mascaras, I have found, last longer, which is a big plus.
“The tubing mascaras are more smudge-proof and do not droop due to humidity, sweat or the elements in general.”
Merit’s new tubing mascara launch offers a fresh take on a volumised lash – defined, lifted and precise, rather than heavy and overdone.
Chiho Omae, Merit’s Global Creative Makeup Artist, explains that these formulas are having a moment because “tubing mascara is simply easier than traditional mascaras”.
Omae adds: “It is easy to build up and remove, and it also lasts much better throughout long days, without needing as much reapplication.
“I think we are all looking for ways to make our routine easier, which is why tubing mascaras have been so popular.”
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Nguyen-Grealis echoes this sentiment: “Due to the consumer trends, the idea of having something that does not smudge or flake is attractive.”
From a marketing standpoint, Mac notes that “online campaigns [for] tubing mascaras have produced high-quality adverts and strong influencer [collaborations] that know how to sell the product right.”
Mac adds: “We all know [that] strong before-and-after results will push the market towards a new trend or technical beauty innovation like polymer technology [seen in tubing mascaras].”
Looking to the future, Nguyen-Grealis predicts that consumers will “care less about the
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