Ok, so here's the review! A short one I promise, cos I don't think you guys wanna hear me rant on and on (and I don't have much time).
I bought the DHC Eyelash Tonic from Gmarket back in early Jan for S$14.90. It's super cheap compared to its retail price in Watsons, so I was a bit apprehensive at its authenticity. Oh btw, I used a coupon with a S$1 discount, so it was going at S$15.90 initially. The seller was based in SG so I got the product SUPER fast; like, in 3 days after payment verification. o___o
How it arrived and the back of the packaging with the ingredients and stuff. "Made in Japan" and the expiry date, which follows the current batch of DHC eyelash tonic selling in Watsons. So far so good on the authenticity, I guess.
The point that attracted me to DHC's serum is that it doesn't contain alcohol. I mean, with Aloe Vera Juice being the 3rd ingredient, it's gotta be good right? At least none of the nasties being in the top 5 ingredients or something. I know L'oreal's serum contains alcohol, that's why I didn't want to use it.
The pamphlet included.
The sight: As you have already seen, it's a golden-coloured transparent liquid contained in an explicably small vial (6.5 mL). It looks a lot like oil and I reasoned the Aloe Vera juice played a part in giving it its yellow hue. Though I suspect that it will stay clear as long as you use it on clean lashes, that wasn't what happened to me. It got cloudy after a while, but also that's because I didn't clean my lashes thoroughly sometimes. No eye infections though.
The texture: Definitely not oil-like at all. It's got this slight jello consistancy; it's 3/4 liquid, and 1/4 jelly. It's kinda wet when you apply it on your lashes, so don't put on too much so you'll look like you're crying or something.
The scent: When I first opened it, I didn't detect any noticeable smell. However, after being opened for a few days, it started to smell like...olive oil. Ha ha, serious! I mean, I love the scent of olive oil so I don't mind, but it may smell queer to some people. Could it be because of the aloe vera inside? Does aloe vera even smell like olives?
The brush: It uses the conventional kind of mascara brush. I've been doing good using it, though I've stabbed myself in the eye a couple of times with it. No biggie, my eyeballs are tough. I feel that the brush allows me to comb the tonic through my lashes easier than, say, the spatula-like thing of L'oreal lash serum.
Did it work: Personally, I felt it worked. Like I said, results vary from individual to individual, but for me, yeah. I definitely saw my lower lashes growing. Presently, they're the length of what my top lashes used to be. That's kinda long for lower lashes, but they didn't grow much in quantity. I still have few (but now long) lower lashes.
Case in point for the top lashes (be afraid of my giant eye!):
Though my top lashes didn't extend as much as my lower lashes, I noticed them becoming curlier at the tips (see the end of my lashes, the curly tips!) and becoming thicker. There was some growth in length, but just slightly visible.
What is more impressive was that the tonic managed to coax lashes to grow out of places where they normally didn't grow. See those red circles? That's above my usual top lash growth border, and I could see a few hairs springing out. Awesome!
For 2 months of constant application of the tonic, I think the results are not bad. I started out being skeptical and expecting nothing at all (cos these kind of things seldom work for me), but I'm pleasantly surprised after all that.
Would I buy it again? I'm currently trying this out:
The Canmake Lash Care Essence. It's got a weird wand...
Anyway, I'm seeing how this goes, but if it doesn't do as well as DHC's, I definitely won't mind re-purchasing the Eyelash Tonic again!
Hopefully after another 2 months, I'll do a write-up on the Canmake one, whether it passed or failed. Thanks for reading this review, cheers!
