I love drama. Not real life drama, that can go ahead and get right out of my life; no, I am talking about eyeliner. Give me a big, ol’ sweeping winged eyeliner over just about any other makeup any day.
What this means is I am forever looking for my holy grail eyeliner. My requirements are: must be matte black; must have a fine tip so I can create a good strong line with no creasing, tapering off to a fine wing; and must not smudge or transfer to my upper lid (thanks, hooded eyes).
Now, Benefit Cosmetics’ Roller Lash mascara was one of my fave eyelash offerings when it first came out, so when I found out they were releasing a Roller Liner from the same, er, line, I got a bit excited. I may have texted a few people. OK, a lot of people.
When I get my hands on this baby, I am eager to try it out. The first thing I notice when I take it out of the box (apart from its retro-chic signature roller pink cap) is that the felt tip on this liner is longer than most. I do a little happy dance because a longer felt tip means more flexibility to create smooth, flowing lines and minimise the chance of creasing.
The moment of truth arrives: time to apply. Because many felt tip liners take one or two swipes to warm up I give it a test on my hand and WOW. No test needed, as the liner comes out strong, full of pigment and gliding across the skin.
Next up, it’s eye time. I close my eyelid as per usual and sweep. Some people sweep from the outer wing into the middle but that ain’t for me; I find I get a much cleaner line swiping from the first third of my lid to the outer wing.
And my god is this liner one smooth operator! Sometimes I need to go over the same area 1-2 times to ensure even distribution of pigment but not this time! One gliding line holding the felt tip horizontally along the lash line was all it took for a crisp, clean, black as the night line.
The longer felt tip means that when it comes to wing time, I use the whole length of the liner rather than just the tip to create a wing with DRAMA. And it’s perfection
Now one thing to note is that the long tip means that you can’t put too much pressure on it or it’s gonna go wonky. This liner is definitely used better at an angle or horizontally but that’s fine because doing it that way creates such a slick line, with no skin drag, that I can’t imagine anyone would want to use it any other way.
Next the longevity test. Benefit’s Roller Liner is said to be quick-dry, waterproof and lasting 24 hours. I can definitely vouch for the first two (although people with oily lids might want to use a primer or setting powder). When it came to the 24-hour claim, I have to say I only wore mine for 12 hours, to work and then to drinks after. But even at the end of this, my dramatic wing was still nicely in place (and garnered me a couple of lovely compliments too!). Sure the very tip of the wing wasn’t as crisp as when it applied but there was no transference on my upper lid, which I swear to god is the bane of my existence.
I think I just found my new favourite eyeliner, beauty lovers.
In her spare time, she likes long walks down the makeup aisle and performing in Brisbane theatre. You can follow her adventures on Instagram and TikTok @thebeautypalate.
