Five clean mascaras that won’t make you cry.

There were many tears the day I discovered my favourite mascara contained Teflon (yes, the coating you find on fry pans). Not to mention multiple endocrine disrupters that could play havoc with my hormones. I began a lengthy and expensive search to find a non-toxic mascara that would lengthen, create volume and not migrate down my face in the Los Angeles heat. I have tried so many different brands and formulations, but here are 5 of my favourites:

Ilia / Limitless Lash Mascara

I love this blacker than black buildable mascara. It met all my non-toxic standards, lifted, lengthened and curled my lashes. I had to give it a few coats to get impressive volume, and the silky texture separated each lash and left zero clumps. The nourishing formula contains beautiful, clean ingredients, including organic shea butter, carnauba and bee wax and Arginine (Keratin). I wore this mascara to a friends wedding. The inevitable teary eyes did sting a little, so maybe give this one a miss if you know you might well up.

Lili Lolo / Natural Vegan Mascara

This award-winning mascara won my heart by creating the thick, black lashes of my dreams. One quick coat of this smooth, creamy mascara made my lashes look thicker and longer than ever before. The non-toxic gentle formula didn’t irritate my eyes, and it stayed put all day even after an uncomfortably long, ill-advised hot yoga class.

W3LL People / Expressionist Mascara

This cult favourite has been featured in Allure Best of Beauty and Elle magazine. It has a delicate nylon brush that makes coating even the tiny fine lower lashes really easy. It’s not entirely organic but does include nourishing ingredients like beeswax and vitamin E-rich sunflower seed oil. It did need a couple of coats and had flaked a little by the end of a long day but otherwise met my impossibly high standards.

Westman Atelier / Eye Love You Mascara

Brace yourself; this one is pricy. At $58 it’s the most expensive clean mascara on my list, but it deserves a special mention because I have always been obsessed with the blacker than black, clumpy lashes sported by 1960’s ingénuesTwiggy and Edie Sedgwick. This mascara delivers inky black volume and coats your lashes in luxurious clean ingredients, including beeswax, chicory root extract, sunflower seed and carnauba. If I’m honest, it’s more of a nighttime extravagance and transfers a little if worn all day.

Honest Beauty / Extreme Length Mascara & Lash Primer

If you are still reading this, you should know that I saved the best for last. This is my all-time favourite, go-to, every day, won’t leave the house without mascara. A talented friend of mine who always looks immaculately put together suggested this one, and I am forever in her debt. The primer layer is so nourishing that I am convinced it has helped my poor chemo ravaged eyelashes grow back thicker and longer than ever before. It separates and lengthens and is full of deliciously clean ingredients. If you aren’t yet convinced, it’s the cheapest on the list at $16.99. It is blacker than black and never leaves a dusty, tiresome shadow under my eyes. I cried happy tears when I realised my year-long search for the perfect, clean mascara was finally over.