Benefit Mascara Review - Roller Lash vs They're Real

My favourite item in my makeup bag is usually the mascara or concealer. I try out a new mascara every few months but the one that I have continued repurchasing over the last few years is Benefit's They're Real mascara. I, along with the rest of the beauty world, therefore got seriously excited when Benefit announced they were bringing out a new mascara, the Roller Lash. 

I somehow managed to forget about its release until a few days ago when I saw it in store and had to buy it! I wanted to try it next to the They're Real mascara to see how it compared. 

Both mascaras retail at £19.50. Not a cheap option by any means but I have paid a lot more money for mascaras that weren't as good in the past! I don't pay much attention to the packaging of make-up items to be honest but it has to be said that the Roller Lash is much more visually appealing to me than the They're Real mascara. 

The brush of the Roller Lash is clearly curved whereas the They're Real mascara has a straighter brush head with fuller bristles and a domed tip.

So does it live up to the claims?

Natural lashes

Left Eye - Roller Lash                                        Right Eye: Natural

Natural EyeLashes

With Roller Lash (sorry for the blurred shot!)

Left Eye - Roller Lash                                    Right Eye - They're Real

Left Eye - Roller Lash                                    Right Eye - They're Real

Left Eye - Roller Lash                                    Right Eye - They're Real

It was clear to me almost immediately that the Roller Lash didn't manage to separate my lashes as effectively as the They're Real mascara. It left them a little clumpier than I would have liked. It was however very effective at curling the lashes. You can see in the photos above that the lashes on my left eye are curled up at the edges when compared to the right eye. This does mean that you lose a little length however.

Both mascaras have a ridiculous staying power which I love. No smearing or smudging and the lashes manage to stay lifted throughout the whole day. The downside of this is that both mascaras are a little tricky to remove, similar to a waterproof mascara, but I find an oil based remover does the trick nicely.

Full face - 8 hours later. Yes I did wear two different mascaras for the whole day :-)

So which do I prefer? Probably the They're Real mascara. I feel that this separates the lashes better and I personally would prefer the appearance of fuller lashes over curled lashes but the Roller Lash will be perfect for anyone who already has thick eyelashes and is just looking for more lift and curl.