Jana of the Jungle would be proud of my adventure at my local Nordstrom. I tested Lancome’s new Black Carat virtuôse Mascara and guzzled up the dregs of the tester because they were sold out of the lanky tube.

Black Carat is an intense black color and shinier than the traditional Black virtuôse color. As you can see from the picture below, my lashes became as black as soot and more thickly coated than my intensely lacquered nails.

I used a tester brush so I’m sure the lash separation factor was not as good as the regular brush…that’s my only pet peeve about this mascara. Otherwise I think its glossy coat and intensely black color is a good addition to the Lancome virtuôse collection.

Because of my innate skeptical nature, I had to test out the MAC Lustre Twins to see if the color really did last the entire day as the salesperson assured me they would (she betted her firstborn on it…what a daredevil!). Luckily, she gets to keep her kid.

The color wouldn’t come off even after I took soap and water and went to bat with it. If you want a glossy lippie duo that does the job and does not even leave a stain on a coffee cup, then the Lustre Twins are for you. I’m wearing the Alta Moda/ Hip Love set here and it wouldn’t come off even after four hours. I believe!

The Lustre Twins are a new collection of MAC lippies on one end and intense gloss on the other end. The collection also includes three nail lacquers: “Yes” (color of ice and silver); “Perplexing” (color of intense purple frost); “Firehouse” (a bright orange flame red metallic).