I wear and test enough mascara to have very little patience for a mediocre formula. A smokey eye is my default whenever I do my makeup, which means my lashes have to work a little harder than most. I want obvious length, clean separation, and enough definition that they don’t disappear behind a wash of my Patrick Ta brown shadow. Volume is welcome, but not if it turns my lashes into five chunky little spikes.
Naturally, the new NARS Notorious Mascara—that comes in both a black and brown—caught my attention. The formula promises lift, length, volume, definition, humidity resistance, and several hours of wear, which is a fairly ambitious résumé for one tube. The formula itself isn’t reinventing mascara—film-forming polymers, waxes, and conditioning oils are all familiar players—but I’m less interested in a flashy ingredient list than I am in whether the product actually performs.
My test was simple: Could it give me the long, fanned-out lashes I like without flaking and hold up all day? I put it to the test, as did Beauty Director Hannah Baxter. While I’m focused on length and separation, she’s especially picky about the brush and wants a "defined, weightless-looking lash." Here's how it went.
What Is the NARS Notorious Mascara Formula Like?
Notorious isn’t a tubing mascara, but it does borrow some of the same appeal. A water-first base carries flexible film-forming polymers that coat the lashes and help lock them in place, similar to the way a tubing mascara wraps around each hair. The difference is that Notorious pairs that flexible coating with a blend of waxes meant to build actual body and volume—something I find I often don't get enough of from traditional tubing formulas.
Those polymers also explain how the mascara can resist humidity without being waterproof. The coating is designed to remain intact in muggy air, but it isn’t meant to repel water completely. Once you wet your lashes with warm water and cleanser, the film softens and washes away. (I found that water even does most of the job.) Argan oil and jojoba round out the formula to help keep all that hold from feeling dry or crunchy.
What Is the NARS Notorious Mascara Brush Like?
A mascara's brush matters just as much as the formula, and I like that NARS didn’t go unnecessarily huge with it. The slim, slightly wavy shape has bristles in different lengths, so it can comb through the lashes to provide separation while still laying down enough product to build them up. It also lets me get right at the roots without covering my eyelid in mascara, which is especially helpful when I’ve already spent time perfecting my smokey eye.
Hannah was equally particular about this part. “Shorter bristles that can reach all the way down to the base of my lash line are a must,” she says so she can get soft definition without any heaviness. She especially liked how the varying bristle lengths helped coat every lash. The pointed tip also makes it easy to reach the tiny hairs at the inner corners or place more product exactly where you want it.
How Does the NARS Notorious Mascara Apply?
Notorious is a very wet mascara, which gives me plenty of time to comb through my lashes before it sets. The brush fans them out beautifully and creates the kind of clean, separated style I always want, though I do have to give it an extra beat to dry.
It layers without much clumping, but even after a few coats, the effect is more long and lifted than super voluminous. I’d still happily take a little more volume, but the separation is excellent. Hannah had similar luck with the hold: Two coats kept her lashes curled through some of New York’s most humid summer days. She noticed only the faintest shadow beneath her eyes by the end of the workday, but "that was likely more due to rubbing my eyes or something equally mindless," she notes.
Is the NARS Notorious Mascara Worth It?
The biggest surprise for me came at the sink. For a mascara designed to hold up in humidity, it came off far more easily than I expected. I didn’t have to keep rubbing at my eyes to remove every last trace, which is a huge selling point for me. The skin around the eye area is delicate enough, and I’m always trying to be gentler with my lashes.
I still wish the formula gave me a little more volume, but I love how long and fanned out the look is. The easy removal is what really pushed it into regular-rotation territory for me. Hannah was even more immediately sold: "Overall, this is quickly becoming my new go-to mascara for summer and into fall for minimalist, flirty eyelashes."
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