Beauty, they say, is in the eye of the beholder. Trite but oh so true. Some people love luscious lips; some people admire killer cheekbones or the perfect, pearly smile. Me, I am obsessed with 3 things: great skin, mermaid hair, and Bambi-like eyelashes. I have conceded defeat in the face of my follicular shortcomings; my hair looks its best (and is the most manageable) anywhere between chin- and shoulder-length — hardly the stuff mermaid dreams are made of. I am working diligently on getting my skin to look as dewy as my 37 years allow, and I am quite pleased with my current regimen. That leaves my lashes which were, well, fine. As long time readers know, I am devoted to mascara (L’Oreal Voluminous Butterfly, to be precise) for making the most of what nature has given me — super blond lashes, of average length and density. A good mascara can do a lot, so I was more or less satisfied … until the recent surge in popularity of eyelash extensions.
Suddenly, everywhere I turned, I saw Bambi lashes. Long, thick, feathery. I won’t lie; I got a bad case of eyelash envy. (Dun dun dun … foreshadowing) I am not one to shy away from improving on nature, but in this case, my options seemed sadly limited. I had tried working with false eyelashes before, with dismal results. Getting extensions myself was also out of the question; quite apart from the cost, I refuse to commit to any procedures that require monthly maintenance. It’s the reason why I stopped getting gel nails. I don’t have the time to go to a salon on a regular schedule; I can barely manage to make it for a haircut every 3-4 months.
It looked like there was nothing to be done on the eyelash front, until one day when I saw a post from the aesthetician who did my eyebrow microblading. I had admired her impossibly long eyelashes during my first appointment, and was intrigued to find out that they were not a product of extensions but, rather, a serum called EyEnvy. At my next visit, I asked her about it and she shared her experiences with me. At $100 a tube, I wasn’t immediately ready to jump into buying the serum, but the more I looked at her eyelashes, the weaker my reservations grew. Long story short, I paid the money and got my paws on it. And the rest, as they say, is history.
By the way, this is not a sponsored post. I bought EyEnvy with my own money, and I`m writing about it because, well, I think it`s worth talking about — even if taking close-ups of my eyeballs is just about the least fun thing to do ever.
What The Hell Is It?
Here is what you need to know about EyEnvy. Unlike Latisse, it is non-prescription and, as far as I know, comes with no risk of changing eye colour. It comes in a tube that looks similar to a mascara, but with a very, very small brush similar to what you would get with a liquid eyeliner. The version I got (3.5 mL) is supposed to last anywhere up to 5 months. For the first 3 weeks, you apply a small amount to each lash line every morning (before putting on make-up). The recommendation is that you touch the brush against the inner rim of the tube to get rid of excess serum, then run the brush along the upper lash line in the same way you would apply eyeliner (from the outside corner of the eye to the inner). I did not apply it to my bottom lashes, but you can do that as well (ditto for eyebrows). After 3 weeks, you continue using the serum about 3 times a week only.
As with any product used in the vicinity of your eyes, exercise caution. The serum should not go into your eyes, as it may cause irritation. Some people have reported temporary eye redness from use, but I did not experience any side effects. I am not a doctor, so I will add only this: apply your best judgment, and discontinue use if you notice any concerning symptoms.
Does It Work?
In one word: YES.
Pictures being worth a thousand words, I will let you judge for yourselves.
Because I didn`t start thinking about writing this post until after I started using the serum, this is the best “before” pic I could muster. The angle is not ideal to show you the relative length of my eyelashes (plus, I`m wearing eyeliner) but it gives you a decent sense of what was there.
I started to notice some changes about 2 weeks in; my lashes were a bit more lush, though not noticeably longer. For some reason, it seemed like my mascara went on more smoothly. I started noticing some extra length at about the 3-4 week mark. With that said, please don`t imagine that I went from average-to-Bambi in no time flat. I did not get to the point of noticeable growth until about the 6 week mark, and the growth was at times frustratingly uneven. Is there such a thing as lazy eyelashes? The eyelashes of my right eye grew faster than the left, and in a more even pattern — progressively longer towards the outer corner, similar to what you would get with a set of falsies. The eyelashes of my left eye … well, that was another story. They took longer to grow, and I ended up with random individual lashes that shot out, leaving the surrounding ones behind them. I ended up doing a second pass with the serum on my left eye a few times to try to encourage more growth.
Thankfully, by about the 8 week mark, things had evened out. And I had a legitimate fluttery fringe on my hands, erm, eyes. Behold:
What`s Next?
Judging from the sounds of the sloshing in my tube, I have quite a bit of serum left, so I plan on continuing to use it 3 times a week for the time being. I like the current length of my eyelashes, and the rate of turnover, but I may consider cutting back to 1 or 2 weekly applications in the future. My aesthetician mentioned that she stopped using the serum altogether, and did not notice any loss in length for about 6 weeks, so a small amount of serum can probably go a long way during the “maintenance” phase. Although there is a part of me that`s tempted to see how much more length I could get, I am already at a point where applying mascara without getting it all over my brow bone is quite tricky; it`s probably a sign to leave well enough alone.
One thing I should say is that mascara is still definitely much needed to make the most of my eyelashes. Though long, the tips of my eyelashes are even paler than the roots, and very fine. Without mascara, they would be completely invisible. While I don`t know for sure that the results would be the same for someone with dark eyelashes, I would not be surprised if it was. So if you`re looking for a way to ditch the mascara altogether, EyEnvy might not the answer for you. But if you want Bambi lashes? Well, you could do a lot worse.
Got questions? Leave me a comment, and I will do my best to answer.
ETA: I apologize for not addressing this in the original post. Several readers have indicated that EyEnvy is not available to purchase online. I bought mine through the medical spa where I received microblading services. I believe it’s available exclusively through salons in Canada. I should have included that in the post info — sorry to anyone who is unable to purchase this in their neck of the woods.
Wow! That’s all I can say. Not really…😸
That is so cool, a product that does what it says.
I must think on this. Thank you for sharing this!
So far, so good! I will definitely update if I start having issues with it but I`ve been very happy so far.
Wow! I am seriously curious now. As someone who has used Latisse, these results are really impressive. Thanks for sharing! And, as always, it so nice to hear from someone who is not being sponsored or otherwise compensated for the review.
I totally wanted to try Latisse years ago but the whole eye colour changing thing scared me off. I`m happy there`s an alternative now that, knock on wood, doesn`t seem to have any side-effects for me.
How was your experience with Latisse?
Good experience, pretty fast and definitely noticeable. My only side effect was some dryness and irritation. I’ll be in Vancouver next month and may stop into a salon to check out the stock of EyEnvy. I read on the product website it’s a no-go if you’re expecting, but can always keep it on hand for later… 🙂
Why must it not be available to order online!!!!
Oh, I didn’t realize that. That sucks – I’m sorry!
Whoa!! Huge difference! I went the other way, I stopped wearing mascara about a year ago because I hate the way it feels. I admit, the first week, people asked me if I was tired 🙁 I like how you framed this post though, how everyone has some beauty particulars they focus on. For me, it’s also the mermaid hair, skin and then teeth. The first two are working out but sadly, my teeth are shifting as I get older because I never got my wisdom teeth out and they are pushing everything in. Therefore, I am saving up for braces at the age of 33!
I would never presume to tell someone what they *should* wear or put on their face, etc. Precisely because we all have different priorities and preferences. So I hope that none of my posts come across that way. I tend to just share things that interest me with the implicit caveat that they might not be for everyone.
I went without mascara for about a week when I got my LASIK done, and it was interesting. I was super self conscious at first and then got less so over time. But I went back to it as soon as I could, lol! I just prefer the way I look with it. I wish I didn’t, because that would cut out at least 2 minutes from my morning routine, haha!
Haha! Yeah since having a baby, my routine has shortened quite a bit and (luckily) my comfort level with how I look has increased (after I lost the weight that is – that was troubling at first! I guess that shows that my actual body weight/shape is also a high priority for me in terms of appearance!).
Your posts always come across as open and curious of all choices, beauty and otherwise. I’m always struck by that so thought I’d point it out… your blog feels like a place where people can share preferences, values, ideals, etc. without pressure 🙂
Thank you – that is honestly the best compliment I can get as a blogger.
Don’t wait too long for the braces. I just got them for the 4th time because my teeth keep moving. My insurance refused to pay anything because they said I’m too old. Hope you have some insurance to help because they are expensive. My dentist felt pity on me and lowered the price, which helps.
Where do you buy eyenvy?
I got it through the medical spa where i got my microblading. I think it’s sold through spas, at least in Canada, since another reader has mentioned not finding it available online.
That is totally my bad … I should have looked into that part before. It totally slipped my mind (and to be honest, I would have assumed that it’s available online). Sorry!!
I live in Hawaii and there are two salons that sell this here. I am SO tempted to get this! I am actually pretty blessed in the lash department, but I don’t wear makeup so I’m thinking the boost from this serum would just help my eyes stand out without much effort. Thank you for sharing your experience!
I`m not sure how noticeable the results are without mascara, to be honest. I can`t speak to that since my eyelashes are so fair that I need mascara no matter what. You might want to check out other reviews online from people with darker eyelashes to see how their experiences went.
Okay, that’s amazing. I know it won’t be the same on everyone, but it’s nice to see a real person with real results! Do you know what the active ingredient is? I wonder how it is different from other lash-growing products. Is it something proprietary so they don’t include in the information in the packaging? I have also heard about a Rodan and Fields lash product that I was thinking of trying, but maybe I will do some research on EyEnvy first! Thanks for your post.
The serum has vitamins and peptides in it. There is a list on the packaging but it’s fairly long so I won’t re-type it here. (If you’re interested in it, email me and I’ll send it to you.) I’m not sure how that’s different from other similar products on the market. I chose this one because I happened to see the results in real life and was impressed. Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have taken the risk otherwise – I don’t always trust online reviews. Yes, I realize the irony of that statement 😉
I have heard about the R+F serum and that it supposedly works very well but I have a personal policy not to purchase from MLMs. That’s totally a YMMV situation, of course.
Hi, thanks a lot, but that’s okay, no need for the ingredient list. So to be sure, you never had any irritation or eye redness at all?
Regarding MLMs, my husband calls them pyramid schemes. I don’t know, I have ‘heard’ of people doing okay on them. But I am sure there are people who do lose money, and others who are extremely successful (my husband would say probably much less people in this latter group). Is this the reason you avoid these businesses?
I personally did not have redness or irritation but I have seen other reviews that mention it so caveat emptor and all that.
I have read a lot of articles that to me suggest that MLMs have predatory tendencies (I.e. What your husband is talking about) and I choose not to support that no matter what the product involved.
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY NOW