My obsession with eyelashes runs deep. When I was little, I was captivated by Bratz dolls’ huge drawn-on lashes and heavy bedroom eyes, despite not being allowed to play with them. (We were a Barbie household.) Twiggy was my beauty icon before I even started wearing makeup. When the time came, mascara was the first beauty product I was allowed to wear out of the house. To this day, I’ll apply a few coats on my lashes even when I know I won’t be leaving my apartment. It just makes me fee like myself.

In my 10-plus years as a mascara wearer, I’ve probably burned through 1,000 tubes of the stuff. I’ve racked up a solid list of favorites. However, I only earned my title as a true Lash Obsessive when I got extensions this fall. Mascara is a transformative product for sure (especially when you have lashes as sparse as mine), but it doesn’t hold a candle to the power of extensions.

I was hooked from the get-go. My lash extensions made me feel glamorous in an old Hollywood way. I could be wearing jeans and a T-shirt, but I felt camera-ready. I understood why suddenly everyone on Instagram was trading in the mascara.. But of course, there’s a catch: Lash extensions are expensive and high maintenance. Plus, they irritated my sensitive eyes. After about three months, I kissed my extensions goodbye and returned to my stash of drugstore mascaras.

I’ve been a longtime fan of L’Oréal mascaras. (Telescopic is my OG fave.) Having tasted the extension side of life, I decided to give a new formula a go. So, I reached for the brand’s new Voluminous X Fiber Mascara—a Glamour Beauty Award Winner. And it was love at first swipe.

As the name suggests, the Voluminous X Fiber is a fiber mascara that uses a two-step system to build lashes up to almost-extension status.

The first step is a black primer. It essentially acts as a base coat for what’s to come, and is really lengthening and volumizing—I find it’s enough on it’s own for days where I want a more natural look (or don’t have time for another layer.) The second is a fiber mascara, which uses fibers to coat the lashes and really builds up the volume and drama on your lashes.

The Voluminous X Fiber formula is pitch-black, but actually feels as light as air. I love a heavy lash look, but that normally means I have to sacrifice volume. Because of the fibers, though, this product gets you that drama without having to overdo it on the product, which means your lashes stay fluffy. I wouldn’t call it a natural look (which is fine by me), but it does look more realistic than most.

Another thing I love about this mascara are the brushes. On the fiber side, it’s an elongated hourglass shape that grabs every.single.lash. Seriously, when I swipe it on, it makes it seem like my lashes doubled. The fiber side has a curved brush, which curls my lashes and adds that touch of glam that I live for.

I might not be able to get lash extensions anymore, but L’Oreal’s Voluminous X Fiber mascara has gotten me closer to that look than I’d ever found at the drugstore. And that’s fine by me.

Buy it: L’Oreal Voluminous X Fiber Mascara, $8, Ulta. Check out all 214 winners from this year’s Glamour Beauty Awards here.

Bella Cacciatore is the beauty assistant at Glamour. Follow her at @bellacacciatore_ on Instagram.

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