Finding a good mascara can be challenging, especially if you have sensitive, dry eyes, wear contact lenses or are prone to allergies. But before you dismiss mascara altogether here are some tips for finding the right mascara which won’t irritate sensitive eyes.

First you want to stay away from formulas that are lengthening or thickening. These tend to contain small fibers which help build up the lashes, but the fibers tend to dry and flake off as the day goes on which can make their way into your eyes causing irritation. This is especially important if you wear contact lenses, as the particles can adhere to the lenses sticky surface causing it to stay there all day.

Waterproof formulas tend to contain polymers and extra ingredients which can cause irritation as well, more ingredients means more risk for irritation.

Here are some of my favorite mascaras that are non-irritating and great for even the most sensitive eyes:

Clinique Naturally Glossy

$14.00 at Clinique

Clinique seems to be the standard when it comes to mascaras that are non-irritating and hypo-allergenic. Many of their mascaras would work great for sensitive eyes. This natural gel-based formula lengthens lashes leaving them still pliable and natural looking. Not the best if you’re looking for a more dramatic look, but works great if you want a natural look for daytime or anytime. The formula is clump and flake-free even through multiple coats, it won’t smudge is non-irritating, hypo-allergenic and ophthalmologist tested to assure quality.

ALMAY One Coat Nourishing Mascara - Thickening

$7.99 by Almay at Walgreens

This mascara from Almay contains a hypoallergenic volumizing formula that’s great for adding volume to lashes in just one coat. The formula is extra gentle, clump-free and ophthalmologist tested.

Blinc Kiss Me Mascara

$24.00 by Blinc at Sephora

Blinc’s Kiss Me mascara is different from any mascara I’ve ever tried and a huge hit among friends who tend to avoid mascara due to sensitivity. The formula forms tiny water-resistant tubes around each lash rather than painting them on like traditional mascaras.The tubes do not budge what so ever, you can rub your eyes this stuff will not smudge or flake at all. Best of all it’s easy to remove, although kind of strange at first, you simply take some warm water and the tubes slide right off your lashes. Blinc mascara is clinically tested to be non-irritating making it ideal for sensitive eyes as well as contact lens wearers.

Lastly, be sure to toss any mascara that’s passed the expiration date (approximately 3 months) as they tend to dry out quickly, causing them to flake easier and irritate the eyes.

If you're not already a member of Sephora's beauty insider program, here's one of the many reasons to join. Every year for your birthday Sephora gives away a free birthday gift on your birthday redeemable with no purchase in stores, or online with purchase. The free gift is different every year, other years have included a body wash or lip balm set. I don't know about you, but Sephora is my first stop for my birthday!

This years beauty insider birthday gift is the Beautiful Eyes Kit which features:

- Lash Plumper Volumizing Mascara in Black
- Nano Eyeliner in Silver Green
- Colorful Mono Eyeshadow in Aspen Summit

So be sure to signup as a beauty insider at sephora.com and head over to Sephora on, or within 14 days of your birthday for your free gift.

Ever really like a product only to find a few months later it’s just not living up to your expectations?

I’m a little obsessed with BareMinerals foundation, it gives me perfect coverage and spf protection without breaking me out or irritating my skin. The best part, it’s so light on the skin you barely know it’s there. So when Bare Escentuals came out with a matte version of their already super amazing foundation I was stoked.

I loved it at first, good coverage and matte finish which was perfect for my normal-to-oily skin, no need for extra powder. But at the time my skin itself was also looking really good, no major breakouts or dry patches.

Forward to now, 6 months later and my skin is going through a weird breakout phase, the same three spots just seem to disappear then pop up somewhere else on my face which is cause for great annoyance. I call it reverse-senioritis, the stress of finishing college on a high note is super important to me (I guess I just have really high expectations) but this leaves me with spots and under eye circles.. so not cute.

Anyway, I digress, the matte version has just not been cutting it for me lately, the coverage just isn’t there in this version and I’m finding it harder to blend. So it’s back to the old favorite non-matte version for me which covers problems like acne and redness in a cinch. Ever had a product you love end up not impressing you anymore?

$25.00 by bareMinerals at Beauty.com

Say goodbye to lacquered lips, the new trend in town is glossy eyes, which was all over the runways during F/W '10 fashion week.

The look is simple to achieve, simply swipe lids with some vaseline or clear lipgloss, such as MAC’s clear Lipglass, after applying eyeshadow to create the glossy look and draw attention to the eyes. For a more dramatic effect, use clear gloss over a darker smokey eye look.

This look isn’t for the faint at heart though, as the gloss can make eyeshadow crease easily, too much gloss and it could look messy if not downright ridiculous. Definitely not a look meant to last all day, but perfect for a nighttime look to really make eyes stand out and you'll want to skip the glossy lips with this look to avoid looking like a disco ball. So what do you think?

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s... a lip balm!?

I saw these super cute new lip balms by EOS at my local Walgreens when I was picking up some staples. You know how it is, the packaging was too cute to pass up (I’m a total sucker for cute packaging, I know.. guilty!)

They come in a spherical egg-shaped package that not only looks cute but it makes finding the lip balm at the bottom of your purse -so- much easier.

The clear lip balm is a little awkward to apply as the surface area is rather large, It’s easiest to apply to both lips at once. The formula is nice and moisturizing (contains shea butter, vitamin E and jojoba oil) which makes lips soft, and the formula isn’t waxy, sticky or greasy. The only thing it's missing is SPF.

They come in 3 different flavors; sweet mint, summer fruit (smells delish -like papaya or mango) and honeysuckle honeydew. My favorite scent is definitely the summer fruit, although the smells don’t really linger after applied.

Best of all they’re 95% organic, 100% natural and contain no petrolatum or paraben. Definitely worth a try, how cute would these egg-shaped balms be for Easter?

$3.99 at drugstore.com