We love a good mascara here at HuffPost Shopping, from drugstore favorites to worth-every-penny options on the higher end. But shopping for the right mascara can be tricky if you have sensitive eyes that get irritated by certain products or ingredients. So when we found reviews for Merit’s Clean Lash lengthening mascara that claimed it was gentle on lashes and non-irritating on eyes, we knew we had a potential hidden gem on our hands.
You know Merit for their popular minimalist beauty products, like the Flush Balm blush or complexion perfecting stick. Their Clean Lash mascara places similar emphasis on a simple formula and natural look, an approach that’s earned it about 4.5 stars across more than 3,200 ratings.
Clean Lash, which as of right now only comes in black, is a tubing mascara that adheres to the brand’s Clean at Merit standards, making it free of common irritants like sulfates, phthalates and parabens. Instead, the formula is made with vitamin B5, a humectant that adds shine, and olive oil esters to condition the lashes.
Reviewers with sensitive eyes in particular appear to love the formula. One called it the “First mascara I have been able to use on my sensitive eyes/lids/lashes.” Another wrote, “I usually use Ilia mascara and have very sensitive eyes. This balm like mascara has no fragrance and wears amazingly on my eyes. I usually have issues with smudging or flaking but finally [I] found a mascara that doesn’t flake, has great ingredients AND makes my lashes look great.”
