Versus Mascara: Estée Lauder Projectionist vs. NYC Showtime

Hello there m'dears. As I mentioned briefly, here's my newest permanent feature which shall be ongoing for the next couple of months at least. A battle of the brands! I do love my high end products, who wouldn't? These luxury department store counters look amazing, provide great assistance and make one feel expensive wearing their products. However, I am always prancing up and down superdrug & boots looking for a great bargain! Makeup’s makeup right?
Today I am going to compare two rather similar mascaras, with one major difference. Price.

Let the battle begin!

Estée Lauder Projectionist HD Volume Mascara vs. NYC Showtime Volumizing Mascara

Firstly, lets start with the packaging! Noone can deny that Estée Lauder have hit this in the bullseye. A sleek, streamline tube of a navy blue colour, with a golden band hosting the brands logo would make anyone look forward to coating their lashes. It just feels luxurious. Smooth, thin and downright pretty, this mascara would easily fit into a bag or makeup case, not taking up much room but still yielding a whole tube of wonders. The lid is pointed which makes for easier application, fitting perfectly into the palm of the hand without any bulkiness.

The NYC mascara on the other hand, is pretty bulky. A light blue colour, its thick, plastic feeling and a little bit tacky. Don't let the packaging put you off though, it's still pretty easy to apply, fitting into the hand nicely, its bulky frame not really being a hindrance.

The wand of the Estée Lauder Mascara represents the packaging. A kind of dome shame, slightly pointed, continues that streamline effect, making it easy to reach those hard to get lashes. It provides an even application, while making coating the bottom lashes a dream. I have no complaints what so ever about the wand or application of this product, its what I would expect from a £20 mascara.

The NYC mascara has a rounded wand which evenly coats, while really adding volume to the upper lashes. Its not as easy to reach the inner corners or the bottom lashes as the Projectionist mascara, but still works amazingly.

[Naked Eye]

[Left: Estée Lauder Projectionist. Right: NYC Showtime]

As you can see, my lashes are pretty thin, short and fair. Both these mascaras add length and volume with one coat. I believe showtime gives me more length while the volume stays pretty even between the two. Projectionist is better for the lowes lashes due to the wand shape, making clumps easier to avoid.
There are a few small differences, but the mascaras look very similar to be honest. I wore these two different products all day and they pretty much looked the same. My boy couldnt tell I was wearing two different brands (althought i guess most men are oblivious to makeup related issues!)

They last all day without smudging, both being water resistant, yet come off really easily with makeup remover. Overall I am really impressed with both mascaras, though I would have to say their results are nearly identicle considering theres £16 between them.

Price:
Estée Lauder Projectionist HD Volume Mascara : £20
NYC Showtime Volumizing Mascara: £3.99

Summary
Versus Winners

Packaging: Estée Lauder Projectionist
Wand: Estée Lauder Projectionist
Upper Lash Application: Draw
Lower Lash Application: Estée Lauder Application
Volume and Length: Draw
Staying Power: Draw
Price: NYC Showtime

Overall I have to say I would buy the NYC Showtime mascara again over Projectionist, purely because the actual application and results equal the high end mascara, but for a fraction of the price.

xox