As a self-professed drugstore makeup whore, I have to backtrack and publicly acknowledge my affection for a product that's proven itself worthy of “staple' status: Maybelline Full 'N Soft Mascara. While I'll never be one of the streamlined, 'Oh I just use five products forever and ever' types (also: I'm convinced these types are absolute liars), I wouldn't complain if, in some alternate universe that allotted me one mascara for the rest of my existence, I was left with only Full 'N Soft. In Very Black, because that's how eyelashes should be.

The product is thick enough to hold a small peak when you remove the wand from the tube, but applies in a very thin layer, with enough fluidity to really get between and coat each lash. The brush is quite hairy, leaving the lashes separated and fluffy, which I guess is how the Maybelline marketing geniuses came up with the Full 'N Soft monicker. ('We'll spell 'and' with an apostrophe-n! Women go nuts for that shit!”) And it wears so well! Especially for those who prefer very natural, undetectable mascara, this stuff is clump-free and really does feel soft on the lashes. But my favorite part is that it was invented to be easily removed with just soap and water—no irritated eye skin, oily makeup-remover residue clouding your vision, or worse: lash loss.

Oh, and it's around $6.

—Annie Kreighbaum

Photos by Mathea Millman.

See more of the best drugstore mascaras for every lash effect you could dream of here.