This genius hack helps extend the life of your mascara

Coming to the end of your mascara's lifespan usually looks something like this: you start to notice that things are drying up and that you're having to dip into the tube more than usual to get a generous slick of the stuff across your lashes. But somehow – probably because we actually have to replace them often - it's the thing we always, always forget to pick up.

Whether you're browsing through Sephora, the pharmacy or just your local supermarket, plenty of good, cheap mascaras beckon from their shelves. Yet somehow, we always forget to get a new one, even when we know it's high time. Or perhaps it's that your favourite brand happens to be particularly expensive, and you're reluctant to go out and replenish your stock until after payday.

Credit: Pixabay

Whatever the case may be, I'm here to save the day. There's a simple hack you should know about in order for you to get the most out of your mascara, and it's not anything that will lead to the possibility of you getting conjunctivitis. I really needn't remind you that you should never add water or any other liquids into your tube of mascara to DIY a bit more of the stuff (you will undoubtedly be mixing in bacteria which will NOT be a pleasant sight). Luckily, this trick is actually very simple, and kind of a no-brainer.

First, you need to make sure you've secured the cap tightly so that nothing can get inside the tube. Boil some water and pop it in a large mug or a heatproof bowl, and plop your mascara in. Leave it for two to three minutes, before carefully taking it out. Doing this softens the dried up bits of mascara that have gotten to the parts of the tube your wand can't reach.

You'll probably want to twist your wand inside the tube a few times to mix up the newly-liquified mascara, but careful – don't pump it up and down. This is another cardinal sin of mascara – old or new – because pumping the wand allows excess air into the tube, which only makes it dry out faster and get clumpy.

Credit: Pixabay

This hack will ensure you get about another week's worth of mascara, and because you didn't add anything new inside (you've really just melted it into its original form), it's going to work exactly like it always has.

It'll at least give you the time to finally get your sh*t together and purchase a new one. Which you should really be on top of anyway, because most mascaras should only last you three or four months (maaaybe even five or six), but you'll always be able to tell once it starts getting noticeably dry and clumpy. And need I remind you that you can get a lovely case of conjunctivitis if you keep reapplying old, gross mascara to your lashes?

So while you've now been blessed with this genius hack, use it with caution, because buying a new stick of mascara a few weeks earlier is probably going to be less irksome for you than having to deal with pus-filled eyes. Gross.