If I was stranded on a deserted island and could only have one makeup item on hand, mine would be mascara. Most pick lipgloss or even foundation, but I never leave the house without mascara. For a girl who usually gets less than 8 hours sleep a night, using  mascara is the only way for me to fake a wide-eyed, “Betty Boop” look. So when I heard Lancome was coming out with a vibrating (!) mascara guaranteed to take my peepers to new heights, I was itching to get my hands on it like a mascara crazed junkie. That was, of course, until I found out the Oscillation mascara was going to set me back about $34. Needless to say, I gave in and considered it my “Daily Diamond.” Months later, Maybelline swooped in like a cheap and chic superhero and saveed me from my new expensive obsession with their Pulse Perfection mascara for about $12.

But could the drugstore version compare? Oscillation has an incredible way of making my lashes longer than I’ve ever thought possible, and admittedly, Pulse Perfection left my lashes a little clumpier than I would have liked, but did manage to lengthen and build volume. Bottom line – if you can’t splurge on the $34 dollars, Pulse comes in a very close second.