My Mom Won't Stop Stealing My Mascara and Lip Balm—Here's Why

Welcome to Deep Reviews—your one-stop destination to discover the absolute best products and brands the beauty industry has to offer. The Who What Wear staffers you already know and trust will research, test, and review the market's most sought-after and buzzed-about products to see which formulas (of the hundreds up for consideration) are worth your hard-earned money and attention. You can expect honest, uncensored feedback and no-BS recommendations our hard-to-please testers endorse without reservations.

The majority of our Deep Reviews will feature our editors' honest, ultra-hot takes on entire product categories or multiple products from a particular beauty brand, but every so often, we'll sprinkle in a special single-product format called Honestly, I Love It. As the name suggests, these reviews will hone in on one standout beauty formula our editors can't shut up about. This time around, I'm spotlighting Tilt Beauty's Lashscape Mascara ($28) and Tinted Grip Stick Tinted Lip Treatment ($26).

Growing up, I watched my mom apply fun lipsticks, powder her face in small compact mirrors, and make sure her lashes were spidery and full as she got ready for work every day. She rarely left the house without a full face of makeup, and while I'd stare in admiration, I never imagined the day the roles would reverse. Fast forward 20 years, and now my mom stands in the doorway of the bathroom watching me pack on the blush and line my lips, inquiring about every product and not so subtly hinting that she wants something for herself.

Over the holidays, I packed Tilt Beauty's mascara and lip tints for my trip home, and of course, my mom weaseled her way into my makeup bag. To be fair, she had a good reason—I went on a whole spiel about why this brand is cooler than some of the other products we've swapped because it's the first beauty brand to receive The Arthritis Foundation's Ease of Use® Certification. My mom suffers from arthritis so she was immediately sold. By the end of my trip, I was finding the Lashscape and Grip Sticks in the car console, on the bathroom counter, and basically everywhere but my makeup bag.

LASHSCAPE MASCARA

Being the kind and generous daughter that I am, I decided to leave some of my Tilt Beauty goodies at home for her to enjoy, but not before I could test them for you. When it comes to mascaras, I'm pretty hard to impress. I want them to make my lashes full and visible from all angles, regardless of my glam for the day. And this mascara does just that. The wand is short but curved, gripping even the small hairs at the inner corners of my eyes. While I do think this requires a few coats to get that dramatic falsie effect, I know my hands won't get tired from holding a long and uncomfortable tube. I'd like to think that my lashes have a bit of a natural curl, but the lift the Lashscape gives me makes my natural lashes look stick-straight in comparison. I don't even own an eyelash curler, so you know the curling powers are real.

If we're talking makeup pet peeves, clumps and flakes are high on my list. Regardless of how many coats I added during application, I experienced neither, and that deserves major brownie points. Not only did my eyelashes look longer and more voluminous, but they also got a dose of plant-based keratin with every coat. Sometimes removing mascara can feel so damaging to the lash line and eyelashes, but I didn't feel any discomfort or fear that I'd find tiny hairs on my face towel during my nightly makeup removal process.

GRIP STICK TINTED LIP TREATMENT

In 2025, I vowed to reduce the number of lip products that I owned. For a beauty editor, that's no an easy feat, but I was up for the challenge… until these navy-blue patented cases came along. All it took was one swatch of this buttery soft formula to make me reconsider that lofty New Year's resolution. The lip treatments I own tend to be on the thick and glossy side, often feeling more like a lip oil or a gloss. The Tinted Grip Stick is the perfect blend of a hydrating lip balm and a satin lipstick. It offers a sheer but buildable flush of color that you don't have to fully commit to or worry about smudging or messing up throughout the day. Happy Hour is my favorite shade, giving me that freshly bitten look. The tinge of berry on the lips makes it look like I took a bite out of a cherry—an ideal lip for the summer. In the fall, I plan to pair this with a deep brown lip liner for that subtle vampy look.

The Grip Stick Lip Treatment couldn't have come at a better time. Winter in New York left my lips dry, chapped, and seriously dehydrated. This lip treatment rescued my lips and gave them the TLC they deserved. The hydration is instant, the moisture is on point, and the formula is just right. I may or may not have a few shades scattered between my purses, side table, and medicine cabinet.

What were some of your nonnegotiables when formulating Tilt's products?

Aerin Glazer: Our products must be easy to use, high-performing, and contain only the best, calming ingredients. It was nonnegotiable to ensure the brand was formulated with sensitive skin in mind and that is why all Tilt Beauty products are formulated with "Tilt Calm Complex," a combination of ingredients that soothe and calm skin. These formulas are recognized by the National Psoriasis Foundation, and we have received their Seal of Recognition® for our formulas.

Accessibility plays a huge role in packaging and product development. Can you tell me more about how your brand prioritizes this in its products?

When I set out on this journey to create Tilt Beauty, I knew accessibility needed to be at the core of what we do. As someone with psoriatic arthritis, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to use certain products. We are the first and only beauty brand to receive the Arthritis Foundation's Ease of Use Certification; a recognition that means so much to me. Our products were independently tested to ensure they are easy to use for individuals with arthritis and chronic pain. As a result of the testing, our products are ergonomic and proved to be easy to open and easy to hold by design. Our Grip Stick Hydrating Lip Treatment, for example, has a magnetic closure at the top that requires minimal force to open and easily snaps back into place. And the case is coated in a proprietary recyclable material for the cushy, gentle-on-joints feeling. Our Lashscape Mascara has a patented grip and a shortened wand, making it easier to hold. With shaky hands, applying mascara is a challenge, and having a custom-length wand makes a big difference when it comes to a seamless mascara application.

Tell us a little bit about the creation of this brand. What prompted you to go into the beauty industry in particular?

I've been building Tilt Beauty for the past five years and am so excited to see it come to fruition. Like more than 51 million Americans, I have arthritis. I found a lot of normalcy and joy in my beauty routine, especially on difficult days.

Beauty products brought a lot of ease and fun into stressful times when I was dealing with hospital visits. I loved experimenting with makeup, but I found that I couldn’t use most of the products I wanted to try. My hands would hurt for hours after gripping plastic, narrow packaging. I was buying alternatives online and crafting my own modifications to try to make my makeup products accessible.

My type of arthritis is psoriatic arthritis, which means that I have both psoriasis and arthritis. It was critical to me that the formulas were safe for sensitive skin, as I personally had issues with harsh formulas.

My experience inspired me to create a beauty brand designed with the needs of everybody in mind. Our products at Tilt Beauty have an accessible design without compromising on the aesthetics. I wanted this brand to feel like something everyone would want and use, by making it authentic without feeling patronizing

Which product did you create first and why?

Mascara was the first product I wanted to create for Tilt Beauty because this is the makeup product I struggled to use the most. I have shaky hands and struggled to hold mascara—usually, I would end up with mascara all over my eyelids. Our mascara really solves this issue and I can't keep it out of my makeup bag. It has a patented grip and a custom wand to allow for full control with application. It's just the right length so you can anchor your hand on your cheek and apply your mascara with one swipe. I'm very proud of our ergonomic grippy texture on the packaging which makes it easier to hold for everyone.

We've seen numerous lip products launch over the past year. What sets this lip treatment apart from the rest?

Our Grip Stick Hydrating Lip Treatment is ultra buttery and hydrating with the Tilt Calm Complex™. Our complex contains ingredients like colloidal oatmeal, ceramides, and hyaluronic acid to hydrate and soothe lips. It is available in four tinted shades and one clear. The tinted shades are designed to be buildable so one swipe will appear sheer and subtle, and you can add more for a defined look. Our packaging features a grippy case that is soft to the touch, easy to open, and feels natural in your hands.

What are your hopes for the line in the future?

I hope a large group of beauty companies and corporations are inspired by our work and integrate accessibility into their product development processes. We want to help other companies accomplish making their products more ergonomic and change the conversation in the beauty industry to make Ease of Use the standard top of mind and not an afterthought. We have a lot of innovative formulas and packaging in the pipeline, and I'm so excited to share those products and see how people interact with them. We hope to learn more from our customers and community and find new ways we can continue to innovate and make beauty more accessible and easier for all.

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