In 1923, in Rochester, New York, a group of investors founded the Stickel Company at 380 Cottage Street to sell one object: the Kurlash Natural Eyelash Curler, invented by Charles W. Stickel. Not a mascara, not a palette, just a curler. People bought it because it did something you could see in a mirror in ten seconds. A century on, that is still the test I apply to anything that goes near my lashes.

Which brings me to Benefit. The brand began in 1976 in San Francisco, when twin sisters Jean and Jane Ford opened a boutique called The Face Place, and it was renamed Benefit Cosmetics in 1990. Benefit mascara is still where it puts its humour: They're Real, BADgal, Roller Lash, Fan Fest. The names read like jokes between friends. The brushes do not. Each tube is built around a different brush shape, and that, not the name, is what you are really choosing.

The trick is to decide what your lashes lack before you pick one. Straight and stubborn lashes want Roller Lash, the curling and lifting formula. Short ones want length, which is the job of They're Real Lengthening Mascara, and its Magnet sibling, the Magnet Extreme Lengthening version, shares the family name. Sparse lashes want body, and that is BADgal BANG Volumizing Mascara, with a waterproof twin for humid days or a wedding. BADgal Bounce is the fluffier, softer take on volume. Fan Fest is the one I reach for when I want separation, each lash spread apart like a little fan.

The They're Real Tinted Lash Primer sits at the end of the row for anyone who likes to build in layers. Think of this first grid as a menu sorted by lash problem, not by bestseller.

Most mascara mistakes happen at the root, and most eye makeup looks better when the lash line and the brow are in on the same plan. Benefit knows this, which is why its liners and brow tools are a natural second stop.

Roller Liner Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner is the quick one, a friend to anyone who has tried a flick at 7:40 in the morning. BADgal HypeLiner 36HR Waterproof Eyeliner is the bolder option, the one for a night when you want the line to still be there at the end. Both are waterproof, so take a real makeup remover to bed, not a wipe and a hope.

Benefit opened its first Brow Bar in 2003, so brows are home turf, and the grid shows the range. Precisely, My Brow Pencil is for drawing in hairs one at a time. Precisely, My Brow Tinted Eyebrow Wax holds them in shape. 24-HR Brow Setter Clear Brow Gel is for anyone whose brows are fine and only need to stay put, while Gimme Brow+ Tinted Volumizing Eyebrow Gel adds colour and a bit of body. Goof Proof Eyebrow Pencil and the Mighty Fine Waterproof Brow Pen round it out for people who want a fine, controllable tip.

A pairing I like: a clear brow gel with a bold lash. When the mascara is doing the talking, the brows only need to look brushed and tidy.

What I would skip: a waterproof liner and a waterproof mascara on the same day if you have sensitive eyes and plan to rub them. Pick one to be the statement.

Hold each mascara up by the wand, not the tube. The brush is the product. Bristles spaced far apart separate, a dense brush builds, and a curved one lifts. Once you read brushes that way, every shelf gets easier to shop.

Benefit is not the only name worth your attention, so this grid sets a few others beside it. Armani Beauty's Vertigo Lift is the long, lifted one, a good pick if you want length that feels light. Lancôme's Lash Idôle in its waterproof version lifts and volumizes and is the one I would carry for a day that might rain. Too Faced's Naturally Better Than Sex is a softer, more classic volume, and it is a good match for anyone who likes a little drama without a clumped lash.

Dior's Diorshow Overvolume is the loud one of the bunch. Rare Beauty's Perfect Strokes suits people who want volume they can build stroke by stroke. Glossier's Lash Slick is a tubing mascara to lift and lengthen, a lighter touch for days you want lashes and no fuss. Clinique's High Impact is the dependable everyday tube, and Tower 28's Makewaves is the newer-feeling name on the shelf, worth a try if you like a lighter tube.

Two mascaras is a fair number to own: one for length and one for volume. Put length on the top layer if you want a wispy finish, and volume on top if you want something bolder.

What I would skip: adding a third mascara on top because the second did not do enough. Clumps are the usual result, and the fix is a different brush, not more product.

Wet hair tells you more than dry hair does, and lashes are the same: what they look like before mascara decides what they look like after. Curl first, prime second, mascara last, and do not curl over wet mascara.

The curler is the oldest tool in this story, a descendant of the Kurlash Natural model from that 1923 Rochester factory. Tweezerman's ProCurl is the familiar one, and Shiseido's eyelash curler is the one to try if you want to compare shapes against it. Squeeze at the root, hold for a few seconds, then move up and squeeze again, and you will get a curve instead of a crimp.

Primers come next. Lancôme's Cils Booster XL is a vitamin-infused thickening primer that sits under mascara. tarte's Opening Act Lash Primer is the simple layer that prepares lashes for whatever comes next. Dior's Diorshow Maximizer 4D is a primer-serum in one tube, and Too Faced's Better Than Sex Foreplay Waterproof Mascara Primer is the one to pair with the brand's mascara if you like a set.

Then the slow category. Grande Cosmetics' GrandeLASH Peptide+ Lash Enhancing Serum and The Ordinary's Multi-Peptide Lash and Brow Serum are for the nights you want to look after your lashes, not dress them. Give any serum weeks and use it as directed. If a product touches your eyes and they sting or swell, stop using it.

What I would skip: curling after mascara. Lashes are brittle when coated, and the curler is what snaps them.

For most people, the smartest first move is a curler and one mascara, not a whole new row of bottles. If your lashes are short, They're Real is the classic Benefit answer. If they are sparse, BADgal BANG is the one to try first. If you are undecided, Fan Fest is my pick, because separation flatters almost every lash and it looks a little different from all the others.

Do the curl, put on one coat from root to tip, wiggle the wand at the base, and stop. Add a clear brow gel and you are dressed. Mr. Stickel's 1923 curler still has a place in your bag, and a mascara with a good joke on the tube still earns its keep. Nobody ever regretted a lash that was a little more awake. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Tubing Mascara Is the Low-Drama Lash Formula Worth Switching To and Benefit Blush, From the Original Benetint to Juice Stick.