Anyone know how long unopened mascara lasts?

[Elsa.G]

I went to Dollar Tree today and i went to look at some of the make up they have there. Usually i dont buy much make up from DT as most of it is LA Colors and im not much of a fan of their stuff except for their lipstick and glosses. Well anyway my local DT had some pretty good brands of make up,  i found some mascaras from Almay and Loreal which normally cost upwards of 7 to 10 dollars at places like Walmart. I love the Almay mascara its wonderful and since they were all only a dollar i proceeded to buy 1 of each color, black, blackest black and brown. I also bought a tube of the Loreal brand which is also great. Anyway i looked at the back of the packaging and saw that they were made in 2010, i heard that opened mascara must be tossed after 3 to 4 months of use and since i only use 1 mascara at a time im wondering what the shelf life of a unopened tube is? i looked online but with no clear answer. Does anyone know how long a unopened package of mascara can last? im guessing i have enough tubes of mascara for about a year. Any answer is appreciated.

[Mahsa Tezani]

I went to Dollar Tree today and i went to look at some of the make up they have there. Usually i dont buy much make up from DT as most of it is LA Colors and im not much of a fan of their stuff except for their lipstick and glosses. Well anyway my local DT had some pretty good brands of make up,  i found some mascaras from Almay and Loreal which normally cost upwards of 7 to 10 dollars at places like Walmart. I love the Almay mascara its wonderful and since they were all only a dollar i proceeded to buy 1 of each color, black, blackest black and brown. I also bought a tube of the Loreal brand which is also great. Anyway i looked at the back of the packaging and saw that they were made in 2010, i heard that opened mascara must be tossed after 3 to 4 months of use and since i only use 1 mascara at a time im wondering what the shelf life of a unopened tube is? i looked online but with no clear answer. Does anyone know how long a unopened package of mascara can last? im guessing i have enough tubes of mascara for about a year. Any answer is appreciated.

About 2 months. But the makeup sounds chinsy. For 4 bucks, you could have at least got Cover girl or maybelline. Mascara and eyeliner are not things you skim on.

[Elsa.G]

normally i dont skim on mascara, but lately ive been on a pretty tight budget and usually i dont have much money left to buy make up. They are good mascaras by the way, id say as good as pricier covergirl or maybelline ones. Anyway are u referring to opened tubes of mascara? because ive only opened one tube but the others will remain in the package until they are needed, i was referring to unopened packages

[Miniar]

Unopened, properly sealed, tubes wrapped have a shelf life of "up to" 2 years, at the very most.
Wouldn't keep 'em more than 1 year never the less.

[Wonder woman]

Look at the date/time stamp on it

[Elsa]

Bump - Found this useful while ordering some stuff on sale: http://www.megsmakeup.com/2009/08/25/here-truth-makeup-expiration

[JennX]

I had one sitting in my drawer for at least 6 months (still new in the packing unopened) and I used it today and it was fine. Not dried up, which usually happens. So if it's not opened/new and not dried out... at least 1 year I'd go with. Once you open them though, I toss them every 3 months or sooner, as they are used so close to the eye... can be a breeding ground for bacteria.