Okay, HERE IS THE TRICK. It was shown to me by a very nice gay gentleman at the MAC counter in Halifax. Take a tissue and - seriously - blot the mascara wand once you take it out of the bottle. THEN, put the mascara on. You'll have to use more swipes, but there actually is enough inside the bristles to coat your eyelashes, and when you blot there's not so much that they clump. It is the BEST ever.