When I got married I had my makeup done professionally complete with individual false eyelashes. I fell in love with the look but over the past few years I have tried and failed miserably to repeat this at home. I can’t even put on a full set of false eyelashes – I’m a hopeless cause!
A few weeks ago I decided to try eyelash extensions. Here’s the skinny:
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| All about the lashes |
Firstly, I popped into the salon a few days before the treatment for a patch test. This took all of two minutes and consists of a bit of the glue being swabbed behind your ear to make sure that there is no reaction. If your salon doesn’t do this as standard, either insist upon it or walk away – you only get one pair of eyes after all.
During the treatment, which lasts about 1 and a half to 2 hours, white tape is applied to your lower lashes to keep them separate from your upper lashes. Then you just close your eyes and chatter away whilst the beauty therapist works their magic. I found it quite relaxing as most of the time you can hardly feel anything being done.
Afterwards, I was asked to open my eyes very slowly whilst little puffs of air were blown towards my lashes. This, my beauty therapist explained, was to disperse some of the glue fumes which can make your eyes water. And boy did my eyes water!! It took me about 3 minutes to be able to open my eyes properly – the stinging sensation from the glue was on a par with peeling onions.
A couple of the eyelashes will also inevitably get stuck to your lower lashes and the beauty therapist will carefully ‘unstick’ them for you with a pair of tweezers. This was the most uncomfortable part, so it’s such a relief when you feel the little ‘pop’ of the lash unsticking and you can open your eye properly.
I was advised to use a water based eye-makeup remover and was given a small brush (like a mascara wand) to run through my lashes each morning and night.
After two weeks I went back for infills where replacement lashes were
applied. This took
about an hour and then they were back to looking great again. The
infills should last a bit longer than the initial set – around 3 weeks.
So how have I got on with them?
Pros
Instant makeover, instant confidence boost– they are like a perfect set of false eyelashes, but you don’t have to take them off at night, or when you go to the gym – perfect lashes 24/7!
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| Post gym no makeup – lashes holding their own |
Customisation – You
can choose what length you want them and how much they curve, so it’s
really up to you how dramatic you want them to look. I went for a longer length the first time round and love love LOVED them, but dialled it back a notch for the infills as I swop between glasses and contacts, and they were a little bit too long for glasses.
They save heaps of time – Liquid eyeliner has been a staple of my makeup routine for many years, but I haven’t felt the need for it since getting these babies. When I am pushed for time, I don’t apply any extra makeup at all and feel like I can get away with it.
Cons
Price – a full set costs £48, infills are from £15 depending on how many you need replacing. These things are high maintenance.
OCD – In the first week I just could not stop touching them. I even pulled a couple out. Not good Laura, NOT good! Luckily the novelty soon wore off.
Durability – I have tried to sleep on my back, but I keep waking up with my face pressed into my pillow. This gives my eyelashes a serious case of ‘bed head’ in which some of the lashes either clump together, or refuse to sit in the right place. The brush helps, but some just refuse to do what they should. By my first infill appointment I was quite paranoid that they looked a bit ‘funky’. I have a feeling I’ll be counting down to my next infill appointment.
Poser alert – I keep looking at them in the mirror. I’ve taken far too many selfies. I need a lashaholic intervention.
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| My name is Laura and I’m a lashaholic. |
Of course – they are my new addiction – if having them is wrong I don’t want to be right!!
(Random thought: Wouldn’t it be great to have your own personal makeup artist installed in your spare room, who would be there at a moments notice to blowdry your hair and apply whatever style of makeup that you wanted on demand?)
