Eyelash Extensions

Eyelashes are one of the most subtle yet powerful facial features. They draw attention to your eyes, helping you to communicate without saying a word. Eyelash extensions were designed to enhance your eyes by lengthening and thickening eyelashes. There are many forms of extensions which can create the desired look a client is wanting. There are single strands (Synthetic, mink and silk) which are perfectly curled and designed to mimic a client’s natural lash. Eyelash extensions were designed to make an eye appear fuller and more luscious but most importantly to be comfortable and non-invasive for every day wear. Eyelash extensions are ideal for everyday wear as well as special occasions.

There is no set amount of time applying Eyelash extensions. A beginner can expect to take 2-3 hours doing their initial sets. More experienced technicians take around 60-75 minutes for a new set of classic lashes and 90-120minutes for a new set of volume lashes, depending on the clients natural lashes and whether or not the set will be dramatic or not.

When clients arrive at the salon they should fill out a consultation card as this would help the therapist understand what they can and can’t do on a client. The therapist should explain in detail what will happen during the procedure then they will be able to start the treatment.

The client will lay comfortably on a plinth, covered with a blanket and a pillow underneath their knees. The eyelash professional will then put under eye gel pads on the clients lower lashes to isolate them so as to not stick the top and bottom eye together. Tape will be used to gently lift top eyelid up slightly to be able to work closer to the lash base.

When a client arrives for their treatment the therapist should explain in detail what happens during the procedure. When the client first sits down, she should be asked what look she is wanting to achieve. It’s the therapist’s job to do a thorough consultation before starting to work on the client. The different lengths, curvatures, thicknesses and colour should be shown to the client. Thereafter the therapist should explain the difference between classic and volume lashes and then recommend what they feel would be best for the client. Each client’s lashes vary in length and strength so depending on what a client naturally has, would be dependent on what extensions the therapist can out on.

Fills would be dependent on the client’s natural eyelash amount. An average person has 90-120 lashes per eye, although some clients are fortunate to have more than 200. A client who has 90 eyelashes per eye will need to have a fill a lot sooner than a client with 200 lashes per eye. Although, on average, eyelash extensions need to be filled every 2-3 weeks.

When extensions are applied they are attached 0.5mm from your natural lash. As the weeks go on is as the clients natural lashes grow. Some lashes grow slowly and other faster depending where that natural lash is in it life cycle. If the natural lashes have time to grow out and the extensions aren’t maintained the extension keeps growing with your natural lash causing it to grow close to the tip. When this happens the lashes will start to twist. With them being so close to tip the weight of them can also cause extra pressure you your lash and possibly break it.

Having eyelash extensions applied is a very therapeutic process. Clients should be able to fall asleep during the treatment.

One of the main benefits of having eyelash extensions done, is never needing to wear mascara again. Eyes can be made to look incredibly natural or dramatic so the need to further mascara application is unnecessary. For client who still choose to wear mascara, too much rubbing to get it off could cause tension on your natural lashes causing them to break and causes your beautiful volume fans to clump.

YES AND NO. The simple answer to this is, yes it can cause a certain degree of damage to a client’s natural eyelashes. A lash technician will need to be trained thoroughly to know how to apply extensions correctly. The placement of the extension, thickness or weight of the extension, the length of the extension, the amount of glue used as well as eyelashes being correctly isolated all contribute to how your lashes will bode going forward. Untrained technicians will use too much glue causing the lashes to clump together, the wrong weight of lash or the incorrect length of extension which could lead to traction alopecia. Traction alopecia happens when excessive tension is placed on the hair shaft, causing the hair to fall out and damaging the hair follicle. It is questionable if eyelash can or cannot grow back after this stage has been reached.

Choosing a trained lash professional is of the utmost of importance as they have been taught how to minimize/ prevent this from happening. Natural eyelashes go through strong and weak stages. Trained professionals will be able to identify when a client’s lashes are going through a weak stage and they will then make the necessary changes/ adjustments in length and thickness of the extension to help assist the natural lash. In severe cases where lashes are breaking and starting to thin out, the technician should advise you to take a break for a few months and they should explain all the different options of making your lashes grow back strong and healthy before putting the extensions back on again.

Once having a new set of eyelash extensions applied there are a few key elements in looking after them. Straight after the application eyelashes should not be wet for about 24 hours. Avoid swimming and steam rooms /saunas directly after. If a client partakes in swimming or steam baths (bikram yoga) on a regular bases they may find they would need to come more regularly for fills. Heat/ prolonged moisture can cause the glue to soften which could cause the bond the break quicker.

Clients should clean their lashes daily with a foam cleanser and eyelash cleansing spritz to free the lashes of any makeup, dirt and most importantly bacteria. Avoid over brushing the extensions as this could lead to them coming off prematurely as well as straining the natural lash with the constant contact. Clients should completely avoid using oil based products on lashes.

Clients should avoid pulling or tugging at lashes, if there is an extension coming loose clients should rather see their lash therapist for them to fix it. Pulling or twisting lashes could cause severe damage to the natural lash. Clients should try their best to sleep on their backs or, if sleeping on their sides, on the edge of their pillow.

It’s not ideal to do a removal and a new set on the same day as the hair follicle can absorb some of the adhesive remover and can possibly affect retention. If a client would like to do both on the same day then, once the previous extensions have been removed, they would need to wash their eye area with facial cleansers twice to make sure all excess product has been removed before the technician can reapply a new set of lashes.