Fake lashes. We’ve all been there. Having "that discussion" with ourselves in Superdrug:
"Don't waste your money you know what will happen, you'll just end screaming at them with eyeliner all over your chin, crying and vowing you'll never buy them again... just like last time and the time before and the time before that"
You vow that this time, this night, this party will be the time that you finally master the dark art of strip lash application.
Cut to later that night, you're late to the party, lashless, panda-eyed and with a sinking suspicion that you've triggered some sort of eye infection. Great. Plus one of the errant lashes you tore off in a rage is stuck to the bum of your dress completing it's evil plan to push you over the edge entirely.
But fear not, after years of practice, tears, frustration
and approximately 45 pairs of screwed up pairs of lashes chucked in the bin I
have finally nailed it. Now I can apply my lashes in less time than it takes to
apply mascara, they last ALL DAY without fail and I can make one pair last a
whole month, saving heaps and heaps of money. I am the self-proclaimed Lash
Guru.
If, like the Milly of 3 years ago, you have been pushed over the edge by these tiny plastic demons then fear not, I have written this 10 step guide to get those lashes just right. Because lets face it... There is no Smokey-Eye like a Fake lashes Smokey-Eye and sometimes you just want to a be a little bit Jessica Rabbit for the night.
If, like the Milly of 3 years ago, you have been pushed over the edge by these tiny plastic demons then fear not, I have written this 10 step guide to get those lashes just right. Because lets face it... There is no Smokey-Eye like a Fake lashes Smokey-Eye and sometimes you just want to a be a little bit Jessica Rabbit for the night.
1.
Getting the lashes out of the packet. Sounds
simple right? Apparently not. This will shock you but this is key advice: NEVER
EVER use pair of tweezers to remove a set of lashes from their packing. Lashes
are FRAGILE, easily bent and extremely easy to break, Tweezers are metal and hard so use your fingers there are no better tools. If you need to cut the plastic
packing then do, you didn’t pay £5 for the packaging did you? No. So cut it to
bits if needs be, but never ever try and get them out with Tweezers. A friend
did this and ripped her only pair of lashes into 3 pieces half an hour before
our taxi was due to arrive for a night out. Luckily, being the "Lash Guru,"
I was able to carefully glue the three pieces back into one strip and successfully
apply them for her. It was nerve racking, like a game of Operation but I did it and it's going up there alongside my degree and my shortbread recipe as one of my major life achievements
2. Trim your lashes to size. This is vital as everyone's eyes are different. They will look
silly if they’re hanging off the outside of your eye and it’s bloody painful
when they’re poking at the inside of your eye – trust me. Hold them up and cut
them a little at a time from the outside of the lashes, this is where there are more longer lashes
so cutting them there shouldn’t affect the shape, don’t cut the inside corner
as those little lashes are the ones that give the nice graduated shape you
need.
3.
The Glue. The glue is the key. If you have decent
glue then you can apply any lashes you want. You can buy £1 lashes from Primark
and they’ll still work because it’s ALL ABOUT THE GLUE. Cheap lashes = cheap
glue so bin it, it's going to have as much chance sticking things to your face as I have at sticking to a diet. You wouldn’t glue a broken mug back together with a Pritt Stick would
you? No, you’d use that strong extra-adhesive because you
can stick anything to anything with the right glue. Personally I always use
Eyelure lashes, I favour their range of shapes over most other brands but most of
all I favour their glue. It doesn’t matter what brand of lashes I’ve picked up
on sale I always use Eyelure glue as it’s the best for long-lasting wear. Equally it
doesn’t matter which brand of glue you find works for you, just make sure you save that
little bottle of miracle goo like your life depends on it. Afterall you can get
hundreds of applications out of one tiny bottle!
4.
Eyeliner. I would advise using liquid eyeliner
as this disguises the point at which the strip lashes are adhered to the lid, although pencil will work too.
Do your liner first, it’s almost impossible to apply liner once the lashes are on
(unless you are highly skilled) and make sure the liner is completely dry
before you apply the lashes. You can always touch up the liner afterwards to
cover any gaps or glue marks.
5.
Next, putting the glue on. The glue is extremely
runny and will run into the lashes and ruin them if you don’t take the
applicator out first and stand it up to dry for 30 seconds or so before applying to the
lash, this allows the texture the thicken to a tacky consistency and means that the glue will stay on the lash
line when you apply it and not run everywhere ruining the lashes.
6.
Once you’ve put the glue on, put the lash down
on a flat surface, glue side up and leave the lash alone for a good couple of minutes. Until
the glue has completely dried and gone clear. Then repeat this. Seriously. The
base of strip lashes is too thin to support long-term wear. If you build of a
couple of layers of glue before applying that final layer then you will have a much more
supportive base and they will last longer.
7.
Once you’ve applied your third coat of glue,
wait for 30 seconds or so again for that tacky consistency. Far too many people put
try to put them on straight away when the glue is wet resulting in a eyelid
full of glue, nothing left on the lash and as I recall from memory; crying. By waiting for that tacky glue texture again it means that the lash is more
likely to stay put when you apply it.
8.
Application. Guess what? You can bend lashes!
That's right you can bend them into whatever shape you like, personally I like to
bend them up slightly at the end as I wear winded eyeliner and this gives the
lashes a nice little flicked shape. Be careful when you bend them but have a
good play around while you're waiting for the glue to go tacky, you don’t have to stick to the shape they’ve been stuck into
the box in. Always apply your lashes just above your natural lash line, not too
high or you can easily distinguish the two separate lines of fake a real
lashes. But not too low as you’ll up pulling out your natural lashes when you
remove them. Do not apply them too closely to the inside of your eye as they
will end up poking you in eye causing pain and even worse – watering! Eye make-up
ruined.
9.
Don’t be afraid to push the lashes onto your
eyelid to make sure they’ve stuck all the way along, if you’ve left the glue to
go tacky enough then this shouldn’t alter their position and the last thing you
want is a big gap in the middle or for them to be hanging off at one side by
10pm.
10.
If you’ve followed all those steps correctly
then you should have a nicely fitting and sturdily glued pair of lashes – go enjoy
your night on the town! But when you get home don’t just tear them off and
screw them into a ball. They cost money! You can re-use lashes indefinitely, after
all they aren’t cheap. Just carefully peel them off from the outside edge
inwards and put them somewhere safe. The glue can then be carefully peeled off the lash line,
thanks to those extra layers you added for stability this is easy peasy. Then
you can give them a quick clean with make up remover and leave them somewhere
safe to dry for next time. Seriously a £5 pair of lashes will last me a month
and I wear them daily. Just make sure you thoroughly clean them as dirty,
make-up clogged lashes are an eye infection waiting to happen!
So there you go! It doesn’t matter if you’re an everyday
wearer (guilty!) or you just fancy treating yourself to pair of lashes for a
special occasion, with this guide you should all triumph and be able to flutter
those big fakies without the worry of them flying off into someone’s drink.
Any questions feel free to comment and let me know how you
got on if you tried my guide.
I've used MAHOOSIVE lashes for this post so that they are nice and clear in the photos. These steps can be used on any lashes, so don't worry, you can go for a more subtle daytime lash look if you don't fancy these fly-swatter lashes.

I think this could be my saviour! I've had to print screen each step and will be testing it out Friday night, fed up of throwing lashes away and resorting to mascara! Thank you!!!
ReplyDeleteLet me know how you get on using the Tutorial. It's always a bit of a faff but once you get the hang of doing them it just clicks :) xx
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