Lashes, to me, are one of the most (if not THE most) important part of any make up look. They tie everything together and are truly the cherry on top. From strip lashes, accent lashes, individual lashes, and bottom lashes, there is a lot to know about your fluttery friends. Here is your guide to finding, applying, and removing falsies!
Eye Shape:
Whether you’re going for a natural look, or a more dramatic look, it is important to know your eye shape. If you have more round eyes, try buying lashes that flare out a bit on the outer corner to elongate your eyes; same concept for eyes that are closer together. By doing this, you are opening up your eyes and creating that subtle doll-eyed girly effect.
Sizing:
Making sure that your lashes are the correct length for your eye-lid space is so important. When you first get your pair of lashes, make sure to remove them gently from the packaging, and place them on top of your own lashes starting at the middle and then tucking them into the outer and inner corner. If you notice that the strip is sticking out on either side (i.e. extending out toward your temple) that’s when you know you need to trim them! ALWAYS trim from the outer corner. Grab a pair of scissors or brow trimmers and snip off what you need! This is crucial to making your falsies look as natural as possible!
Glue:
Almost every lash brand has its own glue, but my go-to is the Duo Lash Adhesive. This lash adhesive comes in 4 types: Individual lash adhesive, Strip lash dark adhesive, Brush- on Adhesive, and Strip lash Clear adhesive. Some people find the brush on to be easier to use! I do recommend this for beginners because the brush makes it hard to over apply too much glue. I prefer the Strip lash clear adhesive over the brush, because the tube of adhesive lasts longer in my opinion. The dark adhesive will dry dark and the clear will dry clear. Comparing the two, they both have the same function. Either one works; I tend to reach for the clear!
Applying:
Applying your falsies can be a scary thing! I also get questions on how I make mine look natural. Here is a simple step-by-step of what I do when applying my falsies.
- Remove gently from the packaging (Very gently; you do not want to ruin the lash by pulling too hard.)
- Size the strip to your eye, and trim if you need to.
- Apply a thin layer of glue along the strip; Applying too much will make the process longer and potentially messier.
- Wait 30 seconds–During this 30 seconds, I like to apply a coat of my mascara to my own lashes. Allow the adhesive to get tacky. Going in with wet adhesive will make applying harder causing the lash to slide around and potentially ruin your eye make-up (*gasp*).
- With tweezers, grab the strip by the lashes in the middle of the strip. Slowly place the strip in the middle of your lash line. Gently remove tweezers from the lash.
- After the middle is attached, use your tweezers to tuck in the outer corner and inner corner of the strip to your lash line. You can then use the flat end of the tweezers or the end of a makeup brush to push down the strip if it’s poking up. You want to get the strip as close to your natural lashes as possible.
- Squeeze the falsies and your lashes together. This will also help the lashes to appear more natural, blending them in with your real lashes.
- You will already have a layer of mascara on underneath the falsies that you just applied. Going back in with mascara, you are going to want to wiggle the mascara wand at the base of your lashes to marry your natural lashes and the strip together. Again this is another blending technique that will tie everything together.
- Depending on the look I’m going for, I will then apply liner on top of my “new” lash line to conceal any glue that may show, and to really give the polish and perfected look. This will further thicken the look of your lashes, and contribute to that fluttery flirty look of falsies!
And you’re done! If for some reason, one of the corners pokes up or won’t stay in tacked for some reason, take a toothpick or something fine and small, and apply a small amount of adhesive to the tip. Apply to the part that is poking up, and again tuck it back in. I like to use my fingers to then hold it the place where I want it secured to ensure that he won’t be poking up again.
What the lash?
The best brand of lashes that I have used to date, are the Red Cherry lashes (particularly the #43’s). You can find these at Ulta, Sephora, or in bulk on Amazon.com (where I do most of my lash shopping). My next top fave are the Ardell lashes (Demi Wispies are my go-to drugstore lashes). I tend to reach for lashes that are dramatic, full, but also have the natural looking effect. The lashes are straight off the strip, tend to appear more “false” looking (which if fine). The lashes that overlap each other, cross, and are wispier are the ones that look a bit more natural, and give your lashes a boost! MAC, Sephora, Urban Decay, E.L.F. Revlon, you name it; they all have their own lashes. Some can be pricy, but you definitely get your money’s worth!
Getting your Money’s worth:
Yes, I did repeat myself, but for good reasons. You can re-use your false eye lashes! Removing your lashes can be a strange feeling at first, but after a while you can compare it to taking off your bra after a long day…AHhHhHh. You’re going to want to gently peel off the lashes before removing the rest of your eye make up. I typically like to start from the outer corner and peel inward toward the inner corner. Then remove your makeup as you normally would. You might have to rub a smidge harder to ensure that the glue residue on your lash line is completely removed. You’ll notice on the strip lash that there is still glue; go ahead and peel that off as well. Do not use makeup remover on your lashes as it can ruin the lashes, and make them harder to re-apply. After the adhesive residue is removed, I like to save my lashes by keeping them in the container they came in.
The next time you’re going out or just want to spice things up on a Tuesday, try some falsies. This technique is foolproof! Post your makeup looks on Instagram and hashtag #makeuparibella so I can see. Good luck and stay fabulous!