Having full, dark lashes to frame your eyes can drastically improve your look from drab to dramatic. However, without the addition of false eyelashes, voluminous lashes are not such an easy thing to accomplish with your natural lashes alone. Many people suffer from sparse or short eyelashes as a result of genetics, brittle hair, or aging. Lash breakage and loss can be frustrating, and wearing false eyelashes can sometimes exacerbate these conditions.
Thankfully, there are some easy beauty hacks that anyone can do to achieve a luscious look with their own natural eyelashes. Check out these five tips for getting perfect eyelashes:
1. Condition your lashes
For this hack, we are going straight to the root of the problem. One of the main causes of short or sparse eyelashes is brittle hairs which cause excess breakage or unhealthy follicles that struggle to produce healthy hairs. By daily conditioning your lash line and eyelashes, you promote healthy hair growth and make your lashes more resistant to breakage. This also protects your eyelashes when you apply mascara. Try using a lash conditioner each night before bed for the best results.
2. Use an eyelash curler
Eyelash curlers can sometimes look like some medieval torture device, but let me reassure you, they are perfectly safe and easy to use once you get the hang of it. Curling your eyelashes crimps the hairs to swoop upwards at a steeper angle which gives you the maximum benefit of their length by making your lashes appear longer. Try to get the curler as close to the root as you can and gently squeeze. You’ll be amazed at the difference it makes.
3. Use a lash primer
Have you ever seen that funny-looking white mascara and thought what the heck is this for? That, my dear friends, is an eyelash primer. For those who condition and curl your lashes but still feel they need a boost to achieve true fullness, an eyelash primer is going to be your best friend. Primers are used to create an artificial thickening and lengthening of your individual lashes so that when you apply your mascara, each lash will appear long and full. For best results, ensure you allow your primer to dry fully before applying a lengthening mascara.
4. Proper mascara application
There is more to mascara than simply slapping it on and walking away. How you apply your mascara can be just as important as the type you use. We have all seen people “pump” their mascara wand several times before pulling it out and applying it. This is a huge NO-NO. Pumping your mascara wand only pushes air inside the tube which dries out your mascara and makes it clumpy. The proper technique is to remove the wand and gently blot excess product off onto a tissue or edge of the tube opening, then wiggle the brush at the root of your eyelashes to get full coverage and gently comb upwards to the tips. Use a lengthening mascara for the most dramatic results.
5. Use a good eye makeup remover
Eyelash care extends to your skincare routine at the end of the day. Now that you’ve worked so hard to improve your eyelashes, you need to take care to protect your progress. Use an eye-specific makeup remover, especially if you use waterproof mascara. These cleansers are specifically designed to dissolve stubborn eye makeup in a gentle way so you don’t have to scrub at your eyes and potentially damage your lashes. Even if this adds one more step to your routine, I assure you it is well worth it.
