Get lashed at, but safely!

Blame Katy Perry or Kim Kardashian if you are chasing that magical flutter, but the truth is they are as unreal as coveted. Or blame the ‘before after’ pictures that promise luminous lush lashes and instant transformation that follows! The search for dream lashes has for a while had the beauty industry halt at permanent lash extension counters. Do they work, more importantly how do they work? We give you the lowdown from lash technicians and heads up from those in the medical industry. 

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What are permanent lash extensions? 

Humans are generally blessed with 80 to 100 lashes in each of the lash line. In rare cases, the numbers extends to 120. “So what we do is we attach another strand of hair to each of the lashes and that gives more volume, curl and length,” Ishpriya Kunal Maheshwari from Chandigarh, who runs a chain of salons Coddle Your Nails in Jaipur, breaks down the procedure step by step. It takes a minimum of 40 and up to 90 minutes, depending upon the speed and skill of the lash technician to get the job done. “In India, we use the C and D curl lashes. While abroad, they use a J or even double D. As for the choice of fibres, they are either natural lashes which is human hair lashes or mink lashes, which are 20 per cent synthetic.”  

How permanent are they? 

As permanent as the original cycle of your lash line. Adds Ishpriya, “We shed about a lash each day and so at the end of the month one would still be left with 20 to 30 per cent of the lashes, which is also a lot of volume. They easily stay for a month.”  

What ifs… 

Over to the doubts and apprehensions. What if the glue got in the eye? Dr Mandeep Singh, senior consultant, cosmetic and plastic surgery, Paras Hospital, advocates a few precautions that must be kept in mind by those going in for the procedure, “To prepare the eye area for extensions, your lash technician should be taping your lower lashes down to your skin, and placing hydrating eye pads on top. This is done to prevent the glue from getting on the lower part of your eye as lashes are applied.” 

He adds, “For cleaning the eye area, one must not use oil-based products. Nor should make-up mascara be oil based. Avoid excessive rubbing of eyes too.” Adds Ishpriya here, “That adhesive is not easily available. One needs to be certified even to get the glue.” Mascara gets clumpy and strip lashes are so yesterday. Meanwhile, there are magnetic lash lines doing the rounds and till then keratin lash lift proves its worth. 

—Manpriya Singh