eyelash extension retention
Lash retention is a general topic that definitely concerns both clients and lash artists. Dealing with shedding eyelash extensions can be very frustrating, especially because it reflects the quality of your work as a lash artist. To help you prevent lash retention mishaps, we created a fully-detailed checklist for you. The following things you’ll read in this checklist are the factors that can greatly affect the retention of your lashes. Some of them are common factors that you may have probably already have an idea about. While some are unfamiliar factors that you may not even be aware of doing.
adhesives
Shake your glue, if it is not shaken properly the Cyanoacrylate and Carbon Black won’t be separated resulting in no retention, the consistency will also be off; making your glue more difficult to apply, this can also result in wonky lashes
Also ensure you're applying enough glue onto your extension. There’s no exact measurement on “how much” glue you should use in every dip – that’s just impossible to explain.
This all goes down to your experience on how much glue works for you, this is also why it’s very important to keep practicing because you will soon get to grips of this as you go on.
Curing times - ensure you are using the correct glue for your lashing speed, there are 0.5-1, 1-2, 2-3 second curing time glues. Humidity and room temperature need to be taken into consideration as well.
cleansing
Daily cleansing – This is something you really need to stress out to your client. They don’t have to wait until they see noticeable gunk stuck on their lashes before they actually clean it, cleansing will free the lashes from oil and dirt that are both major factors why lashes fall off and lose retention.
While there are loads of cleansers out there, you have to make sure to opt for oil-free cleansers; foam cleansers work just fine as long as they don’t contain oil in them.
Avoid micellar water/baby shampoo.
Cleanse OR prime the lashes first, it should just be one or the other, and not both.
Cleansing or priming your lashes prior to attaching them increases retention, it’s not ideal to do both cleansing or priming because doing so may dry out the lashes.
infills
You should pre book your clients infills for the foreseeable future so they have a guaranteed appointment. Having regular infills booked ensures the clients care for their lashes in between and you don’t have to worry about ‘squeezing’ anyone at the last minute.
Every 2 weeks is recommended but some may be able to go 3 [bare in mind removal of old lashes takes time so assess this at their infills]
Not cleansing is one reason why your lash extensions get stuck together and therefore become coarser and harder to brush. Not only that this can cause rougher lashes, it can also result in blepharitis.
room conditions
Check your humidity – this is one of the most important factors you should consider in terms of retention because humidity plays a vital role in it.
Make sure you store your glue in a place where the humidity is in the range as this helps maintain the consistency of your glue.
As for your workspace, make sure the humidity in the room is just right. Otherwise, it won’t work well on the lashes.
Also bare in mind your room temperature, this should be in line with your adhesives needs, if not the glue will become stringy/not adhere properly.
sleep
Get your clients to invest in a silk pillowcase – some pillowcases feature certain types of fabric that are a bit rough.
Some clients move around a lot when they sleep and some lie face down. In these cases, when the lash extension gets in contact with your regular pillowcase, it may tug the lashes and cause them to fall off.
This is why silk pillowcases are more advisable. They are very soft and smooth, hence being very gentle not only to your lashes, but also to your skin.
smoke and steam
Your exposure to smoke can singe your lashes without you even noticing. The heat and properties from the smoke/fire can slightly burn lash extensions.
Steam may seem less harmful for your lashes, but it can totally ruin your retention if you’re not extra careful. The moisture coming from the steam can worsen your retention.
Another example of this is opening the oven door onto your face.