When I was in London last weekend, Danielle (my best friend) and I decided to go for a full set of lash extensions.
My lashes aren't bad-they're fairly long but quite fine and at the outer edges they are quite sparse. I wear mascara without fail every day-I actually like the whole process of applying mascara every morning.
Danielle has very blonde lashes and wears mascara every day to give her eyes definition. Danielle had checked beforehand what colour extensions would be applied as she wanted dark ones, not blonde ones, especially as there is no need to wear mascara with the extensions.
We went to Lash Bar on Marshall St in central London (very close to Liberty/Carnaby Street). A consultation took place first-we weren't really sure what we wanted until one of the therapists came into the room and we were like 'we want those lashes!'. The salon uses a brand called Lash Perfect.
My therapist Maria was really lovely and chatty. I told her I would be writing an article about the process and she said she'd talk me through each step.
Firstly Maria applied a patch under my eye that allowed her to see the lashes clearly-it was quite sticky and uncomfortable initially (Danielle said the same) as it felt like it pulled on the skin. However, that feeling subsided after a few minutes.
The treatment took about 90 minutes and for a full set of lashes, up to 100-150 lashes are applied to each eye. The false lashes are in effect glued to your own lashes and don't actually bond with this skin. Maria worked really quickly and there was no pain or discomfort at all, it was actually quite relaxing.
Maria told me there is a wide range of lengths, thicknesses and curvatures to get different looks-I think it would have been helpful if the salon had pictures to look at to help decide what look you wanted to achieve.
-You can use mascara but it should be oil free (It was a bit disappointing that the salon didn't know which brands were oil free. Finding mascara ingredients online is nigh on impossible though I have found out since) They do sell their own oil free mascara though. Also, you must use oil free make up remover to remove the mascara.
I really did love the 'after' effect on the lash extensions. They looked really natural-just like I had great lashes. They had the perfect curl, nice and black and no gaps where the lashes had been applied so they didn't look obviously fake.
The only downside is that as the lashes have started falling out (it's now 9 days since I had them applied) they are starting to look a little bit patchy. I have an infill appointment booked for this week when I am back in London but I am unsure whether to go. Both Danielle and I have said we both know we are definitely wearing the lashes-not because they are heavy or anything like that, we can just sometimes 'see' them as we look ahead like you can when you wear false lashes. Danielle has also said that some of her lashes have started to bend so sometimes they don't always go the same way which undoubtedly looks odd.
You don't need mascara and I do miss the ritual of applying mascara daily! And I find myself being super careful removing my eyeshadow and the lashes do feel a little bit crispy now.
But, for a special occasion or for a holiday I would recommend these-the initial effect does look lovely.
The Lash Perfect lashes cost us £120 for a full set. We both also bought the aftercare kit of serum, mascara and eyemake up remover. I don't recommend these-they are poor quality-the mascara is useless!
I think, providing when all the extensions fall out my own lashes are pretty much intact and not damaged I would have this done again-especially as I am useless at applying false lashes. But it is undoubtedly an expensive and high maintenance procedure and that needs to be taken into consideration if you want to keep these up long term.