March Lashes Out

False eyelashes don’t have to look natural.  (image Matheus Ferrero via Pexels)

Hey everyone – In the states, you may (or may not!) be heading off for the Thanksgiving holiday.  Seemed like a fine time to do a random makeup post.

I have a smaller face and deep-set eyes, and over the past year I’ve had multiple Adventures With False Lashes (as opposed to Adventures With Mascara, a topic for another day.)  My eyelashes are long but sparse.  Here’s the brief summary of my adventures, from worst to best, in case you’re thinking about trying it yourself.  I’ve added links to various videos for further edification.

Magnetic lashes that apply by “sandwiching” your upper lashes in between two sets of falsies:  queue the nope nope nope meme.  You need a second set of hands and some voodoo magic to make that work, and then they look ridiculous.  They’re just too heavy and obviously fake.

Lashes that apply using magnetic eyeliner:  the liner actually works, and once you paint that line on there, the lashes go on easily and stick pretty well.  (Try using your own very fine brush for better control.)  Downside: the eyeliner itself is hard to remove, except when it decides to suddenly peel off in one strip at the least convenient time, like during a presentation at work.  Annnnd I don’t love the final look for the same reason I don’t wear heavy eyeliner – it takes up lid space and makes my deep-set eyes look that much smaller.

False eyelashes applied with lash glue – this is a bit of a cheat, since there are so many kinds, in varying lengths and qualities.  The good news is there are ones with “invisible” bands, plus clear adhesive.  Also, with a little practice, they were surprisingly easy to apply. The bad news: I had to trim almost all of them to fit, and except for a couple of faux-mink pairs which feel exceedingly soft, I never got past the sensation of having something glued to my lash line.

Lashify – this is newer and has been getting a lot of attention among makeup fans on Youtube and the blogs.  The lashes come in small sections and apply with lash glue underneath your lash line.  They’re surprisingly easy to do, and the first time I put them on, they looked amazing, and also quite natural if you don’t choose anything crazy in terms of length.  So, what’s the downside?  Their starter kit (which you’re required to buy first) is crazy expensive, which I’d resent less if their fancy secret-sauce adhesive wasn’t such a ripoff and didn’t dry out so quickly.  After a couple of tubes I ended up switching over to regular old lash adhesive which works much better (for a fraction of the cost).  If I’m careful I can get three or four consecutive days of wear; the lashes are half-price in their lash club, which can be paused or cancelled after a couple of deliveries.

Am I sorry I did all this?   Aw heck no; it was a hoot!  Application got much easier with practice, as is true about all sorts of things.  I didn’t pull any lashes out or glue my eyelids together or any of the other sorts of horrors I’d worried about.  I’ll continue to purchase Lashify occasionally when I want a few days of that doe-eyed look.  The regular false eyelashes—eh.  I’ll probably wear the ones I like best and pass the others on at work.  The magnetic ones…. You know, I haven’t given up on those yet.  If I could improve my liner application and longevity, the fact that you can pop them on and off (e.g., at bedtime) is pretty sweet.