Dry, brittle, damaged natural lashes are a nightmare for clients and lash techs alike! Fortunately, there are ways to avoid and fix them.
When lash extensions aren’t applied properly, or the person wearing them doesn’t follow the right aftercare steps, problems can arise, leaving those once-flawless lash lines looking a little worse for wear.
But before you get your tweezers in a twist, it’s important to remember that even the most damaged natural lashes can be resurrected beautifully with the right techniques.
BELO babes, we’ve got everything you need to know about those dreaded damaged natural lashes. In this guide, we’ve covered the most common signs of damage, the factors contributing to lash weakening, and the best practices for preventing further harm for professional lash techs who want to effectively identify and address their client’s damaged natural lashes.
Ready to help your clients retain their natural lash health in between extension applications?
Common Causes of Lash Damage
Natural lashes don’t damage themselves! Even the most cosmetically attuned clients can wind up with brittle, dry, or irritated natural lashes when they don’t follow the right post-treatment care.
Some of the most common causes of natural lash damage include:
All these factors can weaken or stress natural lashes, causing gaps in eyelashes, irritated lash lines, and dysregulated lash growth cycles.
Spot the Signs of Damaged Natural Lashes
Lash techs play a key role in identifying damage early and educating clients on how to prevent it. So, how do you know if your eyelash follicle is damaged?
Here are some key indicators lash techs should look for when assessing a client’s lashes:
- Lash thinning
- Brittle lashes
- Premature shedding
- Irritation
- Disrupted growth cycles
Once you know how to clearly identify the signs of damaged natural lashes, neither you nor your clients will need to ask, “How do you know if your eyelash follicle is damaged?” ever again!
Understanding the Lash Growth Cycle
Just like the hair on your head, the hairs on your lash line follow a natural growth cycle. The lash growth cycle experiences three main phases: anagen, catagen, and telogen.
The anagen phase is the active growth phase, the catagen phase is the transition phase, and the telogen phase is the rest and renewal phase. The best time for applying lash extensions is the anagen phase when those natural lashes are growing long, strong, and healthy. During this phase, lashes can grow as much as 0.12 - 1.14mm a day, and the new lashes are the perfect playground for extensions!
Monitoring premature shedding can help you identify potential issues early and ensure your client knows when the time is right for a fresh lash session.
Assessing Damage During Consultations
The best time to assess natural lash health is during client consultations when you can discuss this important topic with your clients one-on-one, and they have nowhere to run!
Use this moment to share aftercare routines and invite them to share lash progress over time with photos or notes so that you can both keep tabs on their natural lash health. Not only does this strengthen your relationship, but it also helps to ensure that you boost lash retention and give your clients the best possible look, making them even happier with your service.
How to Prevent Further Damage
Damaged natural lashes may be common, but they aren’t necessarily inevitable—at least, not with the right prevention techniques around! Use these top tips for keeping your client’s natural lashes as healthy and happy as possible in between lash applications:
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Proper application techniques: Properly holding tweezers, avoiding lash glue shock polymerisation, and using the right eyelash extension accessories can all help you apply beautiful false lashes without disrupting clients' natural lashes or lash cycles.
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Client education on aftercare: Clients, especially first-timers, need a little bit of professional guidance (that’s you!) to help them learn how to look after their natural lashes. Share everything you know about looking after your eyelashes, and encourage your clients to ask questions.
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Suggesting breaks between extensions: The average lifespan of lash extensions is around six weeks. Encourage your clients to wait until the false eyelashes naturally reach the end of their lifespan before getting a fresh set and taking longer breaks when their natural lashes show signs of needing a little TLC.
- Suggesting lash-strengthening products: Lash-strengthening products can help lashes remain long, strong, and luscious for easier regrowth and compatibility with extensions.
What to Do If You Detect Damage
Help! My client has damaged her natural lashes, and they look terrible…
It sounds like a BELO babe’s nightmare, but we’re here to wake you up.
Try as you might; not all clients will take your natural lash health advice on board. But in the event that a client is experiencing damaged natural lashes, there are plenty of ideas you can offer them to improve the situation and prevent things from getting worse.
Here are some quick solutions for lash techs to follow if you detect damage:
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Switch to lighter extensions: Heavier lash extensions, like Velvet Lashes or Russian Lashes, can put sensitive natural lashes under more strain than usual. By switching to a lighter extension variety, such as Classic Lashes or Hybrid Lashes, you can reduce the chances of damage and give the lashes time to recover.
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Create a recovery plan: Natural lashes are as unique to individuals as their fingerprints! Creating a personalised recovery plan for your client’s damaged natural lashes is a great way to expand your service offerings and add more value to their experience.
- Monitoring progress regularly: Encouraging clients to take photos and make notes of their natural lash growth while in recovery can help both of you detect damage as it arises and stop the situation before it spirals.
Defy Damaged Lashes With The Right Products And Techniques
Knowing how to maintain natural lash health is one of the many important skills of a professional lash tech. By understanding how to assess lash health and provide tailored solutions, every BELO babe can ensure long-term satisfaction and maintain the integrity of their client’s natural lashes.
Damaged natural lashes happen, but that doesn’t have to be where their story ends!
Keep your client’s lashes happy and healthy by promoting lash health education, implementing preventative techniques, and using products you trust to get the job done well!