How to Grow Beautiful Long Lashes
There’s a million ads promising to give you luscious lashes – except not everyone can commit to the expense of lash-growth serums or extensions. The best option is coaxing our lashes to grow to their healthiest, fullest potential, with a few handy tricks. Much like the hair on our head, it’s a process, but there’s a lot of ways to get there.
Limit the amount of fake lashes you wear:
Many current glues on the market contain formaldehyde, ammonia and other harsh chemicals, which make your lashes dry and brittle, says Emily Lyons of Femme Fatale Lashes. When you do use fake lashes, use a glue like True Glue, which contains biotin, which make your lashes stronger, and chamomile and rosewater which calm the skin around it.
Give your lashes TLC:
Try not to run water directly on your eyes while in the shower, says Lyons. Also, do not rub your eyes vigorously, and use a rich oil to remove your eye makeup (olive oil works amazing and is cheap)! Much of what we do to keep our hair on our head healthy also applies to our brows and lashes. Just as scalp massages are great for our hair growth, massaging our eyelids accelerates lash growth. Gently massage the entire eyelid area, including the lashes, in a circular motion. Not only does it feel great when you have those annoying tension headaches, but the massage stimulates blood flow to the hair, which helps with growth!
MORE: 10 Things No One Ever Tells You About Fake Eyelashes
Eat right:
Something else that is great for your lashes is being healthy, says Lyons. Eating a vitamin rich diet with lots of protein, fruits and veggies, and drinking lots of water is a great way to encourage hair growth, both on your head and on your face! Some supplements, like biotin, can be a huge asset as well.
Careful eye makeup removal:
Too many parties equal can equal too mascara, which equals not properly removing mascara, which equals unhealthy lashes that will clog the follicle leading to pre-mature fall out and even swollen eyelash follicles called Blepharitis, says Marisa Martino, co-founder of New York’s SKINNEY Medspa. Make it a habit to always remove all of your eye makeup before heading to bed. If you leave your mascara on during the night it can cause breakage.
“Use an oil based eye makeup remover pad, I like this one by Almay. Post pad, dampen a wash cloth with warm water to help loosen mascara at the lash line to keep pores unclogged and Blepharitis away!” says Martino.
