Can You Do Eyelash Extensions On Yourself?

This question arises often from clients or novice lash artists who don’t yet have in-depth knowledge and experience in the field.

People tend to think that lashing is very easy. A common misconception is it’s simply taking two tweezers, a set of lashes and glueing them on. The truth is, any professional or good quality lash artist will know the intricacy of lash extensions and how a steady hand, good eye and proper training are crucial for safe, beautiful lashes.

The popularity of “lash yourself” courses are on the rise, and I believe it would be a great time to discuss everything you should think about before applying semi-permanent lashes on yourself.

As far back as 2015, I met some people who were doing self-lash applications. Even then, it seemed crazy to me, and I always asked myself ‘why?’. The only answer I found – saving money. We also found that the procedure itself wouldn’t be a fun or pleasant experience when putting eyelash extensions on yourself, it would also be extremely time-consuming.

First of all, when we work on a client, we separate lashes to attach an extension to one single lash only, avoiding sticking any baby-lashes to it and creating stickies. A person can have between 80 to 150 lashes on one eye and we have to separate each lash one by one.

Imagine doing that on yourself!  You are sitting in front of the mirror, looking at your own eyes, tweezers in hand. it’s extremely difficult to separate with the other hand and it’s unlikely for anyone to possess the dexterity to do so, let alone the eyesight.

Remember all the stability points we teach during the training, for at least three of them you have to have stable hands. If there is no stability in your hand, you are risking stabbing yourself in the eye and causing injury.

You could say that there is an option to stick the lashes up and release them layer by layer and try to stick them this way. Yes, that might help. However, where are all the rules we follow in our work – direction and distance from the lid, wrapping and locking the fan around the natural lash?

You definitely won’t be able to maintain the right distance, which should be 0.2-0.5mm. If you manage to attach a lash on one single lash instead of on a few, you will still not be able to give it the right direction and wrap it.

Secondly, you have to do it with open eyes which will likely lead to chemical burns. Remember what happens with customers who have very rounded eyes, customers after blepharoplasty procedures and customers whose eyes don’t close completely during the procedure.

The end result is red eyes for several days (and their eyes are only opened by a fraction, not fully!).

If you lash yourself with your eyes wide open, the eyelash glue fumes will irritate them constantly, you will cry, blink and increase the risk of stabbing yourself in the eye. 

This makes it nearly impossible to effectively see where you are attaching every single lash or a fan properly. What about overstraining your eyes due to concentration looking in the mirror? That is an unfortunate inevitability.

What about the extensive time this will take you? I value my time so much and cannot waste it. I would rather go to a lash tech, lie down for 2-2.5 hours, listen to an audio book and relax during the treatment, rather than trying to do it myself. Yes, it might save you some cash, however, is it worth the time and health you waste?

How much time will you need to create fans and attach them? Yes, you can prep fans in advance or use pre-made fans, you could even do half of the eye at the time and do the rest in 2-3 days. But is this really worth all the hassle?

I don’t think it’s worth wasting your time. As I already explained, you won’t be able to isolate lashes properly and will end up creating stickies. This will result in thinning your lash line and pulling some lashes out while they grow.

Don’t forget about the styling. Is it possible to do exactly the same styling on both eyes? Do you switch hands when doing the other eye to maintain similar angles? What about layering and using at least 5 different lengths? Mixing the curls and maintaining equal distances on every single lash to avoid creating steps? You could end up looking like a disaster instead of a fashionista. Styling eyes in the right way is a huge part of our work so best to leave it the hands of a professional.

The last element is the legal side. Self-lashing is not covered and not accredited by any insurance company and if anything happens to yourself – you won’t be covered. How will you fair missing out on earnings if you are unable to work because you can’t see properly?

All those rules for eyelash extension application have been created for a reason, to protect clients and ensure everyone is happy and safe. Being innovative is great but imagine a dentist drilling a hole in his own wisdom teeth or pulling it out!

It is just as inappropriate doing your own lashes. Why don’t you just simply refer to a specialist and seek a professional application? Maybe you could make a deal with a fellow artist to do each other’s lashes for free or at a reduced rate?

You not only risking the health of your lashes from the hazard of pulling them and making your lash line shrink. You can also suffer from chemical burns and affect your sight,  but you are also risking physical damage to your eyes, without any insurance coverage.  

Always take all these points into consideration before trying to extend your own lashes.  

Better apply strip lashes and be safe and gorgeous;)

Article Written by our UK Trainer Julija B. You can find here at: lashesbyjuli.co.uk/training/