Hi Guys, so there seems to be quite a lot of confusion and conflicting information with regards to lash lifting and aftercare across the brands so i thought id put together some information for you which should help you to understand the process and avoid any problems / over processed lashes.

Firstly, whether we are using a rod or shield we are indeed perming lashes. The process is the same, its just the curl that will differ. As lifting becomes more and more popular, we are seeing an increase in damaged lashes, poor application and a lot of the time clients being blamed for not following aftercare!

Now i know many of you may disagree but technically there is no aftercare to a lash lift or anything a client can do to reverse the process (unless they randomly decide to brush their lashes with vast amounts hydrogen peroxide!!).

The thing is, in our industry we always feel we need to give aftercare advice right? By all means if you want to take extra precaution and advise not getting them wet / no make up for 24-48 hours go for it, it can’t do any harm but it really wont make much difference.

Anyone blaming clients for lashes not taking, bending or frizzing I’m afraid to say pretty much 99% of the time it will be down to application. Its highly unlikely anything your client does once leaving the salon will cause this. Firstly, the main reason for over processed, frazzled lashes is not thoroughly removing all products before finishing. As some of you have been told not to wet lashes for 24 hours I've noticed many are dry wiping products to remove - this will leave a residue on the lashes allowing the product to continue developing - causing over processing. We ensure on accurate development times according to the natural lashes so not to cause any damage, if your dry wiping you may aswell forget timing anything! PLEASE make sure you remove products with WET cotton pads, thoroughly, especially the fixing lotion as this is in fact the stage that can cause most damage if left on too long. Have you ever seen a hairdresser perm someones hair, then not wash it out for 24 hours?

NO!

They not only shampoo, they condition and dry. Does the perm fall out? NO. That is because water will not alter the disulphide bonds in the hairs cortex once they have set via chemical change. I will explain this in more detail further on. So, lets bear this in mind when we are advising clients they can not, under any circumstances wet their lashes for 24 hours! We do it immediately after, we also then apply a conditioner to the lashes, again wetting them.

Secondly, neat accurate application is essential.

You must ensure the lotions do NOT touch the upper half of the natural lashes. Only ever apply to the base. Once your client returns for her next appointment, if your application was good, you should not see any natural lashes in poor condition. Once you re-lift the lashes, you will only be applying to the base again where there is new growth meaning no over processing will take place as previously lifted lashes would have either grown out completely or grown enough so that part of the hair does not come into contact with products again.

Thirdly timing is key. Please check with your manufacturer as all brands will differ slightly. Flirties recommend 10 - 14 minutes depending on how coarse the natural lashes are. 14 is your maximum for those super strong / stubborn lashes. Any longer and you will risk over processing. Too quick and they may not take as well. Always write your development times on your clients record card so you can keep a log of this and note the results.

Right, so lets understand what we are actually doing to the hair structure. Hair is made of protein chains which are held together by physical and chemical bonds. Physical bonds are what we break when styling / washing etc, they are very weak can be broken with water / heat / humidity. As the hair cools or dry’s these bonds are easily reformed, hence why a lovely blow dry will drop in the rain or once you wash your hair again.

Physical bonds are TEMPORARY and have no permanent effect on the hair at all. These type of changes include heat styling, straightening, curling, rollers etc without the use of chemicals. When lifting or perming lashes we are changing the CHEMICAL bonds. Chemical bonds, also known as disulphide bonds are broken through a chemical reaction called reduction. Perming lotion lifts the cuticle to enter the cortex and breaks these disulphide bonds. When disulphide bonds are broken the hair becomes weaker. Perming lotions contain ammonium thioglycolate. This is a compound that can break disulphide bonds by adding hydrogen to each sulphur atom. This will then allow the polypeptide chains to move and slip into their new shape (on your shield / rod).

Once we have allowed these chains to reform in the new shape, the hair then needs to be strengthened to make the results permanent. Neutraliser / fixing lotion then removes these hydrogen atoms via oxidation which forces the disulphide bonds to reform into this new structure. Voila! Lashes lifted - instantly and PERMANENTLY! Water / makeup / oil CAN NOT alter the disulphide bonds or change this new structure. If your lifts aren’t taking or lasting, first check your products.

How long have they been open?
They will weaken over time.
Are you using the correct size shield? was it too large?
Did you process for the right amount of time with both perming and fixing lotion?
Were lashes cleaned before hand?
Is your client on any medication that affects the hair?
Hormone medication?

Lash lifts do not gradually straighten, remember the process is permanent. What you see are new lashes that have not been lifted replacing these as the clients lashes follow their usual growth cycle. Remember times of the year where we have our lash shed will also effect your appointments with this.

Happy lifting :)