Beauty and makeup culture have blown up more and more over the years, but we have advanced ever further from the days of winged liners and glowing highlighters. It seems the beauty community is now driven towards a full-face look with none of the effort, which is why trends like eyelash extensions have appeared.

This is what I am here today to talk to you about. Eyelash extensions are a semi-permanent trend to make your makeup routine faster, but at what cost? A high cost. So are they worth it?

My Story

My fascination with eyelash extensions started about four months ago while watching one of my favorite beauty YouTube channels, Thataylaa. She originally got eyelash extensions because lash glue irritated her eyes and for the ease while she was traveling. Watching her journey piqued my interest, but I never thought about getting them until a few girls I knew personally got them.

I began researching boutiques and salons in the Milwaukee area, knowing that I was going to have to pay a pretty penny if a wanted good lashes. However, I was not expecting the price tag to reach over $150 (spoiler - it did). Realizing that I wasn’t going to be able to afford eyelash extensions comfortably, I hopped on Groupon and began to pray.

I found a Groupon for eyelash extensions in my area (East Town Spa) for $89 for the first set, though without the Groupon they were $200. Without too much thought, I got on the phone and called making sure the Groupon wasn’t too good to be true. The Groupon was valid and I booked an appointment to get my new set of eyelashes.A word of advice I would give is to do thorough research into what types of lashes you want and what the salon you are looking into offers. I not only called and asked what style and type (yes there are different styles and types), but looked at the reviews on the Groupon and the salon's Instagram page.The place I went to offered natural and dramatic styles, a few different lengths and had synthetic lashes. Lashes come in different materials, such as mink, synthetic and silk. For me, being cruelty-free, I was glad mine were synthetic.

The Procedure

So let's talk about the procedure. For me, it took about an hour and a half to complete and I fell asleep for part of it (which is completely normal). What happens is each individual lash is adhered to one of your natural lashes. They isolate the lash with a tweezer and stick it on.

Periodically the technicians brush through your lashes, which - let me tell you - is one of the most soothing things ever. After it's all done, when I opened my eyes, it burned a little, but that was the only pain I experienced.

The eyelashes themselves were completely weightless and looked natural (as natural as eyelash extensions can look). For reference, my extensions were 14mm synthetic lashes.

Here are the lashes right after the procedure. The lash technician told me that because of my natural lashes, she recommended a fill after two and a half weeks. The lashes naturally fall out as your eyelashes grow, and a "fill" is just an appointment where lashes are added to fill in the gaps. The fills for me would've cost $75.

For the purpose of trying these babies out, I didn't go back for a fill but kept my lashes on to see how they would affect my natural lashes.

Upkeep

Here are the eyelashes one week later.

For upkeep, I was given a small brush to comb through the lashes to straighten them up. If I was to use mascara, I could only put it on the tips (though I never did). For removing my other makeup, I couldn't use any oil. For washing, I splashed them with water.

The first and second weeks, I noticed lashes falling out every once and a while, but nothing major. It wasn't until the three-week mark, where I started to notice the lashes bothering me and falling out more.

The only irritation I ever felt was on the lashes in the inner corners as they grew longer, but it didn't bug me much. Around the third week a clump of lashes did fall out and a few of my natural lashes came with them.

On the third week, they were patchy and I decided to take them off myself. Now, after doing this myself, I would recommend going back to the salon you got them applied at to remove them as well.

I steamed my face for about 10 minutes and ran olive oil along my lashes to break the adherence. It took a little while and a few of my natural lashes came out, which is the main reason I would suggest having a professional remove them if at all possible. After they were all off, I noticed that my natural lashes were shorter and more sparse than before the extensions.

Overview

So, are they worth it? I would still say yes, with a caveat. If you have the money, I would say go for it. Though if you have thinner lashes, know that the likelihood of your lashes coming out with the extensions may be increased. If you're worried about money, maybe splurge for a special occasion, because they do look very nice in my opinion.

Even though my eyelashes were a little sparse after the extensions I'm going to get another set using the Groupon that also includes fills. I like the look and would recommend them to anyone who has the money or wishes to treat themselves.