Maybe you weren’t first in line for long, voluminous lashes. That can lead you to endless trips to the lash salon or frustrating hours spent trying to apply strip lashes at home. It can also lead you down the internet rabbit hole of ingredients that will help your natural lashes grow.
Here to set the record straight and help you understand what works and what’s just plain hype is the Lashify® team. We’ll talk about how your lashes grow and how biotin can help support lash growth.
We’ll also fill you in on why salon lash fills might not be the best option for growing natural lashes and why the Lashify DIY Lash Extension system is a safer and natural-lash-friendly way to get longer, thicker lashes.
Understanding Eyelash Growth
Your lashes grow in four distinct phases, just like the hair on your head. They are anagen, catagen, telogen, and exogen.
Anagen
The anagen phase of lash growth is when your natural lashes grow longer and thicker on their own. Almost half of your natural lashes are in this phase at any given time.
Catagen
The next phase of eyelash growth is the catagen phase. This is the transitional phase of lash growth. During this phase, your lashes stop growing, and the follicles that hold them in place shrink, so they stay intact.
Telogen
While your lashes are hanging out in the telogen phase (also known as the rest phase), a new lash is beginning to form in the root or bulb of the follicle underneath it. Most lashes are in the telogen phase, with new growth starting to emerge beneath them.
Exogen
The exogen phase is the period when the hair follicle widens and allows the old lash to fall out and make room for the new lash. The entire lash life cycle can last anywhere from 4-11 weeks, with each lash on its own specific cycle.
Even though it seems like some people won the lash lottery and have long, incredibly full lashes, the average lash length is around 10mm, and most lashes are within a millimeter of that length.
What Causes Your Lashes To Stop Growing
Medical conditions, like alopecia, could cause your lashes to stop growing completely, but most of the time, your lashes will continue to grow. They may just appear thinner or shorter than they once did. There are several reasons why this can happen.
- A history of eye infections. Eye infections that affect the skin around your lash line (called blepharitis) can cause your lashes to fall out prematurely, but they will begin to regrow once the infection has healed.
- Cosmetic ingredient allergies. Some ingredients in mascara, eyeliner, or even certain skin cleansers and moisturizers may cause your lashes to fall out if you have an allergy. Leaving your makeup on overnight can also cause lashes to become brittle and break before they reach the exogen phase.
- Improper lash extension care. Pulling off your lash extensions or using adhesives that contain harsh chemicals can damage your natural lashes and cause them to come off right along with the extension.
Thankfully, the Lashify system was designed to give you the look of long, full lashes while supporting the healthy growth of your own natural lashes.
Can You Make Your Natural Lashes Longer?
Increasing the length of your natural lashes is possible, but some of the methods available have risky side effects that might make you blink.
Lash Serum
Special serums that increase the length of your lashes became popular when it was discovered that a certain eye medication had a side effect of lash growth. The problem with these formulas is that they carry side effects, like darkening of the whites of the eyes and darkening of the skin around the lash line.
Not to mention, the serums that work are usually only available from a medical professional and aren’t necessarily budget-friendly.
Biotin
A popular supplement for both nail and hair growth, biotin is an effective way to support your natural lashes. Biotin is a B vitamin (vitamin B7) that is naturally found in food like eggs, bananas, and some nuts.
People who have a biotin deficiency often discover it because they begin to lose hair prematurely and because they develop brittle nails. Taking biotin as a supplement can help you avoid a biotin deficiency, but you can also use biotin topically to support hair follicles that grow your lashes.
Biotin won’t miraculously make your natural lashes grow 5 millimeters longer than they naturally grow, but it will help them grow properly and stay healthy, so they don’t fall out prematurely.
Lavandula
A natural, plant-based oil, lavandula helps support the hair growth cycle and has antimicrobial properties, which can help protect the extremely thin, delicate skin around the lash line.
Used in combination with biotin, lavandula supports healthy lash growth and can give your natural lashes the help they need to thrive.
Won’t Lash Extensions Ruin My Natural Lashes?
Short answer, no.
If you’ve had a bad experience with salon lashes, we get it. We weren’t happy with the way they left our natural lashes feeling brittle and sparse, so we developed the Lashify DIY Lash Extension system to give you the lashes you love while supporting the healthy growth of your own natural lashes.
How do we do it? Glad you asked. Unlike salon lashes, our entire system was designed with your natural lashes in mind.
Give It Up for Biotin and Lavandula
Salon lash extensions use glues and adhesives that can contain drying ingredients that make your natural lashes brittle. It’s why salon lashes classically fall out, taking your natural lashes with them.
The Lashify system uses bonds that are formulated with biotin and lavandula. When you apply our bonds to your natural lashes, you’re literally strengthening them and nourishing them while prepping them to hold on to your Gossamer® lashes.
Flexible Bonds
The number one reason salon lashes cause damage to your natural lashes is that the adhesives used to keep them attached to your natural lashes are stiff. These cause your lashes to become brittle and break more easily than they should.
Lashify bonds are flexible, bending with your lashes for a more natural look and better natural lash safety. Our bonds never fully cure, even though they keep your Gossamer lashes locked down tight.
Even our strongest bond, Bondage® Extra Strength with Charcoflex®, contains ingredients that help it bend and move with your natural lashes to prevent breakage.
Underlash Technology
Most salon lashes (and strip lashes) are applied on top of your natural lashes near your lash line. This method can weigh down your lashes, make them feel heavy, and cause them to break.
Lashify uses underlash technology. Our Gossamer lashes are applied underneath your natural lashes to help them hold on better without damaging your natural lash fibers. The result is a more natural (read: less noticeable) lash line.
Zero Harsh Chemicals
When we designed our bonds, we knew we wanted to be just as purposeful in what we excluded from our bonds as what we included. That’s why you won’t ever find ingredients like cyanoacrylates, latex, or formaldehyde in our bonds. They aren’t safe for your eyes or natural lashes and usually cause your lashes to become brittle.
In fact, users who have damaged lashes from salon lash extensions often find their natural lashes regrowing more healthfully once they begin using our bonds and the Lashify system.
Keeping Your Lashes Safe
Having lash extensions shouldn’t mean giving up hopes of ever having strong natural lashes. At Lashify, it means just the opposite. You can encourage the growth of your natural lashes simply by using the bonds in the Lahisfy system.
In addition, here are some helpful lash-healthy tips.
- Always use Melt Away Remover or another dual-phase, oil-based remover to safely remove your Gossamer lashes. Never pull or peel them off, which can be damaging to your natural lashes.
- Avoid using mascara on your Gossamer lashes. The ingredients in mascara work against the ingredients in your bond, causing your lashes to become brittle and even causing them to break, along with your natural lashes.
- Don’t scrub. When you remove eye makeup, use a cotton round saturated in oil-free makeup remover to gently remove eye makeup. This will help protect your Gossamer lashes and prevent you from scrubbing your lash line, which can cause natural lashes to break.
Be gentle with your Gossamer lashes and your natural lashes and you really can have it all: long, dramatic lash extensions and healthy natural lashes.
Grow Your Lashes the Safe Way
Keeping your natural lashes healthy and supported while wearing eyelash extensions? It’s totally possible with Lashify. Add the length and volume you want without wreaking havoc on your own natural lashes by safely applying DIY lash extensions at home with the Lashify system.
Sources:
8 Random Facts About Your Eyelashes | Good Housekeeping
Why Are My Eyelashes Falling Out? | American Academy of Ophthalmology
