Lashtastic

My Mom has always been a big supporter of using an eyelash curler. I've tried drugstore brands of curlers over the years and always ended up pinching my lashes or pulling some out in the process. I also often ended up with bent lashes instead of curled ones. Not fun. A few years ago, I even bought a Tweezerman lash curler, thinking it would be the answer, but it didn't really work for me either.

A couple months ago, I got a Sephora gift card for my birthday. I decided to revisit the lash curler situation. I read did a lot of research comparing the Shiseido and the Shu Uemera, which are the two that always seem to come out on top. At Sephora, I almost bought the Shiseido, but then went with the Shu at the last minute. It's the "industry favorite" according to the girl working at Sephora.

Once home, I unpacked it and looked at it. It looked just like the metal Revlon lash curlers that I'd used in the past. I set it in my make-up drawer for the time being, since I already had mascara on, and you're supposed to curl first, then apply mascara. (And, ok, I was a little worried I would just end up hurting myself again.)

So I talked to my Mom about her technique, because she never tears out her eyelashes when she curls them and she never ends up crimping her lashes. She said you can't just squeeze the curler once - you have to squeeze gently about 3-4 times from lash base (but not too close to the roots) to tip for a curl instead of one big bent mess. I have been practicing and I even tried to heat the curler with my hairdryer, as I saw on a tutorial on YouTube. That works great, but don't forget to test it on your arm to make sure it's not piping hot. (Unless you've got a hankering for a trip to the ER.)

Lash curling does add and extra minute or two to my make-up routine - and some mornings I'm so late that I don't even put eye makeup on, let alone curl my lashes. But it's fun to experiment with new tools and when done properly, the curling does add definition to my lashes and makes them appear longer. So I think I've finally overcome my fear of the eyelash curler. It's a breakthrough.