Is Mascara Safe to Wear With Eyelash Extensions?

With the trend of using eyelash extensions booming in the beauty industry, it’s common to see many women flaunting long, voluminous lashes. Unlike our old falsies that need nightly removal, women can enjoy luscious, fluttery lashes 24/7 without the fear of damaging their natural lashes.

Although eyelash extensions are great at adding extra flair to your beautiful eyes, not everyone is game to ditch mascara and other eye products. Many of our lovely ladies believe that wearing mascara adds an essential touch to their make-up and stepping out of home without it makes them feel incomplete.

Before you continue your old habits, it’s important to know if eyelash extensions and mascara work well together. So what are you waiting for? Let’s dive deep into the world of lash extensions! 

Everything You Need to Know About Wearing Mascara With Lash Extensions

Pros of Wearing Mascara With Lash Extensions

Mascara is a popular eye-makeup tool that enhances your natural lashes. Although eyelash extensions offer a flawless look, regular upkeep is essential before you visit your professional eyelash extensions salon for a refill.

We have listed a few temporary benefits of putting mascara on lash extensions:

• Applying mascara makes your lash extensions look thicker, ensuring a bold and bright look.

• A contrasting-colored mascara can alter the color of your extensions.

• If you think your lashes are too fine or have become sparse due to fallout, then adding a splash of mascara can make your lashes appear fuller. A coat or two of mascara is the perfect solution to help you extend the appointment slightly.

• Certain mascaras are rich in peptides, Vitamin E, stem cell complexes, biotin, and keratin that can immensely help in nurturing and growing your natural lashes.

  
  

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Cons of Wearing Mascara With Lash Extensions

Mascara, volume lashes, and hybrid extensions cannot coexist together as they can hurt your lash extensions. To achieve a dramatic look, multiple lash strands are applied to each natural lash in volume lash extensions. 

If you use mascara with volume or hybrid lash extensions, it can lead to the following issues-

1. Using mascara on a volume fan can add extra weight to your new eyelashes, leading them to fall out prematurely. This is because you would be applying mascara on the multiple lashes in the lash fan as opposed to one single lash, giving extra weight.

2. What’s the best part about volume eyelash extensions? They add extra volume! Applying mascara on the volume fan will cause the fan to close, mingling the lashes together in mascara. So eventually the purpose of applying mascara on volume lashes is defeated.  

Now turning to classic eyelash extensions, one extension is attached to one natural eyelash, offering a thickness boost to those sporting decent natural lashes. You can attain a final look similar to what you get when using high-quality mascara.

Those using classic set eyelash extensions are in luck as they can continue using this product. However, you must the risks that come with doing so. 

• Oil is an active ingredient in most mascaras; they contain oils like eucalyptus oil, sesame oil, lanolin, carnauba wax, paraffin, mineral oil, turpentine oil, linseed oil, etc. When you apply mascara, these oils sit with the lash adhesive for prolonged hours, slowly breaking the lash bond with the natural lashes. Weakening of bond equals lash extensions falling out prematurely!

• Generally, mascaras tend to be heavy on natural eyelashes, so they tend to add weight to your full lash extensions. The fragile lash extensions may not be able to bear this extra weight causing them to break, droop down, or lose their shape unless you have opted for lightweight mink lashes.

• Women want to look beautiful but love keeping their beauty secrets a mystery. Mascara makes it more visible that you’ve got eyelash enhancements, making your fake lash extensions appear less natural. 

Type of Mascara to avoid with Lash Extensions

• Waterproof Mascara

Resilient to water, tears, and sweat, waterproof mascara can spell trouble if you opt for lash extensions. Their water-repellent nature makes your lashes dry and brittle. These mascaras are difficult to remove without rigorous rubbing, pulling, or tugging, which can cause lash extensions to fall out prematurely. With lash extensions, you need to steer clear of silicone and Teflon which are active ingredients in waterproof mascara. These will dissolve your lash glue and impact lash retention.

• Fiber Mascara

Although fiber mascara may be an excellent option for natural lashes, they are not recommended for lash extensions. This type of mascara is infused with dry fibers like nylon, silk, or rayon to give your lashes a thick and dense look. These fibers are very difficult to remove, thus harming your extensions and natural lashes, causing a premature fall and that’s why it’s not recommended for lash extensions. 

• Tube Mascara

Tube mascara is a product that uses polymers to coat individual lashes forming tubes. Since the mascara individually wraps around the lashes, it sticks like tar on eyelash extensions, damaging them. Tube mascara is unsafe and thus a big no-no for gorgeous lash extensions.

Types Of Mascara You Can Use on Lash Extensions

Although you may be smitten by a premium plant-based or organic mascara, you need to be sure that they are safe for your eyelash extensions. Water-based mascara is exclusively suitable for false lashes as it is devoid of products such as oils, additives, and artificial waxes that most products on the market contain. Since they prevent the bonding agent in the lash glue from dissolving, water-based mascara is the creme de la creme for lash extensions.

Additionally, the natural pH level of water-based mascaras makes them extremely safe for the delicate skin around the eyes. They don’t take much time to dry and can be removed easily with warm water. 

How To Apply Mascara To Lash Extensions

Although the basic application technique for wearing mascara remains unchanged, you need to be extra careful when it comes to your delicate eyelash extensions. Firstly, avoid the mascara brush that has a harsh grip. For thicker coating on natural lashes, many mascaras spoolies have intricate brush bristles that cling to your lashes. If you happen to use such a brush, the tugging and pulling it produces can harm the eyelash extensions and the natural lashes they’re attached to.

Before you start the application, start with cleaning your face. Using a foaming shampoo, gently wash your lash extensions without exerting any pressure. Next, air dry and gently comb the lashes with a lash comb or disposable spoolie. 

Keep your eyelash extensions safe mascara ready and start from the middle of the eyelashes, avoiding the roots. Then, with an upward motion, move forward from the middle to the tips. Unlike natural lashes, you cannot add more than a coat or two of the mascara with eyelash extensions.