Have you ever seen a mascara ad and been so jealous of the model’s long, thick, luscious lashes that you immediately picked up a tube of the over-priced, neon-packaged wonder that would make your lashes look like hers?

Yeah, me too. So there I sat, inches from my reflection. I whisked the wand over my pale, sparse lashes. Hmm … My lashes were darker, but still pretty sparse. Maybe I just need another coat! Uhh, no. Now it looked like 6 tarantula legs were extending from each of my eyelids.

How do those mascara commercial girls do it!?!? Well, beside the fact that thick lashes generally aren’t the only sign indicating that they won the genetic lottery; they’ve got a little secret. And it’s not the mascara they’re peddling.

Fake eyelashes. And they’re not the only ones. Brides, pageant queens and every red-carpet going actress in Hollywood wear natural-looking fake lashes to enhance their eyes. There are even rumors that a certain up-and-coming male star wears falsies to make his eyes “pop” (cough*highschoolmusical*cough).

The above video is a Kate Moss mascara ad that is getting in trouble for false advertising. Sure… they might be fake, but the “London Look” looks great.

But how do you go about applying fake eyelashes in a way that makes you look more “mascara commercial” and less “RuPaul?”

Until recently, the only affordable fake eyelashes were extremely difficult to master. Sold in strips of shiny black plastic, these false lashes were too long for most human eyelids, too stiff to attach with any ease, too heavy to stay on through an entire evening, and just too … well, fake.

Ladies with lash envy, meet lash clumps. They might not sound glamorous, but lash clumps are the easiest way to get thick, full lashes. Made by a variety of cosmetics companies (many makeup artists swear by shu uemura lashes), lash clumps are knotted clusters of individual lashes that can be applied in different quantities, depending on your desired glamour factor. Best part? Once they’re on, you might not even need mascara!

Subtle sophistication in 6 easy steps

1. Begin with a clean surface by taking off all your makeup.

2. Check the length of your fake lashes. If they’re too long to follow the natural line of your own lashes, trim them down with sharp scissors (BEFORE they’re glued on!).

3. Apply a very thin line of adhesive in the spot where you will place the lashes.

4. Using a toothpick or tweezers, place lash clumps on the outside corners of your upper eyelids.

5. Adjust them with a toothpick or tweezers.

6. Decide whether one lash clump per eye is enough to achieve the model-esque lashes you’re going for. Try not to exceed 2 or 3 per eye.

Tags: makeup

This entry was posted on Monday, February 18th, 2008 at 3:45 pm and is filed under Beauty Articles, Beauty Tutorials. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.