Why your face mask is causing bad lash extension retention.

 ThisFirst off lets talk about why humidity matters when it comes to the lash extension adhesives.
So I did a little science experiment with a Hygrometer aka a "humidity meter". To the left is a photo of 2 hygrometers. The top photo is the meter sitting at room temperature, literally just took it out of the packaging and let it sit there for 10+ minutes. The one at the bottom is after holding it on top of my mask above my nose at eye level and breathing normally for a few minutes. As you can see the humidity level jumped up significantly.

So what does humidity have to do with lash extensions? Well, every brand of glue is different and every type of glue is different. The glue I use specifically is to be used for humidities between 40%-60%
That’s perfect for us in the Daly City area since we have a lot of fog anyway. And our humidity is usually around the 40%-50% indoors. Anything more than 60% can potentially “shock cure” the adhesive or “dry too quick” and anything less will cause the adhesive to cure slower. So again the percentage of the humidity is what determines the best curing rate.

Because with the requirement of masks, all that hot air breath is being redirect towards up to the eye area. If you’ve noticed that some people wearing glasses, their glasses tend to fog up. Just because you’re not wearing glasses and don’t see that fog doesn’t mean it’s not there. For those who have been having retention issues and have been coming to me for years and have just started noticing this retention problem, just keep in mind that this may be the issue: I’ve been using the same adhesive for the past 3 years and have never had this kind of retention problem until now with the requirement of masks. On top of that, the weather has been changing constantly so that will affect it as well.

What to do about it?
Clients: You may need to come in more frequently for fills as you cannot avoid wearing masks when you are out. It is even more unavoidable if you are not working from home and have to wear your mask all day. One way to help prevent this is to try breathing with your nose rather than your mouth. Breathing with your mouth and talking releases more moisture. Breathing with your nose will reduce it and your nose is pointing downwards, redirecting the air downwards. This doesn't entirely prevent it, but it can help.

Lash techs: When working on your client, tape their mask down at the very edge of the mask on to their skin. Attach a piece of tissue to help reduce the amount of moisture from coming up. Avoid talking too much during the appointment. To finish up the appointment, you can use a "super bonder". It is a serum applied at the end of the service at the base of the extensions to cure the lashes quicker. Now, clients can pretty much wet the lashes almost immediately and they don't have to worry about the mask humidity. I have had some clients with retention problems due to the masks and started using a super-bonder, those same clients have reached out telling me that their retention was so much better than previously without the super bonder. But, be careful not to over saturate the product on to the lashes, after all, it is still a type of liquid. 

---