How to get the most out of your Lash Lift
Aftercare tips from the Experts
There’s a reason we love lash lifts for busy women: you get the look of longer, darker, more noticeable lashes without adding another step to your morning routine.
No curling. No extensions to fill. And depending on your natural lashes, you may find yourself reaching for mascara a whole lot less.
A professional lash lift typically lasts about 6–8 weeks, gradually disappearing as your natural lashes grow and shed. And while aftercare can't actually stop that natural growth cycle, there are a few things you can do to keep your lashes healthy, conditioned and looking their best throughout the life of your lift.
If you’ve just had a lash lift, have one coming up, or are wondering whether a lash lift is worth booking, here’s what you actually need to know.
First, What Actually Happens During a Lash Lift?
Think of a lash lift as a semi-permanent reshaping of your natural lashes.
During the treatment, we use professional lifting solutions to temporarily break some of the bonds within the lash hair so that it can be reshaped. The lashes are then neutralized in their new position, setting that lifted shape into the hair.
We typically pair the lift with a lash tint, which darkens lighter lash tips and makes the finished result even more noticeable.
And this is an important distinction when it comes to aftercare:
Once your lash lift has been properly set, getting your lashes wet does not make the curl fall out.
Your lifted lashes keep their new shape until those individual hairs naturally grow out and shed.
So…Can You Get a Lash Lift Wet?
Yes.
You may have heard that you absolutely cannot get a lash lift wet for 24–48 hours after your appointment. That's one of those beauty rules that gets repeated so often that it starts sounding like fact.
In reality, lashes can be washed after a properly completed lift. In some situations, we may even wash them as part of the service.
At Holladay Spa, we may recommend waiting several hours before washing your lashes, but it's not because water will destroy your lift.
There are two much more practical reasons.
First, your lashes need to dry completely before you can really see the finished curl and separation at its best.
Second, we apply nourishing and conditioning ingredients during the treatment. Leaving those on the lashes for a few hours gives them time to sit on the hair and provide their full conditioning benefit before they're washed away.
So you don't need to plan your lash lift around avoiding showers for two days.
You're welcome.
What Actually Determines How Long a Lash Lift Lasts?
This is where lash lifts are a little different from services like lash extensions.
A lash lift doesn't gradually “wash off.”
The treated portion of each lash remains lifted. What changes is which lashes are on your eyelid.
Your natural lashes are constantly growing, resting and shedding. As lifted lashes shed, they're replaced with brand-new lashes that haven't been lifted yet.
Over several weeks, you'll gradually have a mixture of lifted lashes and new, untreated lashes. Eventually enough of the original lashes have shed that it's time for another lift.
That's why most people are ready for another lash lift somewhere around 6–8 weeks, although individual growth cycles vary.
In other words, you aren't really trying to make the chemical lift itself “last longer.”
You're trying to keep the lashes carrying that lift as healthy and beautiful as possible while they're there.
The Most Important Aftercare: Condition Your Lashes
If there's one part of lash-lift aftercare we wish more people paid attention to, it's this.
A lash lift is a chemical treatment performed on hair. And just like chemically treated hair on your head, lashes benefit from good conditioning.
That's where a quality lash-conditioning serum comes in.
Regularly conditioning your lashes can help keep the hair flexible, soft and healthy-looking rather than dry or brittle.
And that matters for more than just today's lift.
Healthy lashes give us a better canvas for your next lash lift, too.
If you're investing in professional lash treatments every 6–8 weeks, good home care is one of the simplest ways to protect the health of the lashes we're working with.
Think of it like skincare after a facial: the professional treatment does the heavy lifting, while good home care helps maintain the condition of what we're treating.
Need lash aftercare? Ask us about the lash-conditioning products we carry at Holladay Spa. We can help you choose something appropriate for keeping your lashes conditioned between appointments.
You Can Wash, Touch and Live Your Life
One of the best things about lash lifts is that they really are low maintenance.
After those first several hours, you can wash your face. You can shower. You can exercise. You can sleep normally.
You don't need to treat your lashes like they're made of glass.
Rubbing or scrubbing your eyes isn't going to magically remove the curl either. Once the lash has been chemically reshaped, the new shape is set.
That said, we still don't recommend aggressively rubbing your eyes—not because we're worried about your lash lift, but because being rough with the eye area can break lashes or prematurely pull them out.
The same applies to makeup removal.
Gentle is better for the health of your natural lashes and the delicate skin around your eyes, whether you have a lash lift or not.
Brush Them When They Need It
After sleeping, washing your face or going about your day, your lashes may occasionally cross over each other or look a little messy.
A clean spoolie fixes that in approximately five seconds.
Just gently brush them back into place.
This doesn't prolong the chemical lift. It simply keeps the lashes separated and looking their best.
We promised low maintenance, remember?
Can You Wear Mascara With a Lash Lift?
Absolutely.
In fact, mascara over a lash lift can look fantastic because your lashes are already curled and separated. You can do double duty with this Grande Lash mascara that is both cosmetic AND lash conditioner in one!
Many clients find they need less mascara after combining a lash lift with a tint, but you certainly aren't prohibited from wearing it.
The bigger consideration is removal.
Waterproof formulas can require more rubbing and stronger cleansers to remove. That doesn't mean they'll flatten your lash lift, but repeatedly pulling and tugging on natural lashes isn't ideal if your goal is keeping them healthy.
A mascara that removes easily is often the simplest option.
Don't Confuse Lash Health With Lash-Lift Longevity
This distinction is important because there's a lot of questionable lash-lift aftercare information floating around online.
Steam doesn't make a properly performed lift fall out.
Sleeping on your lashes doesn't make the chemical process reverse itself.
Washing your face doesn't gradually wash away the curl.
Think about chemically treated hair on your head: once the hair has been permanently reshaped, everyday exposure to water doesn't suddenly return it to its original structure.
A lash lift works on the same basic principle.
What we're really protecting with good aftercare is the condition of the lash itself.
Overprocessed, dry or brittle lashes aren't what we want to work with. Healthy, flexible lashes generally look better and give us a much better starting point when you're ready for your next treatment.
How Often Should You Get a Lash Lift?
For most people, lash lifts are spaced approximately 6–8 weeks apart.
That timing isn't because the old lift has somehow “expired.” We're waiting for enough of your lash population to naturally cycle through so that we're working primarily with fresh growth rather than repeatedly processing the same hairs.
Your esthetician can help determine the right timing based on how quickly your lashes grow and how your previous lift is growing out.
More frequent isn't necessarily better.
Our goal isn't just to give you a great lash lift today. We want you to continue having healthy natural lashes that give us beautiful results treatment after treatment.
The Best Lash-Lift Aftercare Is Surprisingly Simple
Despite some of the complicated rules you may have seen online, taking care of a lash lift really isn't difficult.
Let the nourishing products from your treatment sit for several hours before washing them away.
Keep your lashes conditioned.
Brush them when they need a little straightening out.
And otherwise?
Live your life.
That's one of the reasons lash lifts are such a great option for busy women. You get lashes that look longer, darker and more noticeable without adding a bunch of maintenance to your routine.
Ready to Make Your Morning Routine Even Easier?
Book a Lash Lift & Tint at Holladay Spaand we'll customize the treatment based on your natural lashes and the amount of lift you're looking for.
And because beautiful lash lifts start with healthy lashes, we'll also show you how to care for them at home and help you choose the right lash-conditioning product to keep them soft, flexible and healthy between appointments.
