Poppin’ Eyes: LVL Lash Treatment vs. Lash Extensions

You’ve seen those pictures and videos. The same eyes, sparsely lashed versus voluminously lashed, can look so very different.

No wonder the lash extension industry is considerable. According to Transparency Market Research, the lash extensions market is projected to grow to USD 2.4 billion by 2031, growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 7.6%.

However, there is an alternative to lash extensions. It is LVL lash treatment. Read on if you want to know how LVL lash treatment and lash extensions compare. Ultimately, this should help you decide which procedure is for you.

LVL Lash Treatment

LVL in LVL lash treatment stands for length, volume, and lift. That, in a nutshell, is what LVL lash treatment promises and offers. Yes, an LVL lash treatment will make your eyelashes look longer, fuller, and perkier.

It does this by first straightening your eyelashes then tinting them. This might sound counterintuitive because, you know, you obviously want eyelashes that curl oh so prettily above your pretty orbs.

However, straightening your eyelashes rather than perming them will give you more of that lifted eyelashes, open-eyed look. Plus, straightening will also make your lashes look longer. In contrast, perming your eyelashes will make them appear shorter.

The Procedure

The following are the steps in an LVL lash treatment. By the way, at least 24 hours before your procedure, you will need to show up at the salon for a patch test. It’s best to check if you have a reaction to any of the components of the procedure.

1. Lash Cleansing

Before anything else, your eyelash treatment technician will cleanse your eyes and eyelashes. This is to strip the eyelashes of any makeup, dirt, oils, and residues that will inhibit the absorption of the serum to be applied in the next step.

2. Lash Straightening

After placing treatment pads under the eyes to protect the lower lashes, the technician will place a curved silicone pad on top of the eyelid. The eyelashes are glued onto this curved eyelid shield to pull the lashes straight from the roots and fix them into place for the succeeding steps.

Next, the technician will apply a straightening serum onto the individual strands of the eyelashes. This serum makes the eyelashes more pliable so they can take on a better shape later on. The straightening serum is allowed to sit on the lashes for 10 to 15 minutes.

Next, the technician will apply a volumizing serum on the eyelashes, going strand by strand again as she did in the preceding step. This time, she will let the serum sit for around seven minutes. During this time, the eyelashes will start taking the shape of the curved shield to which they are bonded.

3. Lash Tinting

After the volumizing serum has done its work and the lashes have become longer, straighter, and perkier, the technician will tint the eyelashes. Darkening the color of the eyelashes will make each strand more visible, enhancing the appearance of length, lift, and volume.

Benefits of LVL Lash Treatment

LVL lash treatment has great benefits to offer:

• Quick Procedure

The whole process takes less than an hour to complete.

• Immediate Results

There is no downtime or a need to wait for the effect to kick in. You will have longer, thicker, and perkier eyelashes immediately after the procedure.

• Painless

The procedure doesn’t hurt at all.

• Long-Lasting Effect

The effects of LVL can last from six to eight weeks.

• Value for Money

You may no longer need lash extensions after LVL lash treatment. Since you will only need to get your lashes done every six to eight weeks, this can save you money.

• Low-Maintenance

Just care for your eyelashes according to your salon’s instructions. You may have to skip using eye makeup for a couple of days. After that, you just need to be careful about applying and cleansing off your makeup. Just don’t tug on your eyelashes, and you should be fine.

Lash Extensions

In lash extensions, silk, mink, or synthetic fibers of varying lengths and curl are hand-glued to individual eyelashes in multiple passes and following a set pattern until the required length and volume have been achieved. For instance, if you opt for the glamorous look, you will need more passes and more extensions than would be warranted by, say, the natural look.

The Procedure

The following are the general steps involved in a lash extension treatment.

1. Eyelash Cleansing

The technician will cleanse makeup, oil, and residue off the eyes and eyelashes.

2. Extension Application

Eye pads will be placed under the eyes to cover the lower lashes and provide a white backdrop for the succeeding extension work. Next, the technician will pick up an individual extension fiber with a tweezer, dip one end in glue, and attach that glued end onto an appropriate lash. She will repeat this for the rest of the eyelashes.

One extension per eyelash should be sufficient for a natural look. However, if one requires fuller eyelashes, the technician will perform one or more additional rounds of extensions as needed.

The Benefits of Lash Extensions

The following are the benefits of lash extensions:

• Highly Customizable

The great thing about lash extensions is that you can set how long and thick you want your eyelashes, and your technician should be able to pull it off. By adjusting the number and placement of lash extensions, one can go from natural to full to glamorous and any iteration in between.

• Semi-Permanent

You can make lash extensions virtually permanent with proper care and regular refills.

• Go Without Mascara and Fake Lashes

You will always be picture-perfect with lash extensions. You won’t need to wear lengthening and volumizing mascara or put on fake eyelashes.

LVL Lash Treatment or Lash Extensions?

If you want the easiest, low-maintenance fix, the best value for your money, and the most natural-looking results, go for LVL lash treatment. This treatment will enhance what you already have, lifting your lashes and making them look longer and fuller, so you don’t need to do much to get an open-eyed gaze.

However, if you want really long and thick eyelashes, the kind that no longer needs any mascara or further enhancements, lash extensions might be better.

AUTHOR BIO

Hillary Kozma is the Owner/Managing Director/Creative Director of Kozma & Kozma Salon. Having built the foundation of her skills with an apprenticeship under a direct protege of Vidal Sassoon, Hillary and her husband opened Glow American Salon in Qatar in 2007 before expanding to Dubai as Kozma & Kozma in 2016. Hillary is hailed by the media as a “pioneer in her field” for introducing new talents, concepts, philosophies, and techniques to the Middle East.