Most lash lift pics splashed online seem to be on 20-somethings. You’d like to give your lashes a makeover, but you’ve clocked up a few more decades than all the youngsters fluttering their newly lifted lashes, and you’re not sure it’s also a good look for you. Should this trendy beauty procedure be left for spring chickens? What must older women know about lash lifts?
Adults of every age can get a lash lift. The procedure safely and effectively lifts and curls all healthy lashes when done by a trained, experienced lash tech. Results flatter young and older adults. However, lash lifts offer unique benefits and pose specific risks to older women.
Fabulous lashes don’t have an age limit! So don’t be put off getting a lash lift simply because you’re beyond your 20s. Your age shouldn’t be a deciding factor when considering whether to have a lash lift. That said, older women have particular perks and pitfalls with this lash-enhancing procedure.
Keep scrolling to find out whether a lash lift is right for you, even though you’ve been around long enough to know life before selfies!
Should Older Women Get Lash Lifts?
Before proceeding with a lash lift, all pro lash techs assess clients to ensure they’re good candidates for the procedure. Age alone is never a reason we’d advise a client against having a lash lift.
If your lashes are in good condition and you don’t have a skin or eye condition that makes a lash lift risky, long-lasting lifted lashes can be yours!
Lash lifts have special advantages (and a few extra risks) for older women. Let’s weigh up the pros and cons!
Lash Lift Pros For Older Women
There are bonus benefits for everyone old enough to have “natural highlights”! A lash lift is the perfect lash-enhancing pick for older women for these 3 reasons:
- #1: Lash lifts make you look younger
- #2: Lash lifts give lashes a break from damaging beauty routines
- #3: Lash lifts let you wake up with beautiful lashes
#1: Lash Lifts Make You Look Younger
Eyes look brighter, bigger, and more youthful after a lash lift. This is because the procedure lifts the lashes at the root and curls them to open up the eyes.
The gorgeous lash curl also steals attention from lines and wrinkles that might have appeared at the eyes’ corners.
Tip: You can have a lash lift on your lower lashes to maximize the procedure’s age-defying power!
As we age, the muscles that keep our eyebrows up weaken, making our eyelids droop1. We’ve then got what’s called hooded eyes. Saggy eyelid skin can hide lashes and make the eyes look smaller. Lash lifts fight both these effects with their eye-opening, lash-emphasizing magic.
#2: Lash Lifts Give Lashes a Break From Damaging Beauty Routines
Regularly using an eyelash curler and some types of makeup can trigger lash dryness, brittleness, and loss2. Lashes are especially vulnerable to damage when we’re older.
After your lash lift, you can put away your eyelash curler. You might even want to ditch eye makeup, as the lift could already have your lashes looking their best, especially if you’ve had them tinted.
A lash lift & tint enhances lashes in three ways: giving lift, curl, and color (for a mascara look). You can choose how dark to make your tint, from light brown to darkest black. So, you can go subtle (with lashes a similar color to your hair) or high-contrast (think: platinum hair and black lashes).
When you go without eye makeup, you can skip washing it off – and the potential harm this causes. So many people wash their eyes too vigorously when trying to remove makeup, which stresses out the lashes and can speed up the formation of wrinkles around the eyes.
You’ll protect your lashes and delicate eye-area skin by taking a holiday from styling, makeup, and scrubbing. And if you have a lash lift, you’ll likely not miss your lash curler and mascara.
#3: Lash Lifts Let You Wake Up With Beautiful Lashes
I love this most about lash lifts: opening my eyes day after day to lashes that look good to go!
Not having to do anything to your lashes before heading out is so freeing, especially for everyone whose eyes don’t work as well as they once did. Swiping on mascara is surprisingly tricky when you can’t clearly see what you’re doing!
So, lash lifts can take the effort – and stress – out of getting ready in the morning.
Lash Lift Cons For Older Women
There are significant benefits to getting a lash lift in your mature years, but you must be aware of the downsides.
As the years go by, we’re more likely to develop skin and eye conditions that increase the chance of a bad allergic reaction to a lash lift.
Factors that make lash lifts riskier include:
- Age-related eye conditions like cataracts, glaucoma, and chronic dry eyes.3
- Eye surgery.
- Sensitive skin.
If you have a chronic eye condition or recently had eye surgery, chat with your doctor to ensure a lash lift is safe for you.
Suppose you’ve found your skin becoming increasingly reactive as you get older. You’re not alone! The protective outer layer of our skin becomes less effective with age, upping the chance of irritation.4 If you’re anxious about how your body will react to the lash lift products, have a patch test done 48 hours before your procedure to check your tolerance.
Your hair might also start to thin out – on your head and your eyes (your lashes, of course!). Lash lifts might not work well on lashes that are too sparse, so have a pro lash tech check yours out before they’re lifted.
One last thing to know when considering a lash lift is that you should avoid applying oil-based products to your eye area for lasting results. We lose oil glands with the passing years5, making our skin drier, so you might not be keen to give up your rich eye cream. Just know that your lash lift will lose its oomph too soon if you apply oily eye products on the reg.
These additional risks make it crucial to have your lash lift done by a licensed, certified lash pro. Someone trained and experienced in lash lifts will keep you safe while giving you amazing lashes.
How to Do a Lash Lift on Mature Eyes
Natasha from LashBase shows how gorgeous lifted lashes look at every age!
Final Thoughts
Why go as extreme as a facelift when you can have a lash lift for a wide-eyed, fresh-faced look?
Although there are a few extra perks and pitfalls for older women, lash lifts done by pro lash techs safely and successfully boost lashes, whatever your age!
– Asako
References
- Belinda Weber – medically reviewed by Grace Zhang, MD (2022). What To Know About Hooded Eyes. Retrieved from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/hooded-eyes (Accessed on 30 July 2022)
- Meg Walters – medically reviewed by Cynthia Cobb, DNP, APRN, WHNP-BC, FAANP (2021). Everything You Need to Know to Get Healthy, Long Eyelashes. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/health/beauty-skin-care/everything-you-need-to-know-to-get-healthy-long-eyelashes (Accessed on 30 July 2022)
- Cleveland Clinic (2020). Common Age-Related Eye Problems. Retrieved from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/8567-common-age-related-eye-problems (Accessed on 30 July 2022)
- Carolyn L Todd (2018). 11 Things Dermatologists Want You to Know About Sensitive Skin. Retrieved from https://www.self.com/story/sensitive-skin-facts-dermatologists (Accessed on 30 July 2022)
- Jabeen Begum, MD (2021). The Effects of Aging on Skin. Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/beauty/cosmetic-procedures-aging-skin (Accessed on 30 July 2022)