In the U.K. (like most other places in the world) we were in a strict lockdown for what felt like a lifetime, the beauty industry was closed and that meant many lash artists were out of work. As much as we are all ecstatic that we are able to work again and our diaries are booked up, it’s so important that you don’t fall back into old habits of never saying no to your clients, working until 9pm on a Sunday and having no time for yourself.

I think if the lockdowns taught us anything, then its the importance of being able to enjoy each day and really appreciating your life and your work! Many of us had so much more time to be able to reflect, so due to this, we thought we’d give you 5 policies that you need to implement NOW, that will improve your work life and allow you to have much more time to yourself.

1. Non-refundable booking fee’s

No-shows are the most frustrating right? Siting around, twiddling your thumbs waiting for a client that’s never going to show up. Sometimes clients don’t recognise that by not showing up it’s a massive waste of your time and money, as you could have filled their space with someone else. By asking for a non-refundable booking fee/ deposit (whatever you want to call it) means that you are able to take a small amount of money from them prior to their appointment. It also means that if you do get a no-show then you have at least got some income. 

By introducing a non-refundable booking fee, we can guarantee that your no-show rate will reduce massively. As the customers who are apprehensive, or refuse to pay the deposit are most likely the ones who would have cancelled anyway, because if you are 100% wanting to book in, then what difference does it make if you ask for a small amount towards the cost before? 

You may feel slightly uncomfortable asking for money beforehand, but don’t! Just have a clear policy stated, and make it clear that it comes off their total treatment cost so they’re not actually paying anymore. If you don’t know what to say then here’s an example:

“To secure your booking, all appointments require a non-refundable booking fee. This amount will be discounted off the total cost of your treatment. The remainder of your balance will be paid on the day of your appointment.”

2. 24 hour cancellation policy 

So now we’ve spoke about no-shows, its time to talk about clients that cancel 1 hour before their appointment, leaving you in the same position as now you’ve got the stress of trying to fill their slot or move around your current appointments. Yes, sometimes things do pop up and mean that your clients can’t make it, and in their head there is nothing more they could have done, as they have let you know. However, this doesn’t mean that it is any less frustrating. 

This is why you should put in place a 24 hour cancellation policy. This means, that your client has up to 24 hours before their appointment to cancel. After this time, you are able to keep hold of their booking fee to cover you for any inconveniences caused. If you make all your clients aware of this policy when booking, you may notice that you will start to get more notice if clients can’t make their appointment. But, if your client cancels after this time they simply have no choice but to accept your policy. We understand it’s difficult keeping money from a client for nothing, but you shouldn’t be out of pocket either, so it will ensure that your clients start to give you as much notice as possible if they want to cancel their appointment. 

3. Give yourself normal working hours

Ok, so how many of us have worked until 10pm just to squeeze everyone in, or accepted appointments on a Sunday? For many of us, it’s hard to say no, especially to our loyal clients. However.. it’s so important that you give yourself realistic working hours and stick to them! Lashing isn’t your typical 9-5, but there’s no reason why it cant be. If you put in place certain hours that you work every week, then your clients will start to work themselves around you – rather than you revolving your hours around them! You will notice that your clients will respect your working hours, and people will book in earlier in advance rather than leaving it last minute and trying to get an appointment and presuming you’ll be able to fit them in.

4. DINNER BREAK!

Following on nicely from working normal hours, make sure you give yourself a dinner break, and breaks in-between clients for you to re-hydrate, eat and just relax for a moment. Having clients back-to-back is a blessing, especially after the tough year the beauty industry has had, but it doesn’t mean your health has to forfeit. Giving yourself regular breaks and a lunch hour/30 mins will allow you to re-charge and therefore you’ll feel much more energised through your appointments, your concentration levels will be higher and therefore you’ll be creating better work and enjoying your day more. We are all a bit too familiar with our stomaches rumbling between clients, and instead of concentrating on our work or talking to our clients all we can think about is eating a massive sharer pack of crisps.

5. Early/ late policy

Finally, the last policy we think is super important to implement is an early / late policy. If your clients are early to their appointment it can sometimes throw off your whole day. Clients may think they’re doing you a favour by showing up early, because naturally it is a polite and positive thing to do, but this could mean they are interrupting your dinner break or stopping you from drinking that cuppa you’ve been dying for all morning. The best thing you can do, is let your clients know to turn up on time to their appointment, and if they’re early then they’ll just have to wait outside or in their car. If you happen to be running ahead of appointments and you have extra time, then great! Just ask your client if they can come early, or enjoy the longer gap and enjoy an extra long break. Now, onto clients who turn up late, and think 15 minutes won’t affect anything and they can still come out with the MegaVolume set they booked in for.. (unlikely). Make your clients aware that if they are late, then it will eat into their appointment time, and you are only able to produce a set in the remaining time. 

So that’s the 5! We believe that by implementing these 5 steps into your lash business, then you’ll be running a much smoother, more relaxed – well oiled business, and with plenty of time to yourself.

Written by: Lucy Askham

Brown eyelashes are becoming increasingly popular in 2021, and we’re here for it! 

Not all clients want the dramatic, ultra black lashes that we are so used to providing, some are heading more towards subtle, natural looking lash extensions. If you take a look at your own eyelashes, most of our eyelashes are not jet black. So, by using brown lash extensions on your clients will emphasise their eyes in a more natural looking way than black eyelash extensions will, whilst still gaining the full volume and length that lash extensions provide. 

Brown eyelash extensions are suitable for all clients, but they are an especially great alternative for your clients with a lighter skin tone. Often, your blonde and redhead clients have lighter natural eyelashes and eyebrows to coincide with their fair skin, so by using brown eyelashes is the most natural way to enhance their current lashes. Therefore, the lash extensions will appear much more believable; I mean who doesn’t want lash extensions that look that they could have grown themselves? 

As well as your fair skinned clients, brown eyelashes are also great for your mature clients. As using dark, black lashes can often be too harsh. As you get older, the natural lashes lose their hydration and elasticity and become much thinner, so you will often see your older clients have less and more sparse natural lashes. Adding black eyelash extensions to already sparse eyelashes can make their bare lash line stand out (and no one wants that!).  Therefore, using brown eyelash extensions are an amazing alternative, and will have your clients lashes looking full and natural!

We recommend varying your kit with a mix of black eyelashes, and also brown eyelashes of different tones (light to dark brown) to ensure you are able to provide the most suitable lashes for all of your clients.  

Overall, brown eyelashes are a great addition you really need in your kits! They are perfect for all of your client’s but especially those with fairer skin tones, maturer clients and also anyone that just wants a more natural look. 

So keep your eyes peeled on the Lash Dolls U.K. website as we may have these available very, very soon!

Are you creating beautiful lash sets, but struggling with speed? Are you booking 3-4 hour appointments to complete a Russian lash set? This can be frustrating, especially if you’re having to turn down clients because you just don’t have the time. We’re not recommending you rush your sets, because when you rush – that is when mistakes are made! But, speeding up your lash application can be done through lighting, organisation, timing and knowing your environment.

Of course, with practise you will naturally speed up during appointments, but we all start somewhere and sometimes we take a little too long. It’s not ideal for your clients to be laid for hours, and not good for your backs either!

Firstly, your lash room set up.
Make sure you have good lighting! Lighting is a lash artists best friend, not only do you need good lighting to produce the best lash images – (see our blog ‘How to take a good lash pic’ for more tips and tricks) but also, for you to be able to see your clients lashes clearly. If your lighting is dim and yellow, or if you are just using a rooms ‘big’ light – then you won’t be able to see all those tiny lashes on your client, and this will ultimately slow down your application. We highly recommend getting yourself a bright studio light, ideally a LED white light. The ‘Neewer’ lighting (available on Amazon) is a great investment and will make a huge difference.

Organisation.
Let’s talk about your lash trolley… Is it tidy? Do you know where all of your products are? Do you prep your lash trolley before each client? If the answer to any of those questions is no, then listen up!

Before each appointment you should be organising your lash trolley, making sure you have exactly what you need for each client. There is nothing worse than running out of lashes and having to root around your trolley trying to find some more, or realising you haven’t got your primer, all of this takes up valuable time out of the appointment that can be avoided.

Next up, is timing.
It’s very easy to get carried away during your appointments, and lose all sense of timing. But it is essential to keep checking your progress during application. The best way to do this is to get a simple table clock next to the lash bed. You may ask, why don’t I just use my phone? Well, that’s because whenever you go to check the time on your phone, there might be a message you want to reply to, a missed call – all of these things will further distract you from your appointment when you should be focussed on your client and working.

Knowing your environment.
When it comes to your glues, we all know that there are certain humidities and temperatures that work best. If you haven’t already, then make sure you have a thermometer & hygrometer placed next to your lash bed. This is so you are able to monitor any changes, as change in humidity and temperature can affect the drying speed of your lash glues, and will slow down your set.

Alongside these factors, is of course, practise. The more you work, the better you will be at time management. The less errors you will be making, and overall you will be working much quicker than when you started out.

However, there are some client factors that can impact on the length of your appointment. Ensure your client arrives at their appointment with no eye make up on, and clean lashes. Check out our blog (The importance of cleaning lash extensions) to read more on how this can impact your appointments. Also, are you talking to your clients too much, or are they chatting non-stop which is making it difficult for you to concentre? We recommend supplying a hydrating lip mask for your clients who may need one, which will cover their mouths so they won’t be able to talk.

Each of these tips will help you on your way to slowing down your lash appointments, everything takes time so try not to force it. It’s better to learn, and do things correctly rather than rush and make mistakes. Be sure to practise, practise, practise.
We all want to be better at what we do, but success and perfection take time! So don’t beat yourself up if you’re slower now. You’ll get there!

Written By: Lucy Askham

When it comes to selecting the right lash adhesive, one glue isn’t always perfect for everyone. This can be due to experience e.g. the quicker you work the faster drying glue you can use and vice versa; and also, it is down to the environment you work in. 

When it comes to your work environment, room humidity and temperature are extremely important, as the performance of your glues rely on this. Eyelash adhesives rely on moisture in the air to work properly, they need moisture to attach. The main ingredient of all lash glues is cyanoacrylate. This ingredient ensures the lash glue dries quickly and holds the extensions in place for several weeks. However, cyanoacrylate only cures when there is moisture. Simply put, the humidity works as an activator for lash extension glue’s adhesion.

If the room humidity is higher than the ideal level, the cyanoacrylate in your glue will be ‘overly activated’ by too much moisture in the air. This means that the lash adhesive will dry much faster than usual –  lash glue can dry 1-2 times faster than its specified drying speed when the humidity is too high. This will become a massive issue when lashing, as your glue will have cured too quickly. Meaning, your glue droplets will dry up much quicker, this can lead to poor placement, bad attachment and bad retention. 

Opposite to this, too little humidity in the air will slow everything down. If the humidity is lower than the ideal level, the cyanoacrylate in your glue will not have enough water vapour to help it cure. This can cause issues like bad placement, and higher exposure to cyanoacrylate, which could then cause an allergic reaction from the lash glue. If you are unsure on the humidity of your Lash Dolls U.K. glue then these are stated on the product descriptions. 

When it comes to the temperature, this can affect the viscosity of the lash glue. If it’s too cold, the glue gets harder than it should, and will take the glue longer to dry. If it’s too hot, the glue will overheat and become more stringy, meaning your glue will dry much quicker due to the hot temperature. If you are working in a hot temperature, it is important to change your glue every 10 minutes. At Lash Dolls U.K. all of our lash adhesives are recommended to store at around room temperature (21-26C): 

Magicbond & Megabond – Perfect temperature 21-22C

Masterbond – Perfect temperature 22-26C

It is important that you understand your lash glues perfect temperature and humidity before use to guarantee the best retention from your glue. If one of these elements are off, then you’re at risk of your work not being at its full potential. 

When selecting your glue, it is mostly down to personal preference as only you can decide what works best for you. You may work very quickly and have clients back to back, so a quick drying glue is a must! Or maybe you prefer to have a few extra seconds to make adjustments, even though you could work faster. Whatever it is, understanding the differences in the glues drying speeds and how this can be affected by your work environment is key. This is why at Lash Dolls U.K. we have 3 lash adhesives perfect for everyone. 

If you would like to shop our range of lash adhesives, click here.

Written by: Lucy Askham

When creating a set of lash extensions, lash mapping is super important! Outlining your lash lengths and segments on an eye pad before you begin lashing allows you to consider the shape and features of each eye individually, and therefore create the perfect shape to suit your clients. Yes, you are able to do a similar type of lash map for each client, but no one’s eyes are identical so each map may have to be tweaked slightly. 

Why do we lash map?

One of the main benefits of lash mapping is that it helps to maintain symmetry between both eyes. There is nothing worse than perfecting a look on one eye, and then struggling to mirror it on the second eye, it can be really time consuming and frustrating trying to achieve symmetry so eyelash mapping really helps with this. Also, when you lash map, it makes working with layers so much easier, and with everything you want to do planned out in front of you, it cuts down treatment time too.

When choosing the right lash map, it is vital to determine what shape eye your client has. If you use the wrong lash map this may not suit your clients eye shape, and will not show your work to its best potential, and most importantly your client may not be happy with their lashes. There are six main eye shapes that your client may have; round, hooded, monolid, downturned, upturned and almond. It is important to understand these different eye shapes, and what eye shape your clients have so you can map to compliment them. 

How to lash map:

To begin lash mapping, all you need is some eye pads and a pen. If you are new to lash mapping, it’s a great idea to get your client to send you a picture of their eyes, that way you can look at their eye shape beforehand. Once you have decided on the eye shape of your client, you can then choose your lash style. However, always check this with your client as they may have a desired look they want to achieve. 

There are loads of different lash styles:

There’s the natural look – where you are imitating your clients natural lashes, just a mm or 2 longer.

The “Squirrel” where the longer length is just past the pupil, towards the outer corner, and then goes down short again. This produces a natural looking style where the longest lashes are applied under the arch of the eyebrow.

The “Cat” – This look creates the illusion of more feline eyes, where you would use the longest lashes towards the outer corer of the eyes.

Then there’s, “Doll” – Where the longer lengths are in the middle of the lashes, to create the appearance of more large & open eyes. Hence the name “Doll” / “Dolly” eyes. 

At Lash Dolls U.K. our signature lash looks are our “Wispy” lashes. This is why founder Grete created The Ultimate Wispy Lash Maps manual! The manual contains 20 pages of tips and tricks along with 3 different wispy lash looks for you to try, learn and create. 

We have created a step by step guide into lash mapping below, using a “Doll” eye look as an example:

Pro tip * Make sure when lash mapping, you use all lengths for a more natural look.

1. Mark on your client’s lid where their pupil is. Ensure this mark sits closer to the eyebrow so you don’t lose it when cleansing the lashes.

2. Prep your client as normal and put on under-eye pads.

3. Taking the pupil mark (from step 1), mark where your longest lash will go, this will be the middle for the “Doll” eye look – but remember this will vary depending on the style of lash map you are creating.

4. Split the under-eye pad into sections graduating to both inner and outer corners.

5. Isolate a lash within the longest length in the middle. Then take your lash extension (with no adhesive) and measure it against your clients natural lash until you have the most similar length.

6. This then allows you to see what length lash extensions you should be using. We recommend using around one third longer than the clients natural lash. However always consult with your client first, as they may prefer shorter lashes, or longer lashes. But for example, if the natural lash measured 9mm, the longest lash extension you should use would be 12mm. Take the lash extensions (12mm in this example) and measure this, with the application gap, to see if it is the correct length.

7. You now have your middle length for your lash map. Write this number (e.g. 12) in the middle section.

8. Now write your inner corner length,  this could be a 6, 7 or 8 etc..

9. Graduate the lengths in between the inner corner and middle lengths and do the same going back to the outer corners.

10. Repeat on the other eye.

If you would like a more in-depth guide to lash mapping, and would like to learn how to achieve the Lash Dolls U.K. signature wispy lash then you can shop The Ultimate Wispy Lash Maps manual here!

Written by Lucy Askham

Pre-made lashes have a bit of a bad rep, but they’re lifesavers for us all. Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced lash artist, we all need pre-mades. If you have back to back clients and can’t afford to run over, or if you’re just starting out and haven’t mastered the art of volume fan making, then pre-mades are perfect. 

So what are they? Just as the name implies, pre-made lashes are bonded by the base already, this is done by the lash extension supplier in advance. This means when removed from the strip, the lashes are ready made to be placed onto the clients lash. Pre-made fans are either heat bonded, or bonded by a small amount of adhesive – this varies dependant on lash extension manufacturer. At Lash Dolls U.K. all our pre-made lashes are heat bonded, this means they are much lighter and easier to work with than glue bonded pre-made lashes, they are also much less damaging. 

There are many pro’s to using pre-made fans, they are classed as ‘easier to use’ over handmade volume fans, so ideal if you’re a new artist. They allow you to be much quicker when producing sets, which reduces the time your client spends in the chair and also eases the stress of running over appointments. Saving you time and energy; allowing you to book in more clients (as appointments will be shorter) and therefore expand your business.

However, unlike handmade volume lashes, where lash artists are able to select and design their volume fans uniquely per client, pre-mades do not give you that flexibility. A volume fan is several lash extensions joined together at the base, with as many or as few lashes as you desire. But with pre-made lashes, these fans are created for you. Our original Lash Dolls U.K. pre-made volume lashes consist of fans from 3 to 10 lashes glued together at the base (creating your pre-made volume fan) but, we have now launched fans that include up to 20 lashes. These are our new snatched base pre-made collection. So, rather than creating the fans yourself which can be extremely time consuming, you simply select the fan you want, and apply to your clients natural lash. Easy. 

But if you prefer to hand make your fans, and take the time too perfect the technique needed to complete handmade fans in a relatively quick time, then they do provide some perks that pre-mades do not. Handmade fans wrap around the natural lash, allowing retention to be much better. Whereas, with pre-mades their retention time is similar to that of classic lashes. 

If you would like to further improve retention on handmade lashes, or have a better retention when using pre-mades then we recommend our “Megabonder” Retention Maximiser. It will add elasticity to your adhesive bonds and therefore result in better retention. It instantly polymerises the glue, locking in lash fumes, so stinging, irritation and sensitivity will be significantly reduced. Because the lash bonds have been instantly cured, clients can get the lashes wet straight away.

Creating handmade fans takes a lot of practise and talent. You need to get used to working with tiny lashes and forming your fans, and also finding out with method you prefer, do you like pinching, or making fans on a strip.. or both? So don’t be disheartened if this takes time. Using pre-mades takes some stress away, and allows you to create beautiful sets without worrying about creating perfect fans every time. Both pre-made and handmade volume fans can give your clients amazing lashes that you will be proud of, so whichever method you prefer is completely down to personal preference and how you believe you work best. 

See our full range of lashes here and see what you prefer!

Written by Lucy Askham

Whether you’re a new lash artist or a seasoned pro, at some point in your career you’ve probably had a client (be honest, at least one) who has had issues with lash retention. Whether clients turn up for a two-week fill appointment with hardly any lash extensions left or they’re messaging you the day after their salon visit to tell you that “all of their lashes have just fallen off”,  it’s happened to us all.

First of all, take a step back. Is it that you’re having retention issues or is it one client that keeps having the same issue? If it’s just one client, it’s pretty likely that the problem lies with them rather than you. If this is the case, you need to make sure that they’re aware of (and following) proper aftercare advice. However, if you’re having lots of client feedback that their lashes just don’t last then it’s worth investigating this further.

Most common reasons for poor lash retention

There are lots of different reasons for problems with lash retention, these can range from product choices, to issues with application and even the environment. Here, we’ve listed some of the most common reasons that lash artists can struggle with lash retention:

• Not following proper prep – in order for lash extensions to adhere to natural lashes, the natural lashes need to be clean and oil free. It’s important that you make clients aware that they need to invest in a lash shampoo to keep their lashes and extensions clean between appointments, and that you clean and prep the lashes before application. Whether you prefer a lash primer that contains alcohol, or an alcohol-free lash primer, primer removes oils, proteins and product residue from the lashes which can help to improve both application and retention.
• Environment – as a lash artist, it’s up to you to ensure that the humidity and temperature in your lash area is optimum for your glue and other products. Too hot, cold or dry will lead to you experiencing problems with application that could also cause lash retention problems.
• Application process and technique – are you taking the time to make sure each lash has adhered and that your glue has cured correctly? Is your isolation on point? Sometimes rushing an appointment, or not taking proper care in your application can lead to poor retention. Take the time to review your technique, it might be time to refresh your skills or learn some new ones.
• Using the wrong products (or storing the right products incorrectly) – you may be using glue that dries too quickly or slowly for your environment, or lashes that are too heavy, long or thick for your client’s natural lashes. It might be that your glue hasn’t been stored or cleaned correctly and has dried out. It might be that it’s time to purchase a new lash glue, as they do have a shelf life. Take the time to learn which products you should be using (and making sure they’re good quality), how you should be using them and how to store them to maximise their effective use.
• Clients with oily skin – sometimes clients have really oily skin, which can also affect their lashes. If this is the case, and clients are finding it hard to keep lashes on, they may need to try a product on their eyelids that reduces the oil on their lashes.
• Masks – new salon regulations means that all clients need to wear masks when they’re in the chair. The hot air and humidity caused by clients breathing into a mask can be a problem, so taping it down at the top is one way of dealing with this.
• Medical issues – medication, hormones, stress and some medical conditions can affect people in lots of different ways. This includes their lashes! If you really can’t get to the bottom of the issue, it might be worth having a chat with your client about any changes to their health.
• Clients not following aftercare advice – if it’s the same client every time, or you can see that aftercare advice isn’t being followed, take the time to remind them. They may have forgotten, or not realised that something they’re doing is causing their retention issues. Remind them every time they get their lashes done, even if they’ve been coming to you for years.

Solving issues with lash extension retention

The good news is that all of these lash retention issues can be solved through better education and investing in the right products for your clients – one of our top tips for improving retention is our Megabonder Retention Maximiser. Simply apply at the end of the set to cure lashes from within and improve retention.

Check out our range of premium lash extension products here

When you think of salons such as hairdressers, they always have stock upon stock of shampoos, conditioners, straighteners… everything you would possibly need to achieve the salon look at home. So why can’t our lash salons or home lash studios be the same? 

Retailing within your salon is super important. You are able to educate your clients on the best products that you swear by and also properly teach them how to use them, this then enables your clients to keep their lashes in the best condition possible. Which all in all, makes your job as a lash artist that much easier. 

Lash shampoos are one product that is a necessity for every client. As a lash artist you should be encouraging your clients to clean their lashes and educating them as to how and why. If you would like some guidance on the importance of cleaning your lashes and how to speak to your clients about this, please see our other Lash Dolls U.K. blog post (The Importance of Cleaning your Lashes). However, retailing products isn’t just about educating. It’s about earning you extra money. 

Buying products suitable for retail in bulk quantities at a cheaper price enables you to add on extra money to then sell them individually. For example, Lash Dolls U.K. “Squeaky Clean” Lash Shampoo mini 60ml is £11.99 to buy individually, or you can buy 10 for £99.99, which gives you a saving of almost £20. The RRP for lash shampoos is around £12-15. Do your research, see how much products such as lash shampoos are selling for and decide your price. It is so much easier for your clients to buy there products from you after their appointments, rather than searching online and paying delivery fees!

Small extras like retailing products can make a huge difference to your earnings! Just think how easy it is to add on a lash shampoo for each new client. Or even producing fun gift sets that include shampoos and brushes, all in a make up bag! It is completely up to you what you decide to sell in your salon, how you sell them, and at what price. This varies for everyone as we each have different client bases. 

This is why at Lash Dolls U.K. we offer a huge range of products that are suitable for retailing. We have lash shampoos (of course), Fluffy Brow styling creams for those clients who obsess over their eyebrows,  handheld mirrors, make up bags, and more!!

See our full range of retail products here. 

There is no reason why we should not all be retailing products in our salons, it is an incredibly simple and easy additional income that you should all be receiving. There is no set price that you have to sell your retail products for.  Just remember, buy in bulk – save money – increase individual price – earn a profit. 

Easy. 

Written By: Lucy Askham

With so many people offering training, it’s tempting to go for the cheapest and quickest courses being offered. And as a beginner, you don’t necessarily know what you want or need. 

In order to become a qualified lash artist you need to enrol in accredited eyelash extension training, and it is so important to begin with Classic eyelash extension training. Some companies provide courses which allow beginners to dive straight into Russian volume training, however we do not recommend this at all! As a beginner you need to learn the core elements of lashing, even if you are not interested in creating Classic sets. Courses are available for complete beginners with no previous training so they are perfect for everyone.

The right classic eyelash extension training will cover you with everything you could possibly need to begin your journey as a lash artist. Here at Lash Dolls U.K. we recommend our Accredited Beginners Classic Lash Extension Course where classic lashes are the core element of the training, along with case studies and other basics you will need to understand. You will also receive a full training kit as well as a course manual. Enrolling in the Classic training is great if you are unsure whether you will like lashing, if you’re not interested in producing Volume sets just yet or don’t want to commit to a 2 day intense training program – like our other beginners accredited course. It is all down to personal preference and how you think you will learn best. 

As previously mentioned we also offer an Intense Accredited Beginners Classic & Volume Lash 2 Day Extension Course to lash artists wanting to break into the industry. It is taught over 2 days and will give you the knowledge, skills and tools that you need to create both Classic and Volume sets. By enrolling in a 2 day course allows you to get a much deeper understanding of lashing and also gives you the time to learn more than one lash style. As this is our intense course, it is key that the students enrolling on this are willing to learn a large amount of information, and not see this as a ‘cop-out’ fast track to learning both styles. 

All of our accredited training courses are completed to the highest standard by Lash Dolls U.K. owner Grete Himberg, who (fun fact) was crowned the 8th best eyelash artist in the WORLD in 2018. At Lash Dolls U.K. we pride ourselves on providing the highest level of training, and want everyone to leave with the best understanding and skills possible, you will be representing Lash Dolls U.K. after all. This is also why we provide every student who is enrolled in our accredited courses with kits and course manuals. We want our students to understand the products they used and how to use them correctly to ensure the best results for their clients. Our students will leave the training feeling fully supported and ready to begin their lash career. 

Following from this, it is so important to do your research before enrolling onto any training courses. The cheapest may not always be the best. Look into what you are being taught and look into the company providing the training. Look at their reviews, their lash work, the trainers, and also at other lash artists who have previously been trained by them. By doing so will provide you with a clearer picture of the level of training you will receive. Not all courses are accredited either, becoming a lash technician isn’t something you can do over night, so don’t see it as a quick fix or something you expect to be a pro at after a 2 hour workshop! So research and the correct level of training is KEY. 

For those of you who already have a basic understand of lashing, or are already qualified. Masterclasses are a great way to expand your knowledge and grow your skills. Masterclasses can be taught on particular lash styles, such as Wispy lashes or a Strip Lash look, or even promoting your businesses e.g. through photography or social media training. They are also great to get to work with other lash artists whose work you admire if they are providing masterclasses. We think it is so important to keep on learning, we can all improve and learn tricks from other lash artists. This business shouldn’t be about competition, it should be about supporting each other, we all have the same passion so why not work together and strive to be the best we can be. 

For more information on the training courses we provide at Lash Dolls U.K. see below:

Lash Dolls U.K. Courses & Workshops 

Written by: Lucy Askham

Increasing your social media following can be crucial in expanding your business and gaining exposure. However, having a huge following doesn’t necessarily mean your work is the ‘best’ or that you will be instantly booked up. It is key to have a localised following, which means your followers are potential clients, by having a large following but from across the country or even internationally can be slightly pointless as you are not gaining any additional work. But, if it is simply exposure you are after, then the geographical location of your followers doesn’t really matter, as long as your posts are getting liked, shared and saved that is key. 

We have broken down our best tips to help increase your instagram following, which can actually be done quite simply. 

 Regular posting and constancy:

Ensure that you are posting regularly and consistently, by posting regularly you are keeping your followers engaged and keep yourself popping up on your followers feeds. If you only post once a month, your engagement will naturally be quite lower as you are not showing up on your followers feeds as often. With each post you should be tagging the products you have used, and also the brands. This will mean the brands you have tagged will be able to see your content, so if you are starting to post more often then these brands may start to recognise your Instagram handle and could lead to you being shared by the same brands you are using, giving you even more exposure!! Here at Lash Dolls U.K. we look through our tagged photos everyday and look out for amazing sets of lashes which have been created using our products, we love to see it! However, make sure you stay consistent. There is no point posting 5 times every day for 1 month, then not again for 6 months. So keep posting at a rate you feel like you could continue, try posting once a day, or even twice a week, and the more content you build up, then the more you are able to post. 

Quality of content:

The quality of your images and overall feed is extremely important in gaining a larger following. As you want people to be engaged and excited by what you do, so much so that they will be following you and reacting to your page. It is key to produce clear, high quality images that match your feed and flow cohesively with one another. You can download Instagram planners to help you arrange your content, these apps allow you to upload your photos and rearrange them to see what they would look like on your feed before committing to uploading. Please see our blog article ‘How to take a good lash pic’ for help on how to produce the best quality, and successful images.

Hashtags: 

Some people love hashtags, others hate them! But the truth is, when starting out they can be key to getting new eyes on your work. People can now follow hashtags on Instagram so for example if you are including the hash-tag  #russianlashes either in your caption or in the comments (either works fine) then anyone wanting to searching that particular hashtag may end up seeing your work. Following on from this it is important to tag your location on your images, you should tag your city / or salon location and also hashtag it e.g. #sheffieldsalon so any new visitors to the city, or someone who is unaware on where to go – may search this hashtag and find your work! The more hashtags, the more opportunity for exposure. 

Interaction!

Once you have uploaded your images, keeping in touch with your followers is key!! If you get comments, then reply!!! The more interactive you are with your followers, the more personal your page will be. Creating instagram stories can be great for this, you can track your content interaction levels through Instagram insights if you set your page up as a business account. This is a great way to monitor what you are doing, and what may or may not work for you and your followers. This also links back to your regular posting, as the more instagram stories you most – the more likely you are to be pushed to the front of the ‘line’, meaning more of your followers will see your stories first. 

You should also be interacting with other lash artists, beauty pages and brands. It is so important and valuable to support others, support and positivity can go a long way. Commenting on other peoples photos, can then lead to more people visiting your page, and then ideally, following you too. 

That’s all! By following these simple steps we believe will help you gradually build up your Instagram followers and also retain the followers you have, but remember a successful Instagram page doesn’t just rely on its followers.

Written by: Lucy Askham