Hi! I bet you thought I was a three and done kind of gal, didn't you? I was doing so well with my weekly blogging and was actually seeing new clients because of it. So what happened? I certainly didn't run out of things to say. Nope, instead life got in the way of a really good plan. As I chastised myself for letting this ball drop after getting the great advice to blog in the first place, I decided I was going to give a little shout out to Megan who gave me said advice. Then I decided I was going to make my whole post about some of my favourite things because who doesn't like discovering new things? I say it all the time, one of the things I love most about doing eyelashes is that I get to spend a decent amount of time with each client and sometimes we spend that time chatting and I learn about amazing, cool things, people and places. Here are just a few. The Local Space Honestly, I don't remember how I found this store in Langley, but it is awesome! They support local businesses by carrying only local products: clothing, cosmetics, accessories, jewelry, bath & body, pet gear and the list goes on. I once saw their outdoor chalkboard sign say that if Jillian Harris likes it they probably carry it. I haven't followed Jillian Harris long enough to know how accurate that statement is, but I believe it. Finding the store meant I also found the owner Megan who has a "side gig" helping other businesses with their marketing, websites, etc. It was her course on SEOs where I learned about the importance of blogging and she cleaned up my website for all you lovely folks. If you're looking for some help with your business, check her out for sure, and if you like statement Ts and sweaters head to the store or online. I should add that unless I say otherwise, I don't know any of the people I'm going to rave about. I'm not a paid promoter or anything like that. The Heart Cloverdale The Local Space led me to The Heart Cloverdale. Annie is the owner and she is one of the nicest people I've ever come across while shopping. =) Her store also carries clothing, accessories, mugs & wine glasses (made by her and customizable if you need), bath & body, etc but she does not limit it to local vendors only. It's a very cute little store and I try really hard not to go there too often because, well, it would lead to a few problems with the bank account. Check her out for teacher gifts in particular right now. The Fifty Fifty Workshop This home based business is my most recent, most favourite find. They make these adorable concrete bowls/planters, as well as larger sizes, earrings, and candles. They donate 50% of their profits to local and global organizations. Imagine my surprise when I found out that one of my daughter's teachers is the warm soul behind this magical business. She is an amazing teacher and obviously an even more amazing human being. Please, please support her and her family with this endeavour. You can find them at Hunni's in Langley, local markets and their website which is linked above. Love! The Perfect Feather Look at that eyeliner! Erin is a permanent makeup artist in Surrey and she is also a wonderful friend. She does eyebrows (microblading and powder), eyeliner, lash lift & tints and teeth whitening. She does my lash lifts and I send all my clients interested in brows to her. I pride myself on my work ethic and want all of my clients to be informed about and happy with the service I have provided them. That is exactly what I look for in my own service providers. I would never send my clients somewhere I wouldn't want to go myself. If you're thinking of getting your brows done, Erin's your gal. I'm saving up for that liner myself. Cats!
This is no big secret. I adore animals, especially cats. That's Rosie and Katy in their bed, but I actually have 4 cats. Vienna is 18, Bella is 8 and Rosie & Katy are almost 1. Vienna and Katy can often be found sleeping on my clients while I do their lashes and I find it to be an additional source of calm. I even have a client who isn't the biggest cat fan who allows them on her and I think we're slooooowly converting her to a cat person. =) I have a very hard time walking away from kittens and cats that are up for adoption. I just want to save them all, but my husband and my mom tell me I can't. I've often thought about volunteering at the SPCA but I'm afraid I'll come home with too many unwanted pets. I can't encourage everyone enough to adopt their own rescued animal, be it a cat or rat, dog or guinea pig, bunny or horse. Animals are so good for us. They are intuitive to our needs, they are adorable to stare at and they are family. They create an awareness in our kids too. While we were away on vacation in February, my 5 year old daughter saw some litter in the resort's pond that was home to many fish. She immediately said we couldn't leave that there because a fish would get trapped inside and die. She walked right up to an employee and asked them to get the garbage out. I was so proud of her. So yeah, get a cat! This is just a short, random list of things I love at the moment. I hope you found a new gem that you will also love. If there are any of your own favourite things you want to share, comment or message me because I want to know all about it.
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I guess I should start by saying this is my truth about eyelash extensions. There is an amazing Facebook group for the moms who live in South Surrey and White Rock, which is where I live. I love the group! The women are supportive, informative and gracious. A lot of my clients have come from this group, so the other day when someone posted about wanting to treat themselves to lashes for their birthday (I think it was) I was surprised and disappointed by the number of people who scared her off. Then I realized they were telling their truth about eyelash extensions, and the truly disappointing part is it should never be this way. They were unhappy with how long the lashes lasted, the maintenance involved and what happened to their natural lashes afterwards. I decided I should turn my frustration into my next blog. Let's be clear: eyelash extensions are not permanent. We have 90-160 lashes on each eye, about 60% of which are old/strong enough to hold an extension (you've all heard me talk about your baby lashes), and their average life span is 45 to 90 days. We lose 2-5 eyelashes per day, per eye. If we do the math 60% of 90-160 is 54-96 extensions per eye at a rate of loss of 2-5 lashes a day means extensions could last as few as 10 days and as many as 48 based on natural eyelash shedding alone. This is why most eyelash technicians will tell you to get a fill every 2-3 weeks which is the point at which you should have at least 50% of your extensions remaining. I always hope my clients will get more like 3-4 weeks out of them and some do and some don't because, and here's a key point, everyone is different. This is a best case scenario, by the way. By that I mean, this is for the person who takes immaculate care of the extensions and doesn't lose a single lash due to the loss of lash glue integrity. Some of the maintenance instructions (which I'll get to in a minute) are because the glue is not impervious. One thing that happens is it will degrade with oil that can be from makeup, makeup remover, sunscreen and natural oils in the skin. People with oilier skin will not have lashes last as long as those who tend to have drier skin. People who wear a lot of eye makeup, or wear it daily, will not have lashes last as long as those who wear very little eye makeup, or wear it infrequently. These are the two (there are many more, mostly client specific) main reasons lash extensions fall out and get gappy. Does it happen after 3 days? Well, yes, some will fall out daily but it should by no means be gappy after 3 days. If it is, you should be contacting your lash tech who can troubleshoot what might be happening. Does this mean every time you get lashes they will be gappy after 3 days? Absolutely not, unless you have very few lashes to begin with, and they cycle quickly and/or they are not properly cared for. After 2+ years of applying lash extensions, and 10 years (on and off) of having my own I can tell you that I can never predict how long lashes will last, but for most people they will still look good for at least 2 weeks. Let's talk about that maintenance. I'm not going to lie, it is maintenance, but it's pretty simple and takes a couple of days to get used to it and then it doesn't feel like maintenance at all. Most importantly, don't get them wet for 24 hours. That's it, 24 hours. The glue is still curing on the inside so if they are exposed to excessive water in those first 24 hours, they'll just fall off. I have a long time client who can tell you all about that because she once she forgot this rule and had a shower the same day. That set of lashes didn't do so well. It's music to my ears when clients come in saying they showered that morning because they know they can't that night. After the 24 hours, no problem. I have been to the pool with my kids many a time with my extensions and they do fine. A week at a beach resort where you're in the water for 6 hours a day and wearing sunscreen is different, but regular showering and pool time is fine. Next, don't sleep on your face. If you're lying on your face you're basically going to rub the lashes and you will lose some. I now sleep on a silk pillowcase which reduces the friction on my lashes, my hair and my skin. Now my lashes last longer, my hair doesn't get as frizzy and my face won't get as wrinkly. The next piece of maintenance is washing the lashes. There are a couple of conditions that can result from dirty natural lashes, and those conditions will mean your lashes aren't healthy and will fall out, taking the extensions with them. I send every new client home with a special lash and brow wash that should be used a few times a week. I feel that regular face washing and showering is good enough for the remainder of the days. Again, too much rubbing of them will lead to loss. There are other maintenance instructions for keeping them pretty (brushing them and avoiding high heat), but these are the main three for keeping them on. The last thing I wanted to clear up, which I hear very often, is that lash extensions will damage the natural lash. No, no, no, no, no. If lashes are applied correctly, with the correct weight and length, and cared for properly they will not damage natural lashes. Damage comes from lashes being glued to multiple natural lashes at once, being applied to lashes that are not strong enough to hold an extension, or using an extension that is too long or too heavy even for the adult natural lash. Lashes come in many different lengths (5mm up to 16mm and sometimes longer) and many different thicknesses (0.03mm up to 0.25mm). Some of you may recall that my most feared lashing words are "Can we go longer?" This is why. Chances are that there are longer lashes that I could use, but not safely. I never want to disappoint anyone, but sometimes longer just isn't possible. Find yourself a trained, experienced tech who knows these rules, follow their instructions (even if that means taking a break from lashes, or using a growth serum) and you won't get damaged lashes. Lash extensions are a luxury. It takes proper training, practice and products to create quality sets. It takes time to apply one tiny extension to each tiny natural lash. It is an art and a skill and it honestly breaks my heart when clients come back with a less than normal amount of extensions at their fill appointments. I guess this is why it broke my heart (ok, it didn't break it in half or anything) to have people bad mouth my passion. So please, if you ever have any questions about lash extensions (or lifts or teeth whitening) please ask someone or two or three who provide the service and make a decision based on their information. Thanks for reading. I hope you've learned one or two new things. Please share, post, like or comment and let me know if there's anything you want me to cover in an upcoming blog. P.S. Happy Mother's Day to me! =)
P.P.S. Normally I get my husband to proof read these, but he's asleep now too, so I apologize if there are any grammar or spelling erros. The short answer is nothing, at least not on the surface and not according to most people. For me, they are very similar. We all have lashes and we all have teeth but we aren't always happy with them. Our lashes aren't long enough, thick enough, dark enough or curly enough. Our teeth aren't straight enough, white enough, or tight enough (ie, gaps). Turns out I can fix some of that in both cases. I can't make your teeth straighter but I can definitely make them brighter. Just like with lashing, there are few things I find as satisfying as seeing the before and after of a teeth whitening transformation. Here's an example: This is a photo from Beautiful Bright Smile, which is the system I use to whiten teeth. The process uses a whitening gel which is painted onto your teeth, making it totally custom for every individual, and an LED light to open up the tubules on the teeth, allowing the gel to sink in and do its job. The light is on generally for an hour, making the whole process about 75 minutes in total. The best part? Well, the second best part behind walking out with whiter teeth, is that it doesn't create any sensitivity in your teeth. The system was created by a local former dental professional who did all her research and came up with this product. It is FDA and Health Canada approved, and made in North America, and it works. Most of my friends and clients know this, but I like to try things out before I offer them as a service, and the teeth whitening was no exception. As with most new (to me) regimes and products that promise results, I was skeptical. I thought it would be one of those things that works for other people, but not me. I mean, look at those lovely teeth up there. Those are not my teeth, that's for sure. So I went to my appointment not expecting a whole lot. When my tech handed me the mirror I was pleasantly surprised, to put it mildly. It worked! I don't know that I've ever been happy with my teeth as I've always had crowding, but my copious tea consumption was now also affecting the colour of my teeth as well. That was almost completely gone. Had I gone for my touch up, which I keep telling myself I need to do, they'd be as white as that photo and now I feel so much better about my smile. You may be wondering what's the catch? The catch is it can only work on surface stains. It can't make your teeth any whiter than they are genetically meant to be. The other bit of magic it can't do is make any fillings, or bonding, etc whiter than it was when it was applied to your teeth. The next photo is one of mine. You can see the Beautiful Bright Smile system did its' job everywhere except on the bonding which I circled. This client has since returned to the dentist to have the bonding changed to match her new whiter smile. The next set of real world photos I'm going to show you are what your teeth might look like immediately after the whitening. Some of us (yes, us - my teeth did this too) have bright spots but those bright spots go away the next day after the teeth have completed their whitening, are rehydrated and remineralized. To be clear, I'm not nearly good enough at photo editing to fake those results. The Beautiful Bright Smile system really did that. Aren't they amazing? We guarantee results. We can't guarantee how many shades whiter your teeth will get, but they will get brighter. I would love to now show you the photos I took of my husband, but he asked me not to post them. My husband isn't fond of dentists, but is quite fond of coffee. He went about 5 years without seeing a dentist and had a lot of staining on his teeth. An hour of lying on the couch and his smile was whiter. I also thought I found a cavity in one of his molars which forced him to the dentist so when I do his touch up I will post the before and after photos.
How do you feel when someone smiles at you? How do you feel when you smile? Confident, friendly, happy and relaxed are the first four words that pop into my head. Don't we all deserve that amplified by a brighter, whiter smile? What's holding you back? Message me if you have any questions and for pricing go to Services. Longer lashes and whiter teeth aren't critical for a life of health and happiness, at least not physical health. However, there are mental health benefits to them. When we look better, we feel better. Simple as that. My clients come not just for the prettier eyes and teeth. They come to relax and have a break from the everyday, and some get the added bonus of kitty cuddles. That's health and happiness right there, at least in my opinion. I'll be back next week with another topic. Any requests? Remember to please comment, share, like, tag, whatever floats your boat to get my page out to your friends and followers. Thanks for reading! |
JEn
That's me! I specialize in lash extensions, lash lift&tints and teeth whitening. Follow along to learn some stuff, laugh a bit and hopefully have some fun. ArchivesCategories |