I decided to take the plunge into girldom by acquiring a set of eyelash extensions. “But that’s so 2005!” you’re probably saying. And I’d beg to differ. Actually I did already try them a couple of years ago with a friend’s longtime facialist who only charged $90 for a full set and did the procedure in her living room in Rowland Heights. Sketchy, yes. It turned out that she put the glued bits of lash too close to my lash line or something because my eyeballs stung every time my eyes watered.

You see, my eyes have the tendency to tear up when I laugh, watch a touching commercial, encounter a cute puppy, etc. So every time any of that happened I’d suddenly feel like someone poured Windex in my eyes and then I’d double over in pain. After two months of that misery I swore off extensions.

But then I considered them again for my blogiversary party. I wanted something to make my eyes pop without having to worry about my fake eyelashes becoming unglued caterpillars or my mascara blotching at the corners of my eyes. My longtime facialist Amy Densmore of Allen Pacheco Salon in Santa Monica said she could help as eyelash extensions was a new service she was offering. Since Amy is gentle and a perfectionist to boot, I knew I was in good hands.

The procedure itself is so tedious but Amy loves to do it, applying a single extension to a lash with two tweezers. Shudder! “It’s something for tweekers like me,” she said with glee. It’s definitely something I couldn’t do cuz I don’t have the patience for it. I could barely lie still on her table for two hours. Yes, it takes about two hours for the application of the full set and can take about an hour or more for the refills, depending on how much you need to have done.

Fortunately, you can just fall asleep on the table since the procedure is so delicate, and wake up refreshed and sporting a new set of ultra flirty lashes. I, of course, used this time to catch up with Amy, and tried not to laugh as we always end up cracking each other up. She didn’t fault me for my “waterpalooza,” as she called it, though, as she dabbed away my tears. But at least this served as a good litmus test to see how my watery eyes would react to the glue and the lashes. And, fortunately, this time no stinging! By the time Amy started work on the second eye, I was asleep.

The only discomfort I felt was when she initially put white tape on my lower lid to hold my lower lashes down so that they wouldn’t stick to my top ones. But then I closed my eyes and it was fine. In the end, after two hours I had long luscious lashes. “I’m a girrrl!” I said as I looked in the hand mirror at my new look.

You can’t even see the glue beads! And Amy made sure to separate my lashes so that none of them stuck together. Sooo different from my first experience where I sported clumpy lashes.

If you’ve always wanted to try eyelash extensions, I’d highly recommend getting them done by Amy. She charges $200 for the first full set and $50 and up for refills, which should be done every 3 to 4 weeks. Her prices are low for a salon expert as most salons normally charge $300-$500. Plus she works out of a private room in Pacheco Salon so you can just lie there under a blanky and relax without fear of anyone interrupting or lookie-loos staring at you.

Words of advice:

• Don’t get this done if you’re allergic to glue, i.e. the kind used to get fake nails done.
• Before you go, make sure to remove your eye makeup. It’s no biggie for Amy to do it for you but it’ll at least save you some time on the table.
• Remember to use the bathroom before you commit to lying still on the table for two hours.
• Don’t let water touch your new lashes for 8 hours. And after that don’t splash water on them or stand in the shower with the water nozzle pointed at your face.
• After you wash your face, carefully, dab it dry and DON’T rub your eyes. Ever.
• If you normally wear sleep masks when you go to bed, stop doing that.
• Use oil-free makeup remover and only use a cotton swab dabbed in the solution and gently swipe the area above your lashes. Don’t swab the lashes themselves.
• And contrary to what I’ve heard some of my friends say, you really shouldn’t use mascara if you have eyelash extensions as it’ll just compromise the tiny bond sealing your lashes to the fake lash. Besides doing so is like wearing a padded bra over fake boobs. Overkill, people.

Amy Densmore @ Allen Pacheco Salon
175 Pier Avenue
Santa Monica, California 90405
(310) 581-3696
Hours: Tuesday and Friday 10am-8pm, Wednesday and Thursday 10am-9pm, Saturday 9am-5pm