Eyelash Extensions: The Next Big Thing in Beauty

Jan. 21, 2006 — -- Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan have them, and J. Lo's are made of mink. Madonna's cost $10,000 and are studded with diamonds.

Hollywood is hip to the latest trend. But if you blinked you may have missed it: People are getting eyelash extensions.

"With lash extensions, what they are doing is taking a lash and actually bonding it onto your own lash," said Sally Blenkey-Tchassova, a New York beauty salon owner. "It really looks better than mascara. You don't have the clumpy dirty look. It looks really fresh."

Eyelash extensions started in Asia and made their way west. Unlike traditional false eyelashes that only last one day and are applied on a strip, synthetic eyelash extensions are glued to eyelash hairs one by one with tweezers. The process takes two hours and they last about two months. It typically costs between $300 and $500.

"We are surrounded by celebrity culture and so many celebrity-centric magazines, and everyone wants to look like they are walking down a red carpet," Blenkey-Tchassova said. "This is a way for the average person to look really glamorous really fast."

Beauty salons everywhere are catching on. At the Louis Licari Salon in New York City, eyelash extensions are so popular that appointments must be booked up to months in advance.

For those who do not want to pay the high price or wait for an appointment, a good alternative is semi-permanent lashes. They cost about $50, last about 10 days and take just minutes to apply.

"People are really keen on the semi-permanent eyelashes," Blenkey-Tchassova said. They could come in handy "if you're going away for the weekend or if you have a hot date [with] someone who you haven't had a sleepover with before, and they have to see you in the middle of the night, and you don't want to frighten them. So, I mean, you're going to look great."