How I Grew Back My Lashes

One coat of Maybelline Colossal Big Shot Mascara on lashes. Burberry Liquid Lip Velvet Military Red on lips

Remember my post- lash extensions saga? let me recap in case you missed it. Around November last year, I went in for my very first lash extensions at a lash bar here in Hawaii. The stylist did a fairly decent job plus I enjoyed the idea of not having to bother with mascara or even eye makeup because the lashes say it all. So I went back the following month because I wanted to try a more dramatic effect in time for the holidays. Then the horror of horrors unfolded. A week into it, my natural lashes which were attached to the faux ones started to fall at an abnormally faster rate almost to the point of looking like a lash-less alien! Don't laugh because I hated it! I hoarded fake lashes: wispies, demi, glam, natural, singles and anything in between to "camouflage" my dilemma: weak and deteriorated lashes, damaged is an understatement. I swear I am not doing any kind of lash extensions anymore, it may have worked for some but definitely not to me. And I tell you why! Even if it's in the technique, product used or skill of the stylist, remember that it's the constant tension or "weight" that is being added to your lashes which will eventually result to weakening. Then the pattern becomes addicting, refill every three weeks, which isn't cheap to begin with. But then came neuBrow, a brow enhancing serum I featured back in December. While it is technically a brow product (which by the way helped with a millimeter-size sparseness on my left eyebrow), I was stoked to try it to rejuvenate my lashes. I am glad I did!

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I know what you're thinking, why am I using a brow serum for my lashes? why not, they're both hairs! And if you pay attention to ingredients, they don't differ that much. I have underlined the similarities.

neuBrow ($100): Water, Rhizobian Gum, Sodium Hyaluronate, Keratin, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Butylene Glycol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Biotin, Panthenol, Pantethine, Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans, Allantoin, Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Sea Water, Octapeptide-2, Copper Tripeptide-1, Alcohol denat., Isopropyl Cloprostenate, Polypeptide-23, Glycerin, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Fruit Extract, Malus Domestica Fruit Cell Culture Extract, Xanthan Gum, Lecithin, Backhousia Citriodora Leaf Oil, Styrene/Acrylates/Ammonium Methacrylate Copolymer, PVP, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Sorbic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide.

neuLash ($150): Water, Rhizobian Gum, Sodium Hyaluronate, Butylene Glycol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Biotin, Panthenol, Pantethine, Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans, Allantoin, Cucurbita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Sea Water, Octapeptide-2, Copper Tripeptide-1, Alcohol denat., Isopropyl Cloprostenate, Polypeptide-23, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Glycerin, Phosphatidylcholine, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Sorbic Acid.

Aside from the $50 difference, the whole point in lash rejuvenation is nourishment. Both have sodium hyaluronate which is excellent for retaining hydration which in turn helps the hair, along with other vitamins as listed, nourished. But did you notice that neuBrow has keratin which is important in hair cohesion and strength? long story short and after 2.5 months of patience (I use it nightly by applying along the lash line as you would with eyeliner), my lashes although not as full yet, are back in action. They're definitely longer and healthier than ever, even my bottom lashes grew longer. Let me tell you, I have never been complimented on having full lashes my whole life until now. And to top it all, I have very few lash fallouts these days. I just purchased a tube!

But that's not the only thing I have done. I have also stopped using lash curler (again the constant tension or bending makes lashes weak). And last but not least, I only use oil-based makeup remover when removing mascara. TLC. Tender Lash Care.

Bonus tip is my go-to mascara: Maybelline Colossal Big Shot, it's one-coat wonderland! Give it 2 weeks to work (most mascaras require a "cocoon" period) and you will love it. It does not smudge nor weigh down my lashes. The best drugstore brand I have tried to date.