The LashBase Guide to Adhesive Care
Lash Adhesives are one of the most important components of running your lash business. If your lash adhesive isn’t at its optimum strength then your client’s lash retention will be poor. If that keeps happening then you will most likely lose business and your reputation as a lash artist could be at risk. Correctly looking after your lash adhesive will truly up your lash game! Your sets will have better retention and you will get the most out of your adhesive bottle each time.
Cleaning
Keeping tabs on cleaning your adhesives is VERY important! Adhesive bottles can be prone to clogging, but a few easy steps will prevent this from happening. If the neck of your adhesive bottle becomes clogged, you will notice it becomes more and more difficult to dispense the adhesive.
We have seen many people try and push something down the nozzle to unclog it... NEVER push something down the nozzle. All this does is push dry adhesive back inside the bottle. This will then end up back in the neck of your bottle the next time you use it and over time it will become impossible to use it, meaning you end up having to throw it away.
It’s very important to never use cotton fibres or products near your adhesive. Cotton fibres can have an exothermic heat reaction with the adhesive! If you apply some adhesive to a cotton pad or cotton bud, you may notice it starts to produce white smoke. This is an exothermic reaction.
If you clean the nozzle of your adhesive with a cotton pad, it’s highly likely some fibres will be left behind. If this happens on a regular basis, it can slowly start to melt the plastic nozzle due to the exothermic reaction and in time, this will weaken the neck of the bottle, causing it snap off.
Using lint-free wipes is the best way to clean your adhesive nozzles! Our eyelash adhesive wipes are the perfect solution. Our Eyelash Adhesive Nozzle wipes are cotton and lint-free, and will not cause a reaction with your adhesive.
How to use
After dispensing your adhesive, use a wipe to wipe around the adhesive nozzle before replacing the lid. Do this every time you dispense your lash adhesive to avoid adhesive build-up.
Note
Do not hold the Eyelash Adhesive Wipes on the wet lash adhesive! Swipe, wipe, or twist. Just keep it moving!
By keeping your nozzle clear and dispensing it in the correct way, you should be able to use it until the very last drop!
Storage
You should always store your glue upright in a cool, dark, and dry space. The key to keeping it fresh is keeping it consistently at a low temp + low humidity. All lash adhesives have an optimal range of environmental conditions in which they work perfectly. Most of the time, and as a rule of thumb, it's at a temperature of between 18°c – 24°c and relative humidity of between 40% - 60%.
Why not invest in our Vacuum Sealed Container or Airtight Container? Store your adhesive in a cool dark place, out of direct sunlight. Our containers help prolong the lifespan of the adhesive as it controls the amount of humidity entering its environment. Also, you should consider how you are storing your adhesive overnight. Avoid leaving it in a conservatory space or the trunk of your car where the temperature is likely to change!
Unopened adhesives can be stored in a fridge but only between temperatures of 2C - 10C. They can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 months from purchase. However, opened adhesive bottles SHOULD NOT be stored in the fridge. Storing your opened lash adhesive in your fridge can let moisture in and degrade the formula quickly.
Lash adhesive is contained in a specially designed material to keep the glue fresh for a long time. You should NEVER transfer glue contents to any other ordinary plastic or glass container! Do not store with ANY other products (primers, cleansers, etc) as they often contain ingredients that can polymerize the lash adhesive. Just remember that lash adhesive does not have friends (except for the lashes!)
Remember
Rotate your adhesive stock! An easy way to remember this is FIFO (First In, First Out!)
A good habit to get into is labelling the date on your adhesives once opened. This will help you know which stock needs to be replaced!
Shake Your Adhesive
You always need to vigorously shake your adhesive before use. Otherwise, by the time you reach the second half of the bottle, it’ll be no good. If you don't shake your adhesive, the ingredients inside will not mix properly. If the ingredients do not mix properly, the adhesive will not work as it is supposed to. This will then mean poor retention for your client and their lashes!
As a rule of thumb, if your adhesive is properly mixed, it will be pitch black (if you're using a black adhesive). If your adhesive is not properly mixed, it'll be grey, speckled or clear. The reason it is clear/grey is that the carbon black colouring in the adhesive has settled at the bottom. This means that although the adhesive appears "off", it would still work perfectly. The problem arises when you use up all the clear stuff (Cyanoacrylate) and the carbon black colour is all that's left. You will think that you are using normal adhesive, but instead, it'll just be carbon black colouring. Which again will mean zero retention.
How to shake your adhesive
Use a lash adhesive shaker for 3 seconds.
Shake your adhesive VIGOROUSLY for 30 seconds to 1 minute each time you use it. You really do need to give it a good mix. This goes for ALL lash adhesives.
Remember
We have our very own adhesive shakers if you don’t want to do this by hand!
We hope this guide helps you get the most out of your lash adhesives! As always if you ever have any questions please get in touch with us over on Instagram @LashBase_UK we are always happy to help.
