17 Products For People With Teeny-Tiny Eyelashes

For many women, mascara is a necessity that we don’t leave the house without applying. It’s as crucial a step in our routine as showering or brushing our teeth. But, just like lashes, not all mascaras are created equal. I have definitely noticed that some mascaras are more effective than others, and here are my faves.

A favorite of both runway and Hollywood makeup artists, Dior Diorshow Lash-Extension Effect Volume Mascara ($28) regularly lands on best mascara lists. Maybe it’s because its XXL brush volumizes your strands while its silica powder formula thickens individual lashes. According to the company, the mascara’s classic formula was renewed this year with microfibers to give the illusion of eyelash extensions.

For a highly volumizing mascara that won’t break the bank, L’Oréal’s original Voluminous Volume Building Mascara ($8) is a solid choice. The clump-resistance formula thickens lashes up to five times fuller than their original state for a soft, feathery effect.

Lancome’s bestselling Définicils High Definition Mascara ($28) is designed to give you long, defined, cleanly separated lashes. Polymers coat each lash from root to tip and the brush is specially designed to hold an exact amount of product for even application.

YSL’s Volume Effet Faux Cils Mascara ($39) is the original false-eyelashes-effect tool, with a nylon fiber brush that coats every lash from root to tip to deepen color and build volume and length. And its new-and-improved formula is now enriched with pro-vitamin B5 to strengthen and protect your flutter.

It doesn’t get more luxurious than this. Formulated with ultrablack pigments, Guerlain Noir G Mascara ($57) coats your fringe in the deepest black shade while lengthening, volumizing, and curling them to take on the look of falsies. It’s just a bonus that the case happens to come with a mirror for easy application and touch-ups — a truly wonderful bonus.

There’s something about that pink and lime green tube that fills a special place in my heart — maybe because it hasn’t changed since I was a kid dreaming of wearing makeup. Maybelline New York Great Lash Big Washable Mascara ($6) is one of the most iconic bestselling mascaras of all time, and for good reason. Even though it costs only fraction of most of the mascaras in this story, it can lengthen, thicken, and condition like the best of them.

When your strands are as small as mine, you need more than just mascara to help them out. Instead of just dressing them up, you need to go to the source of the problem and help them grow. Think of them as muscles — no amount of fur and sequins will make your biceps strong and healthy. When I realized this, I started to look into eyelash serums. So far, the only ones I’ve tried are over-the-counter, and I’m really hoping that Latisse, which you need a prescription to purchase, will be the real game changer. But if you’d rather try the more accessible ones, here are the ones I’ve tried.

If you have brittle, dull lashes, then try RevitaLash Advanced Eyelash Conditioner ($98). The serum uses advanced technology and natural botanicals to turn your lifeless lashes into healthy, shiny, stronger strands.

If you’re on a tight budget but still want enhanced lashes, then Rimmel Lash Accelerator Serum ($9) is your go-to product. For under $10, it does a fine job of conditioning your lashes to promote healthy growth. You can also use it on sparse brows, which is yet another problem area for me.

Using a proprietary blend of organic herb extracts, LashFood Phyto-Medic Eyelash Enhancer ($78) is clinically proven to make your lashes stronger, thicker, and longer in just four to eight weeks. The company’s site boasts a 100 percent success rate for longer and denser lashes.

Peter Thomas Roth’s Lashes to Die For Turbo Nighttime Eyelash Treatment ($85) is a peptide-based serum that targets your lashes’ renewal cycle to help enhance the appearance of fuller, longer lashes. Just swipe onto your lids, go to sleep, and let it do its thing.

And when neither mascara nor lash-growing serums do the trick, there are always extensions and false lashes to fall back on. But just remember: the more you get them done, the more agitated your real lashes will be and the more likely they’ll fall out, so it’s a trade-off. If you want to dabble here and there, though, here are the best products on the market and the best salons across the country.

This Midtown boutique offers a spa-like setting for your eyelash needs. Lash Forever Eyelash Extensions’ menu of services includes the Natural Set (80+ lashes), Lash Forever Set (100+ lashes), and the Red Carpet Diva Set (120+ lashes) in both mink and silk.

Located on posh Robertson Boulevard, Beverly Hills Lashes’ certified lash experts offer an array of services, from faux mink sets to cruelty-free real mink sets and synthetic sets. They also offer lash tinting and lifting, as well as touch-ups.

When choosing eyelash extensions, you can’t get any more high-quality than mink. And if you’d rather skip the salon and try them at home, then try Blink Signature Mink Eyelash Extensions ($15), which are made of 100 percent pure mink fur.

Chicago’s Salon Lashe offers an impressive full set of up to 350 lashes per eye among a wide variety of options. You can also get synthetic sets, blended sets (synthetic and mink), genuine mink sets, and a petite set (60 percent fill).

Artisan Eyelashes in San Francisco offers a range of sets in both silk and mink, from a beginner’s set that only fills the outer corners of your eyes to the full-on Why Not Diva Lash Set for ladies who want a more bold lash look.

If you’d rather just apply your own false lashes than spend an arm and a leg to pay a professional to apply them, then try Shu Uemura Natural Volume False Lashes ($26). These are some of the most realistic-looking falsies on the market.

If you want a faux fringe but don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars, there’s Blossom Brows in Brooklyn, which offers fake-lash applications for just $30. Though they’re not as realistic-looking as mink or silk extensions, they do the trick if you want to just have fuller-looking lashes for a first date. (In my experience, most people can’t tell the difference.)

For the ultimate deal, forgo salons and pricey at-home lashes for e.l.f. Studio Hollywood Eyelashes Kit ($3), which comes with a set of lashes, adhesive, applicator, and lash stand.