Get the Katniss Everdeen Eyelashes!

Lead makeup artist on the set of The Hunger Games, Ve Neill, used Paperself individual lashes for Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence) for the 'Girl on Fire' look during the closing ceremony of the movie. Effie Trinket (played by an unrecognizable Elizabeth Banks) also wears a variety of interesting and fascinating Paperself full-set of eyelashes. For the Katniss Everdeen look, makeup was fairly subtle, except for when she was being paraded around The Capital and her face was contoured and accentuated by a golden bronzer to make her look sun-kissed.

Effie Trinket had very complex makeup where her face was entirely made pale with powder and dusted with pink eyeshadow. Her lips were concealed around the corners and pink was used in a heart-shape to accentuate her pout. Her eyeshadow was a smattering of various colors, in the picture above it is fuschia applied generously and her brows are concealed and lightened. She has some black eyeliner on top of her eyes and then these Paperself eyelashes are applied (they can be found at Sephora or Amazon below). Even her waterline was lined with pink eyeshadow to continue the look.

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How to apply false eyelashes

Before adding fake lashes

Looking to spruce up your eyes and make your eyeshadow application pop? Well, this is a great solution for daytime or nighttime, just make sure you don't choose lashes that are too dramatic. A good way to tone down any pair of lashes you buy is to cut them in half and only apply one half of the lashes to the outer corner of your eyes. This will drastically reduce strain on your eyes and make them very wearable, and you don't risk looking like a clown (it also reduces your cost because you can turn each eyelash set into two separate sets).

One false eyelash cut in half can be worn on both eyes

First, do your eye makeup application in full, including your eyeliners, a cats eye look is great with false lashes because the winged tip of the eye liner masks the seam of the false lashes. Make sure your hands are washed and disinfected thoroughly before you attempt to place false eyelashes on because you don't want to get any nasty bacterial infection or allergic reaction. 

Then, you want to use a medical-grade lash adhesive such a Duo, I personally prefer the white formula which dries clear because it masks any mistakes you may accidentally make. Place a small dollop on the back of your hand after your thorough cleaning. Then, working relatively quickly before the glue dries (but don't worry, you have a good minute or more), run the backing of the eyelashes through the glue and let them sit for 15-30 seconds while the glue becomes tacky. 

Fake lash application

When placing the lashes, try to get them as close to your natural lash line as possible but do not, under any circumstance, place them over top of your actual lashes. Getting the glue in your eye can be painful and you want to avoid this. If you have a thicker eyeliner application, it makes putting your lashes on much easier because there will not be any skin-colored gaps between your lashes and the fake ones. If you are using a full-sized fake eyelash, you want to begin placing it down from the inner corner of your eye, and then tack on the outer corner, pressing down on the middle only after you have secured the ends. But if you are using my method of cutting your fake eyelashes down, then you will want to start at the outer corner and tack the end on where you feel it will look nicest (probably where your liner starts to wing out).

You can see from the finished picture that using only half of the eyelashes and turning them inside out (so that the shortest hairs go over top of your lid and the longer ones go to the outer portion of the eye) makes for a subtle, beautiful and feminine look. They look like an extension of your own eyelashes. You can finish off the look by adding black mascara to combine your own eyelashes with the fake ones for even more of a seamless look.

Completed half-lash application

Getting Thicker and Fuller Eyelashes

As we age, we inevitably lose a lot of our youthful allure, and along with this comes the thinning out of eyelashes. In a society that covets beauty and eyelashes that touch the sky, most women are highly concerned with keeping the drapes of your eyes beautiful. Eyelash loss can occur from aging because your lashes will shorten and wear at the ends and grow more sparsely, appearing thinner. Some people have allergic reactions or trichotrillomania where they inadvertently pull out their eyelashes because it feels good to them. Allergic reactions can be to various chemicals in the makeup you're wearing (specifically in mascara, eye pencils and eye shadows). One way to avoid makeup reactions is that Sometimes we have to be conscious of the fact that even the creams and cleansers we are using to keep ourselves looking 'young' may be causing hair loss due to allergy. Certain medical conditions, such as the reaction to chemotherapy for cancer treatment, alopecia (systemic hair loss due to autoimmune condition whereby the immune system attacks the host) and hypothyroidism can result in losing your eyelashes and all over the body.

Obviously if you are playing with your eyelashes, try to keep that down to a minimum or do not touch your eyes at all, if it can be helped. If there are products that you suspect are inhibiting the growth of your lashes, stop from using them. Make sure to stop using your mascara after every 3 months, replace it immediately. If you use the same exact one every day, you will probably want to replace it every month even if the bottle is not finished because there are contaminants on the brush and you don't want to be passing bacteria. You never, ever want to share your makeup with anybody under any conditions because eye infections and other diseases are highly transferable this way. If you suspect that you have a serious medical condition and that is why your eyelashes are falling out, make sure you visit your doctor and do a thorough investigation.

How to fake longer lashes

There are some beauty tips and tricks to use if you quickly want your lashes to look longer and fuller. Make sure you use a lengthening mascara with false fibers and volume that will add to what you naturally have. Apply your eye liner very close to the base of your lashes to give the appearance of fullness and to frame your eyes. You could place false lashes on your eyes if you feel comfortable with it, and if not, you can visit a cosmetologist to do it for you.

What can you do aside from wearing false eyelashes on a daily basis or tons of coats of mascara? These options are much more difficult and unnatural-looking than just having naturally beautiful eyelashes. So let's review the options for how to grow our own eyelashes more plentifully.

Natural remedies
First you may want to try applying Vaseline on your lash line while you're sleeping as the petroleum jelly may promote moisture in the environment and increase lash growth. Olive oil and vitamin E oil can have the same effect, just make sure you don't get it into your eye during application. Remember to remove anything you apply to your eyelashes at night during the morning before you apply your makeup. Brushing your lashes with a designated lash comb can improve circulation and promote hair growth, so do this as often as possible if you know that you do not have a rash or skin problem. Improving what you eat  and your overall nutrition can affect your body's vitamin balance which will promote hair growth. A deficiency can lead to thinning of hair all over your body and not just your lashes.