Better shelf life: Getting the most from your adhesive

By Genevieve Hickin, courtesy of Lash Inc magazine

There are many ways to prolong the life of your adhesive to ensure you get the most from it and to keep it at its optimal working condition for longer.

The main component in the majority of lash adhesives is ethyl-2-Cyanoacrylate. Cyanoacrylate rapidly sets in the presence of moisture, so it is really important to store eyelash adhesive correctly:

• Store your adhesive in an airtight container with Silica gel.
• Use a sealed container or beauty box and fill with dried rice. Place the bottle of adhesive upright in the container. Rice will absorb any moisture in the air keeping your adhesive well protected.

Adhesives Must Always Be Stored Upright.

If you are a mobile therapist/technician then be sure to keep your adhesive in a container that it will not topple over in... It MUST be kept upright!

Temperature Control

When storing your adhesive, it is important to be aware of your salon environment. Can you control your temperatures and humidity levels? Are there dramatic and frequent changes of temperature in the country that you live in? Have a single place to store your adhesive to protect them from the environment and to avoid accidental spills. Be sure not to place your adhesive on a window sill or in direct sunlight.

Achieve more life from your adhesive whilst working with it

We need to look after our adhesives, as they are so easily blocked, lids get stuck on, air gets trapped within the bottle, or in some cases the adhesive polymerises before we’ve had a chance to use it all. Besides storing our adhesive correctly, we should ensure we keep the nozzles clear and clean from excess adhesive.

In order to keep your adhesive clean be sure to wipe the nozzle after each use. Cyanoacrylate reacts exothermically with natural fibres, so it is important not to wipe adhesives with items such as couch roll or tissues. The best things to use to wipe away any excess adhesive and to clean the nozzle are either a piece of tin foil or a wax strip. Be sure to wipe the nozzle after every use to keep it clean.

You can avoid trapping air within our adhesive bottles by:

• When decanting adhesive hold completely upright to prevent air entering the nozzle.
• Avoid over squeezing or ‘burping’ which will suck air down into the bottle.
• Never shake your adhesive with the lid on. Take the lid off and place a small piece of foil over the nozzle then shake. This prevents stuck lids.
• If you have an air bubble stuck in your nozzle be sure to gently squeeze the excess adhesive out until the air bubble has been released.

Always remember when you first use an adhesive to give it a really good shake for at least 60 seconds (sometimes more is needed with certain adhesives). Then as you refresh your adhesive when working be sure to shake the adhesive again before you decant.

Make sure your adhesive has stopped running and is settled at the base of your bottle and that you have cleaned your nozzle prior to replacing the lid and tightening.

Over time you will get to know the characteristics of your adhesive and how best to work with and store it.

Genevieve Hickin is a working lash artist, the owner of Beauty by Genevieve, and the MD/Organiser of The Lash Social UK Ltd.