Foreign Fills: Nightmare-Turned-Dream
Picture this: you awake in the comfort of your bed. The smell of coffee permeates the air around you as you lift your heavy eyelids to see sunlight streaming into the confines of your bedroom. As you lift your arms above your head and stretch out the weariness of the night, you feel ready to start another busy day of lashing clients. A PING alerts you that a client has booked an appointment with you, and as face ID unlocks your phone and the familiar blue light illuminates your face, your stomach drops. It is a foreign fill… dun dun duuuun. If this sounds like a familiar situation for you, don’t worry girl, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s turn this nightmare around and talk about how to tackle those pesky foreign fill appointments!
For most lash artists, foreign fills can be a horrible nightmare that we all dread, but they don’t have to be. The main reason that they can be so unbearable is because of the unexpected. Is the previous work going to be good quality? How will you tell the client if their lashes are unworkable? What if they won’t listen to reason? I am here to help you tackle all of the potential situations that you may encounter with those pesky, dreaded foreign fills.
LASH ASSESSMENT
The first step in tackling a foreign fill is ensuring that you do an in-depth assessment of the client’s lashes. Because you have not worked on this client before, it is vital that you take a look at what you’re working with. Here are some questions you should ask yourself:
Does the client have enough extensions remaining that this qualifies as a fill?
Is the work isolated properly?
Is the work good quality and comparable to your own?
Are the extensions a safe length for the client’s natural lashes?
Are the lashes well cared for and clean?
If your answers are all yes across the board, then you are all good to go to start the fill. If there is a single no, this is where proper communication with the client and education comes into play. It is so so important that regardless of the state of the lashes, you communicate openly and honestly with the client. Even if the work is of excellent quality, by going through each of these questions aloud and explaining to the client what you are seeing, you are both demonstrating that you understand what good quality work looks like and providing the client with an additional comfort element and making them feel that they are in excellent hands.
INFORM THE CLIENT & CREATE A PLAN OF ACTION
Now that you have had the chance to assess the client’s lashes, it is time to create a plan of action & discuss the options going forward with the client. In most cases, there are three main options:
The work is great! Inform the client, ask them if there are any changes they would like to be made, and get to lashing!
The work is of a terrible quality. This would mean that they are completely unworkable.
The work is decent. This would mean that they aren’t great, but they are workable.
Let’s break down each of these situations.
If the work is of a terrible, unworkable quality (ie, the lashes are all stuck together, the lengths are way too long, the lashes are completely gooped together with makeup &/or dead skin) you must inform the client of what you are noticing and thoroughly explain WHY these things are so bad for the lashes. More often than not, when I come across work like this, the client has no idea that their lashes are in such bad shape and are so grateful that I am honest with them. If the lashes are completely unworkable you should recommend that instead of a fill, that you would remove the lashes, and happily rebook them for a new full set at your next availability. I recommend rebooking them for a different day to ensure that you have enough time for a full set and that there is no remover residue left on the lashes that may cause poor retention, even after cleansing. In the rare case that the client refuses the removal and insists that their lashes be filled, I would highly recommend that you have the client sign a form that states that you can not guarantee the quality of their natural lashes due to the damaging extensions, that you can’t guarantee that the work will look like the rest of the work on your social media due to the extensions only being half your work and that they understand all that you have discussed with them of what you have assessed. However, in my experience, 9 times out of 10, the client will choose to respect your professional opinion and will opt for the removal and new full set.
On the other hand, the lashes may not be of excellent quality, meaning that the extensions may be a tad long, dirty, the fans are closed, or other similar instances of workable, but not of the best quality work. A good rule of thumb is if there are visible, healthy lashes that can be lashed, the work is likely manageable if the client is persistent. When you come across work like this, it comes down to your discretion and the choice of the client. Always explain everything that you are seeing, and why the work isn’t quite up to your standard. You could say: “So after looking through your lashes I am noticing that they are not quite up to my standards for BLANK reasons, this is not what I typically do for my client because of BLANK reasons. Because of this, I would recommend that we do a removal and book you in for a new full set, however, if that is not doable for you, I am happy to fill them to the best of my abilities, so long as you understand that the result won’t look exactly like the rest of my work as it will only be about 50% of my work. What would you prefer?” You may choose to also have workable cases sign a form similar to what I mentioned above, however that is absolutely up to you and what works best for you and your business.
GET TO WORK
Now that you and the client have come up with a plan of action for them and their lashes, it is time to get to work! For workable lashes, I often remove any fans or extensions that aren’t up to my standards, or if they have poor placement on the natural lash. Otherwise, complete the fill as normal.
EDUCATE & REBOOK
Many lash artists view foreign fills as a dreaded experience when in reality, they can be an excellent opportunity to educate, demonstrate your skill & knowledge, and gain a new lifelong client! Clients truly appreciate candor and honesty when it comes to their lashes. By explaining everything that you are seeing from their previous lash tech’s work, you are demonstrating the knowledge that you have, but beyond that, you are also showing that you truly care about the client and their lashes and are not just there to make easy money. Share your knowledge with them every step of the way. Why do you use the products that you use? Why do you follow the steps that you do? Why have you taken the courses that you have taken? Why do you value your work? Oftentimes clients get their lashes filled, but have no idea what is going on while their eyes are closed. You will note that when you explain the steps of your lashing process that they will be impressed by the most basic aspects of the appointment simply because it has never been described to them before. By educating them at the first appointment you will build a bond and gain a lifetime client. So get to lashing those no-longer-dreaded foreign fills, and get ready to rebook your new lifelong client!
