Top reasons lashes lose curl early

You leave the salon with that crisp, lifted look - eyelash extensions sitting perfectly, eyes brighter, face a bit more awake. Then, somewhere between the commute home and the first proper wash, you notice it: curl retention has already started slipping, and the lashes look flatter than they did on the bed. It’s annoying because you didn’t do anything “wrong”, you just lived your life.

Most early curl drop isn’t mysterious. It’s usually a handful of tiny, boring things stacking up: moisture, heat, oils, friction, and a couple of well-meaning habits that quietly sabotage the shape.

The quiet culprits behind early curl loss

Extensions don’t “uncurl” like a ribbon, exactly. The curl is built into the fibre, but what changes is how the fans sit, how the base holds, and how neatly each lash keeps its place. When that alignment gets disrupted, the whole set reads straighter, heavier, messier - even if the lashes are still technically curled.

Think of it less like one big disaster and more like daily micro-wear.

1) Steam and hot water (the curl’s slow leak)

Hot showers, steamy baths, face steaming, saunas - they’re cosy, but they’re relentless. Heat and moisture soften and swell the environment around the bond, and that makes lashes more likely to shift direction or “relax” into a flatter lay.

If you’re a long-shower person, you don’t need to stop washing. You just need to stop marinating your lashes in steam. Keep your face out of the direct stream, finish with a cooler rinse, and pat dry rather than rubbing.

2) Oils: skincare, sunscreen, and “just a bit of balm”

Most people blame makeup, but it’s usually skincare. Cleansing balms, heavy moisturisers, oil-based SPF, rich eye creams - they migrate, especially overnight, and oil is brilliant at breaking down what you want to keep stable.

A common pattern: you apply a lovely dewy SPF right up to the lash line, then wonder why the set feels droopy by day three. Keep oily products slightly lower on the orbital bone, and choose lash-safe, oil-free formulas around the eyes where possible.

3) Sleeping on your face (and waking up with a new lash direction)

You can have flawless aftercare and still lose curl early if your pillow is doing the styling. Side and stomach sleepers press and bend lashes for hours, night after night, until the set starts pointing in odd directions - and “odd directions” reads as “less curl”.

If you wake up with one eye looking more flat than the other, that’s usually your sleeping side telling on you. A silk or satin pillowcase can reduce drag, and a contoured “lash-friendly” sleep mask helps if you can tolerate it.

4) Not cleansing them properly (yes, that can flatten them)

It sounds backwards, but dirty lashes don’t hold shape well. When you don’t cleanse, you get a build-up of skin oils, SPF, makeup traces, and general city dust. That build-up makes lashes clump, fans close, and the whole set looks heavier - which visually drops the curl.

Clean lashes also brush back into place more easily. Use a proper lash cleanser or gentle, extension-safe foam, then dry thoroughly (a cool setting on a clean fan at a distance works well) and brush through.

5) Over-cleansing, aggressive cleansing, or “scrubbing to be safe”

On the flip side, scrubbing is basically friction on repeat. Rough cotton pads, back-and-forth rubbing, digging at the lash line - it can twist fans, stress the bond, and leave lashes sitting wonky. Wonky lashes rarely look lifted.

Aim for light pressure, downward strokes, and fingertip cleansing rather than pad-polishing. If something won’t come off, it’s not a cue to scrub harder - it’s a cue to change the cleanser.

6) Heat styling habits that sit too close to the eye area

Hairdryers on hot, blasting your fringe into place, standing over an oven, leaning into a space heater - it sounds silly until you realise how often your lashes sit in warm air. Extensions don’t melt, but constant heat exposure can contribute to lashes shifting, especially when paired with humidity.

If you dry your face, keep airflow gentle and cool. If you dry your hair, angle the dryer away from your eyes rather than straight down your face.

7) Skipping the brush, or brushing at the wrong time

Brushing isn’t vanity; it’s maintenance. If you never brush, lashes set in whatever direction they dried in - after a shower, after cleanser, after sleep - and that direction isn’t always “curled and tidy”.

But brushing when lashes are wet is where people undo their own work. Wet lashes are heavier and more flexible, so they bend and separate poorly. Dry them first, then spoolie gently from mid-length to tips.

8) The curl choice wasn’t right for your lashes or your lifestyle

Sometimes the curl “fails” because it was never going to look strong for long on your natural lash type. Straighter natural lashes, downward growth patterns, or very fine lashes can make certain curls look like they’ve dropped even when retention is good.

And if you’re very active (gym, swimming, hot yoga), you’re basically living in a curl-challenging environment. In those cases, a tech might tweak the curl type, diameter, or styling so the set reads lifted even after real life happens.

9) Too much weight: long, thick, or overly dense sets

Weight pulls. That’s not a judgement on glam sets - just physics. Longer lengths, thicker fibres, or very dense volume can start out stunning, then look flatter as soon as the lashes pick up moisture and everyday oils.

If you love drama but hate droop, ask for a mapping that keeps lengths lighter at the outer corners or uses a lighter fibre/diameter. You can keep impact without asking your lash line to carry a small curtain.

A quick “spot the reason” guide

What you notice	Most likely cause	Quick fix
One eye flatter than the other	Sleeping side/pillow pressure	Silk pillowcase + brush after drying
Lashes look heavy and stuck together	Build-up (oil/SPF/not cleansing)	Cleanse properly, dry fully, then spoolie
Curl looks fine at fill, drops fast after showers	Steam/hot water	Cooler rinse, avoid direct spray

The small routine that keeps curl looking lifted

You don’t need a 12-step ritual. You need a consistent, gentle one that doesn’t fight the bond or the styling.

• Cleanse daily with an extension-safe cleanser, especially if you wear SPF or makeup.
• Dry fully (pat + cool air if needed), then brush when dry.
• Keep oils and balms away from the lash line; apply eye creams sparingly.
• Reduce steam exposure and avoid rubbing with towels or cotton pads.
• Book fills before the set gets too gappy - “droop” can be a styling illusion when too many lashes have shed.

FAQ:

• Why do my lashes look less curled but still feel attached? Often it’s fan closure, build-up, or lashes drying in a flatter direction after sleep or washing. Clean, dry, then brush; if it persists, your lash artist may need to adjust curl or weight at your next fill.
• Can I use a lash curler on eyelash extensions? It’s not recommended. Mechanical curlers can kink fibres and stress the bond, which makes the set look uneven and can cause breakage.
• Is mascara causing my curl to drop? It can, especially if it’s oil-based, waterproof, or applied heavily. If you use mascara, choose an extension-safe formula and apply only to the tips (if your lash artist approves).
• How soon after my appointment can steam affect them? Even after the adhesive has cured, repeated heat and steam can still disrupt alignment and styling over time. Treat steam as a constant stressor, not just a first-24-hours issue.