"The time saving treatment that made me look amazing but kind of ruined me."

Nicky on Day Two of her eyelash extensions.

Forget everything you’ve heard about eyelash extensions, they are one of the best beauty investments you can ever make. Expensive yet instant Bambi lashes are not something I’d usually recommend – that was, until I tried them.

Now I can’t live without them. But there’s one thing you should know before you hand over any money: they’ll also ruin your life.

Here’s my honest pros and cons to help you determine if you should get them (hint: you totally should).

PROS:

1. You’ll get more compliments than you have in your entire life.

On Day One of my eyelash extensions I received roughly 12 compliments. As a (glowless) pregnant and sleep-deprived mother-of-one this was an enormous boost to my confidence. Sure, it’s incredibly vain, but isn’t that why we do all beauty treatments?

I also feel the need to point out here that I never got asked to school formal. In fact, I once asked a boy, who told me we should go as ‘just friends’. He didn’t even go with anyone else… See? This is why I need external validation.

2. You no longer need makeup.

This of course depends on a few things: the state of your skin and your confidence levels. But as someone who’s become reliant on wearing BB cream / foundation on a daily basis, I found the lashes made me look ‘done’ enough to skip every other shred of makeup. I literally woke up like this:

3. It’s the most painless beauty treatment ever.

It’s a common myth that eyelash extensions are painful to apply. They’re not. Embarrassingly, I fell asleep throughout most of my initial 60-minute appointment. I was mortified when I woke up. I'm just hoping I didn't snore...

4. You can throw away all your mascaras / fake eyelashes.

You can wear mascara (not waterproof) with your eyelash extensions if you wish, but if you have blonde or naturally light lashes the therapist will recommend tinting them pre-appointment. You can go to the beach, swimming, surfing without having to deal with panda eyes or stubborn to remove waterproof mascara EVER AGAIN.

Eyelash extensions will make you look at your mascara wand with disdain from now on, and you will wonder why you thought you ever needed it in the first place.

CONS:

1. It’s bloody expensive.

The clear elephant in the room here is that eyelash extensions are pricey. An initial appointment costs bewteen $100-$200, and I can’t stress enough that you go to a reputable clinic rather than a cheap one. (I go to the Lash Room by Jini Han in Sydney's Double Bay.)

I've worked out I need roughly $50 a month for infills to keep my habit up, so if I cut out coffees and...

2. Your eyelashes will look naked from now on.

This is the part where it ruins your life. For 3-4 weeks you've been complimented on how pretty you look, and then one day (if you don't keep up the infills) they all fall out and your lashes look like naked versions of their former selves. Sad.

3. If you keep replacing them over and over, they damage your real lashes. Maybe

The jury is still out on this one, but I've heard a tonne of anecdotal evidence that long term lash extension usage can seriously thin your real lashes. Which, along with the cost, is a good reason to leave these guys for special occasions only.

Four pros vs two cons. You do the math. Also, can I borrow $50?

Have you ever tried eyelash extensions?