How To: Get longer eyelashes

Make your eyes look bigger and brighter by lengthening your lashes.

You Will Need
* Silicon
* Castor oil
* An eyelash primer
* A curling iron or an eyelash perm
* A lengthening mascara
* False eyelashes or eyelash extensions
* An eyelash growth product
* An eyelash transplant

Step 1: Get more silicon
Eat foods containing silicon, a trace element that promotes hair growth. Asparagus, cabbage, cucumbers, olives, green beans, beer, rice, and oats are all good sources.

Step 2: Oil your lashes
Apply a daily drop of castor oil to your lashes with a cotton swab to help them shine.

Step 3: Curl them
Use an eyelash curler to make lashes appear longer than they are. Or get an eyelash perm at a beauty salon; it will last about four months.

Step 4: Prime them
Use an eyelash primer to condition and coat the lashes. Then, apply mascara made specifically for lengthening lashes.

Step 5: Wear falsies
Attach false eyelashes, either one by one or as a set. Or consider eyelash extensions, where dozens of individual lashes are glued onto your existing ones. They last about two months.

Step 6: Use an eyelash growth product
Try eyelash growth products, available in beauty stores. They contain peptides, amino-acid derivatives that supposedly stimulate follicles. Because the side effects vary, consult your ophthalmologist before trying.

Step 7: Discuss a prescription with your MD
Ask a dermatologist about a prescription for Latisse, an FDA-approved daily treatment that contains chemicals that stimulate eyelash growth.

Step 8: Some may consider a transplant
Some people actually undergo an eyelash transplant, a medical procedure done under local anesthesia. Hair is taken from other parts of the body and implanted onto the eyelids. Unlike natural eyelashes, transplanted lashes need to be trimmed regularly.

Fact: A chemist invented mascara in 1913 when he mixed coal dust with petroleum jelly so his sister could enhance her lashes.