Lash Tech Tweezer 911

There is nothing worse than dropping your favorite tweezers and ruining them. In a lash techs world, this is truly one of our worst nightmares. Unfortunately, I am soooooooo clumsy. I typically have at least two to three pairs of tweezers that get trashed every year. Give or take. 

I browse a lot of lash tech support groups and online groups in search of what to do or how to fix damaged tweezers. Sadly, there's not a lot of recommendations. 

Recommendations to "quick fix":

Sanding:

By taking a nail file, you can gently sand down the tweezers. This cam help dull tweezers regain their texture to grab lashes if they have become slick or are having a hard time holding onto or grabbing a lash. Be careful not to sand down too much, or else you can dull and thin out the metal and the structure all together.

Pliers/Jewelry Pliers:

Maybe some of the tweezers are "kinked" or warped due to dropping them directly on the sharpest part of the tweezers. Pliers to the rescue jewelry pliers are a bit better than your average pliers from a hardware store, as they are a little more gentle with the metal. You can gently manipulate the tweezers back into it's original form. This is typically a good recommendation for tweezers with not a major deformation from the drop. 

Some people have resorted to squeezing their tweezers to try to realign them with other tweezers, etc. I just find whatever tactics may work. But may not. 

Other suggestions:

Sharpener Services:

You can find a local cosmetology scissor sharpener who may be willing to help. You can call your local beauty wholesale store or by doing a quick search on google. The sharpener can help try to sharpen and add texture to your dull tweezers, but also can they can help realign misshapen tweezers. Every place in California is different. Sadly, sometimes the service can cost more than buying a new pair of tweezers.  Ask for quotes and inquiries upfront. 

(This would be a great new business model for someone in the lash industry! Creating a successful lash tweezer line with warranties. Similar to Mihaz, Tweezerman, Switzerland, etc.) 

Preventative:

There's on one true suggestion or answer to this problem,

Buy quality. And buy multiples.

In my experience after doing lashes for nearly a decade, sadly once tweezers are damaged they are not salvageable. It's impossible to get them to fully grip, realign, etc. Buying quality tweezers from quality brands is one thing. But making sure to buy multiples is key. This is also important if you plan on doing clients back to back, to allow enough time for tweezers to be sanitized and sterilized in between clients. 

My personal recommendation: 

Stay away from thin nosed/based tweezers. Some volume tweezers that offer thin bases, or appear to be very sharp, are indeed. However, they are also VERY fragile since the metal is stretched so thinly. If you accidentally drop them, they can easily become your next trashed victims. Buying tweezers made of better quality metal and not stretched so thin, stand a little bit better chance. 

Until the lash industry comes around to offer more, we are left to the Stone Age tactics. 😂