How To Build A Lash Extension Training Course

Part 2: How To Build A Lash Extension Training Course & What Should be Included.
 
Developing your lash extension training course goes beyond teaching how to apply lashes. A well-designed lash course should impart knowledge and excite and empower your students to embark on this new career.
 
Here are our top tips for creating an engaging and informative lash extension course and key content to include:

Ground Zero: As discussed in part one. If you offer a beginner lash course, it must cover everything from A to Z. All foundations of Lash Extensions should be covered. Don’t assume your students have a prior understanding of anything related to lashes.

What to teach: Have a plan; what do you want to teach? Will it be for beginners? Will it be designed for someone who has already completed a course and needs a further trainer? Or will it be all about lash styling? Whatever you choose needs to be communicated, and you MUST deliver on what’s promised.

Training Manual: As we shared in Part 1 of this blog, people learn differently. i.e. watching, reading, doing, etc. Your training manual should be comprehensive enough to allow a student to go back and review any topic to refresh their learning. It should be organised with a contents page, chapters should be easy to read, and it should include visual aids, e.g., visuals of differently shaped eyes when covering lash styles.

Length Of Course: What you want to teach will determine how long your course will need to be and how to structure the day/s to maximise student learning. Resist the urge to jam everything into one day; it will be overwhelming for the student and exhausting for you!

Course Structure: Structure your course in a logical manner. For example, you can’t give your students their kits without explaining what each tool is used for or talking about lash mapping before explaining what lash styles are. Begin with the foundations of Lash Extensions and progress to more advanced topics. Your course must dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s without missing steps. This ensures students understand the basics well before delving into more advanced content.

Training Kit: You want to set your students up for success. A training kit to complement your lash extension training course is a must. What you include in your training kit will depend on what your course covers. Include everything the student will need to be able to complete the course and have the basic tools to get started beyond the course. Your kit should be made of professional-quality products that you would use! This is part of your brand and reputation. Time and time again we see students come into The Lash Store needing to replace items from their kit due to poor quality.
 
We have already made training kits at The Lash Store or can work with you to design your custom kit.

Demonstrations: As humans, we can only take in so much information, and we are not designed to sit and listen all day; our attention cannot be sustained that long. Designing your course to balance talking, reading and doing is important. Bring your course to life with interactive demonstrations. Whether through live demonstrations or video tutorials, visually showcasing techniques enhances students' understanding and allows them to observe proper application methods. For example, use a whiteboard to demonstrate lash mapping and lash styles. Use a dummy head to demonstrate setting up your client and prepping the area.

Hands-on practice: This is where theory comes to life; incorporating hands-on practice sessions within your lash extension course is imperative. Applying lash extensions is a physical skill that requires muscle memory and practical experience. Allocate dedicated time for students to practice various techniques under your guidance. This will build their confidence and skills and allow you to provide positive reinforcement.

We highly recommend you design your course to include hands-on practice as homework or a certain number of hours lashing or a number of completed sets to build their skills over time and for you to review and provide individualised constructive feedback to build their confidence or address any learning gaps. Don’t forget you are putting your name on the student certificate and signing them off as competent, so you need to be confident that they know what they are doing because they are a reflection of you and your training!

Real-Life Scenarios: Humans relate to stories more than theory. Bring your training content to life by sharing real-life scenarios to help embed your students’ learning. This is particularly powerful when you discuss common challenges faced by lash artists and provide exercises that encourage them to problem solve and build their confidence to deal with these situations in the real world.

Assessment & Certificate: As a Lash Trainer, you are putting your name on the certificate and accrediting your student as a qualified lash artist. You need to be confident that at the completion of your Lash Extension Course, your student, at minimum, can complete a full lash extension set on a human. Ideally, this would be in the salon with you observing and providing feedback as needed. Only issue your certificate when you are confident that the student has met all aspects of the training.

What to include in Your Training Manual
As discussed above, once you know what you want to teach, you can start designing your training manual to support your training course.
 
Your training manual is your intellectual property. You don’t want all your hard work to be shared among the lash community. We highly recommend you add a disclaimer that the manual cannot be copied or shared with other individuals.
 
Not sure where to start? Remember when we said ground zero? Well, we meant it. Open a Word doc and save it as “Draft Training Manual” Page One will be your Title Page, and Page two will be your Contents. And start!
Remember, you are teaching someone who has no prior knowledge; you are explaining everything to them! If you get stuck on how to explain things, then Google is your friend. However, everything on Google is copyrighted. Do Not Copy & Paste. Read it, understand it and rewrite it. Never ever buy a prewritten manual and slap your logo on it. If you are serious about becoming a lash trainer and want this to be a long-lasting career, do the hard work.
 
Here is an example of what we recommend you include in your lash extension training manual:
 

Topic	Content to Cover
History of Lash Extensions	Classics, Premades, Lash designs
Eye Anatomy	Lash Cycle, Stages of growth
Training Kit	What’s included in your kit and what is it used for
Lash Extensions 101	Diameter, Lengths, Curls, Material
Eye Shapes	Lash mapping, Lash Styles
Adhesives	Types of adhesives, materials, managing temp & humidity, storage
Consultation process	Client management, consent forms and waivers
Health & Safety	Managing contraindications, salon hygiene, sanitisation, eye conditions, reactions, patch tests
Lash Application	From prep to lash set completion
Lash Removals	Safe removal
Infills	Banana Peel, Foreign fills, changes to style
Client aftercare	Explaining aftercare to clients
Business set up	Business name, pricing beginners and beyond plus add-on services
Branding & Marketing	Socials, Photos, Promotions