Lash extensions for monolids and straight lashes: curls and styles that actually show

By Michelle Bodean, founder of Michelle Lashes-Brows-Beauty, 1202P 75th St, Downers Grove, IL 60516. Licensed esthetician and international lash judge.

If you have monolids, or lashes that grow straight out or a little downward, you may know this one. The set looks great while you’re lying back in the chair. Then you sit up, open your eyes, look in the mirror, and half of it is gone. The lashes are still there. You just can’t see them, because they’re tucked behind your lid.

Most of the time the curl is to blame. The C curl that suits most people is the wrong tool for a lash that starts out pointing down. For lash extensions on monolids and straight lashes, I usually reach for an L or M curl, choose the length based on where your lid sits when your eyes are open, and put the longest lashes where your eye opens tallest.

This post walks through how I make those choices, so you know what to ask for wherever you book. If you’re local and looking for eyelash extensions in Downers Grove, come see us. The logic works in any chair, though.

The short version

• C and CC curls often disappear on monolids. The lid covers the base of the lash, and the curl spends its lift just bringing a downward lash back to level.
• L and M curls have a flatter base that sits along a straight lash and then lifts past the lid. At our studio they’re a $40 add-on to any set.
• Longer isn’t automatically better. The length has to clear your lid without weighing a straight lash down.
• If your natural lashes are long and thick but straight, a lash lift might get you most of the way for less money and less upkeep.

Why lash extensions seem to vanish on monolids

Two things are usually going on at once. The first is the lid. A monolid has no visible crease, or a crease hidden under the lid skin, so the upper lid rests close to the lash line. Lashes that would show on a lid with a visible crease end up covered.

The second is the direction your natural lashes grow. An extension bonds along the base of your natural lash, so it starts out pointing wherever your lash points. If that’s straight ahead or slightly down, a C curl uses most of its bend just getting the tip back up to level. On a monolid, level is often still behind the lid.

Straight lashes come down to anatomy. A 2006 study from the dermatology department at Seoul National University measured the upper eyelashes of Asian and Caucasian women and found that the Asian group’s lashes had lower lift-up and curl-up angles. They were also fewer in number and thicker in diameter, while length and growth rate showed no statistical difference. It was a small study (20 Asian and 10 Caucasian women in their twenties), so I read it as a description rather than a rule. The combination it describes is a useful one for lashing, though: lashes that are often strong and a decent length, but pointing the wrong way. That’s a good lash to work with once you pick the right curl.

Not every monolid is East Asian, and people of every background have straight or downward lashes. Everything below is about the individual lash in front of me.

The curls I reach for, and the ones I avoid

For a monolid or straight-lash set, curl matters more than length and more than volume. The table shows how the common curls behave on a lash that grows straight or slightly down.

Curl	What it does on a straight or downward lash	When I use it
L	A long, flat base lies along your natural lash, then turns up sharply. More of the extension touches the lash, so the bond holds better, and the lift happens past the lid.	Monolids, very straight lashes, and anyone who wants a crisp, eyeliner-like line.
M	A shorter base with a softer turn up.	Straight or slightly downward lashes when you want a softer lift, or a fox-eye effect at the outer corners.
C or CC	Curves from the base. On a downward lash, most of that curve goes into getting back to level.	Monolids where the natural lash already grows at an upward angle.
D	The strongest curve, with very little base.	Rarely on straight lashes. The bond area is small, and the tip can look hooked instead of lifted.
J or B	Barely curved.	On a full monolid these mostly read as length, and that length tends to hide.

I’ve written a separate breakdown of M shape vs. L shape lash extensions if you want more detail on those two. In short, L looks crisper and more graphic, and M looks softer. Some sets mix both, with the curl chosen section by section depending on how much lid covers each part of the lash line.

At our studio, L or M shape is a $40 add-on on top of the set. Current prices for everything are on our services page.

Longer isn’t automatically better

When lashes hide, the instinct is to go longer. Sometimes that helps. Often it makes things worse.

A long extension on a straight lash puts more weight out at the tip, and a straight lash has no natural curve to hold that weight up. As the set grows out, the tips start to drop and you’re back to lashes resting on your lid. On a monolid, long lashes can also press against the lid skin every time you blink, and some people feel that all day.

What I look for is where the edge of your lid sits when your eyes are open and you’re looking straight ahead, because that’s how everyone else sees you. The lift of the curl needs to happen just past that point. If a 10mm L curl clears your lid and a 13mm C curl doesn’t, the 10mm set will look longer on you. Every natural lash also has a limit on how much length and weight it can carry, and that limit decides more than taste does.

Open eye or cat eye on a monolid?

Mapping is the plan for where the long and short lashes go along your lash line.

An open-eye map (some artists call it doll eye) puts the longest lashes in the middle, over your iris. On a monolid this is often the most visible option, because the middle of the eye is where it opens tallest. It makes the eye look rounder and more awake.

A full cat-eye map puts the longest lashes at the outer corner. On some monolids that’s lovely. On others, especially where the outer part of the lid slopes down, the lid pushes those long outer lashes down and they pull the whole eye down with them. That’s the opposite of what most people are after.

When someone asks me for a cat eye and their outer lid is heavy, I usually suggest a squirrel map instead. The longest lashes sit about two-thirds of the way out, and the very outer corner steps back down. You keep the lifted, winged shape without the droop. If you want a fox-eye look, M curls through the outer third do a lot of the work.

Classic, hybrid, or volume for straight lashes?

Straight lashes are often thick, which is good news. A thick natural lash can usually carry a bit more than a fine one. The catch is that fewer lashes means more gaps, and classic (one extension on each natural lash) can look thin when your lash count is low.

That’s why I often land on hybrid for monolid clients. A mix of single lashes and small fans fills the gaps without loading a straight lash with heavy fans it can’t hold up. Light Russian volume works too if your lashes are strong. Mega volume is rarely my first choice on a lash that already grows downward, because the extra weight works against the curl.

My full decision process is in the flowchart I run at every consultation, and it applies here too. For monolids the curl and the map change. The questions about your natural lash, your skin, and your routine stay the same.

For reference, our current full set prices are $170 for classic, $195 for hybrid, and $210 for Russian volume, plus $40 for L or M shape. To pay the fill price instead of a new full set, come back within three weeks with at least half of the set still on.

When a lash lift is the better call

If your natural lashes are long and thick but straight, you might not need extensions at all. A lash lift curls your own lashes from the root, which is exactly where a straight lash needs help. It lasts about six to eight weeks, there are no fills, and at $130 with a tint it costs less than a classic full set.

One client, a week before her wedding, wrote in her review that her lash lift with me made her natural lashes look like extensions. That’s what a lift can do when the length is already there.

A lift won’t add length or fill gaps, though. If you want more than you naturally have, extensions are the answer. My lash lift vs. lash extensions comparison covers the rest of the tradeoffs.

Aftercare when your lid rests on your lashes

On a monolid, the lid skin touches the base of the lashes more than it does on a creased lid. That skin carries oil, sweat, and whatever eye makeup you’re wearing, and oil is what breaks lash adhesive down.

So cleaning matters a little more for you than for the average client. Wash your lashes every day with an oil-free lash cleanser, brush them through once they’re dry, and keep rich eye creams and cream shadows off the lash line. I keep a longer list of what weakens eyelash extensions if you want the rest.

Common questions about lash extensions for monolids

Can you get lash extensions if you have monolids?

Yes. The set just has to be built for your lid. That usually means an L or M curl, a length chosen from where your lid sits, and a map that puts the length where your eye opens most.

Will L curl lashes look fake?

Not at a sensible length. An L curl with a natural thickness looks like your own lashes after a good lash curler. They only look dramatic when they’re long and dense, and that part is up to you.

Do straight lashes hold extensions worse?

They can, with the wrong curl. A curved base touches a straight lash in fewer places, so it lets go sooner. The flatter base of an L or M curl sits along the lash and usually holds better.

How much do L or M curls cost?

At our studio it’s $40 on top of the set. A classic full set is $170.

How do I know which curl I need before I book?

You don’t have to know. We look at your lid and your lash direction at the start of the appointment and decide together. That’s what the consultation is for. If you have photos of a past set that disappeared, bring them, because they tell me a lot.

Booking at our Downers Grove studio

We’re at 1202P 75th St in Downers Grove, a short drive from Woodridge, Westmont, Lisle, and Naperville. If you’d like to see finished sets first, browse our lash gallery.

Michelle Lashes-Brows-Beauty
1202P 75th St, Downers Grove, IL 60516
(630) 822-0201

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About the author. Michelle Bodean has more than 10 years of experience as a lash artist. She started her career in Europe, earned her esthetician license in the US in 2019, and opened Michelle Lashes-Brows-Beauty in Downers Grove in 2022. She has won lash competitions including The Beauty Factor Miami, Pro Championship UK, and Lash Championship Nederland, and she works as an international lash judge and educator.