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Turning out a makeup look that makes your eyes really pop usually consists of a bold eyeshadow topped with your trusty mascara. Without a set of false eyelashes, the mascara has to rely on your natural lashes to deliver length and curl. For the most natural look, though, lash clusters have begun to rise as a tool for creating fuller eyelashes — and don’t require an appointment like lash extensions.

What exactly are cluster lashes? Editorial makeup artist Gabriel Barse describes them to Billboard as “little bundles of magic for your eyes,” but more simply, the makeup tool is a small bundle of fake eyelashes that you can place anywhere along your lash line for extra volume and length. Once they’re on, you can just top the look off with some liquid eyeliner and you’re good to go.

“They’re super versatile,” Barse adds. “So whether you’re going for a subtle enhancement or a full-on glam look, lash clusters have got you covered.”

What Are the Best Lash Clusters?

Here, we’ve rounded up a few expert-recommended picks from Barse as well as other New York City and Los Angeles-based editorial and celebrity makeup artists that you can buy online now.

Are Lash Clusters Better Than Fake Eyelashes & Extensions?

Choosing between the three styles comes down to what kind of look you want and how much work you want to put in. Lash clusters, in Barse’s opinion, are the “perfect middle ground between strip lashes and lash extensions.” Unlike a full strip of falsies, clusters can give you control over how full or natural you want your lashes to appear.

“Plus, they’re less of a commitment than extensions, which is a bonus if you like switching up your look,” he adds. “So if you love having options and flexibility, lash clusters might just be your new best friend.”

If you have smaller eyes, Rae recommends incorporating lash clusters over full strip to help shape and add length to your eyes.

For a more permanent look, you can have eyelash extensions applied professionally at a salon, which may cost more money but has longer-lasting results.

How Many Lash Clusters Per Eye Should a Beginner Try?

Before you dive into your new box of lash clusters, you’ll want to get a feel for how to use the small bundles before just randomly applying them to your eyes. Once you determine the look you’re going for, Moreau suggests trying out at least four on each eye, as “you don’t want to overwhelm your eyes.”

And in terms of where to place them, Rae and Barse’s strategy involves starting from the outer corner of the eye and working your way to the inner corner. Just make sure you’re spacing them symmetrically, and as you get more comfortable, you can start incorporating more lash clusters to your eyes.

What’s the Best Way to Apply Lash Clusters?

To get the most natural-looking finish, you’ll need to have a couple of tools handy: a lash applicator (or Moreau says you can use tweezers if you’re in a pinch) as well as a good lash bond and seal; both makeup artists prefer Lashify’s eyelash glue. Make sure you start with clean, makeup-free lashes, and then there are a couple of techniques you can use.

Rae and Moreau both like to sweep a lash applicator over your natural lashes “as if you were applying mascara” Rae describes, then use your applicator to pick up a lash cluster, pull up your eyelid and attach the cluster under your natural lashes.

“Just above the water line,” instructs Rae.

Barse uses a similar method, but rather than apply the glue and bonding formula to all of your natural eyelashes, he likes to dab a tiny amount onto the base of the lash cluster.

“Let it get tacky for a few seconds (this helps them stick better),” Barse says. “Then, using tweezers, place the cluster as close to your natural lash line as possible. I like to start from the outer corner and work my way in.”

How Do You Make Lash Clusters Last Longer?

Lash clusters aren’t meant to last forever, but you can extend the life of them by doing a couple of things. When you’re applying the clusters to your eyes, Moreau says you can double bond the falsies onto your natural eyelashes.

To do so, you’ll sweep the lash bond onto your natural eyelashes, and then apply a small amount to the cluster as well before attaching them to your eyelids.

If the lash clusters have already been applied, the first 24 hours are the most important, as that’s when the glue needs to set properly. Barse explains that you’ll want to avoid rubbing or touching your eyes, in addition to keeping them dry.

“When you need to remove makeup, use an oil-free remover and be gentle around your lashes — this will help them stay put for as long as possible,” he adds.

For more product recommendations, check out ShopBillboard‘s roundups of the best setting spray, snail mucin repair cream and travel-friendly beauty products.

This week in dance music: Chase & Status clocked their first U.K. No. 1 hit with their recently released Stormzy collab “Backbone,” The Tim Bergling Foundation announced an auction of clothes, musical equipment and other memorabilia belonging to late producer Avicii, the team behind Ibiza’s Hï and Ushuaïa pulled off a pretty out of this world PR stunt to reveal that their new club is coming next year, we chatted with Sofi Tukker about croissants upon the release of their new album, DJ Snake distanced himself from Lil Jon’s widely celebrated performance of “Turn Down For What” during the 2024 Democratic National Convention, the video for Swedish House Mafia’s “Don’t You Worry Child” hit a billion views on Spotify, Chris Lake and Vintage Culture were announced among the headliners for Costa Rica’s Ocasa Festival early next year, we did a deep dive into the business of touring travel logistics (and why DJs always want to stay in the quietest hotels) and Outkast sued electronic act ATLiens for giving themselves the same name as the hip-hop legends’ classic 1996 album.

And as always, it all comes back to the music. These are the best new dance tracks of the week.

Mura Masa, Curve 1

English producer Mura Masa is back with his fourth studio album Curve 1, which — with its club focus, no f–ks attitude and an orange-red version of Charli XCX’s season-defining chartreuse — can be considered a counterpart to Brat. Tracks about doing drugs (“I don’t do drugs, but with you I do,” Daniela Lalita says while guesting on previously released single “Drugs”), sex (with a female voice purring in French on the otherwise sharp-edged “SXC”) and good old making out (“We Are Making Out”) give the project a happily messy YA feel, although the production throughout is fully mature, frequently lush, occasionally soaring and simply just cool throughout. The project is the first release on Mura Masa’s own Pond Recordings.

“Feels very different to be releasing a record this time around, being independent affords so much more control and connection to the work,” the artist born Alexander Crossan wrote on Instagram. “I wanted to make something no frills, no cynical music industry narrative, no manipulative backstory. Just music that I think is really great and that people can gather around. Can’t wait for you to hear it. My love to everybody who worked with me on this, and most of all my love to anybody who listens and connects with it.”

Sofi Tukker, Bread

Sophie Hawley Weld and Tucker Halpern recently told us that the concept of their new album, Bread, is both simple — the title is an acronym for “be really energetic and dance” — and deep, with the title representing ideas about satiating pleasure with abandon and experiencing nourishing abundance. The visual aesthetic the pair has created around this world reflects these themes, particularly in the video for “Woof,” which features the duo and special guest Kah-Lo (who very much eats on her guest verse) riding around New York City on a double-decker while partaking in many forms of pleasure, from massages to dancing to making out cradling a puppy. Out on Ultra Records, the entire 10-track album contains this same sort of exuberance and style, making Bread a must devour.

Yaeji, “booboo”

Yaeji says she made her latest after a period of deep introspection, with the producer finding — as so many of us do — that after a lot of soul searching, it feels really good to just dance, hard. Debuted during her recent Boiler Room set in New York, “booboo” is spare, tough and funky, with the producer slowly turning up the dial on a buzzsaw bassline, adding punches of kickdrum and then turning it all off to sample her own 2017 breakout hit “raingurl” before just encouraging everyone “to shake your booty from the left to the right.” The track is out on XL Recordings.

Swedish House Mafia, “Lioness” (Francis Mercier Remix)

Francis Mercier works his considerable magic on the most recent Swedish House Mafia release, with the Haitian producer stripping the flutes, relaxing the BPM and taking the percussion down by a few levels and altogether turning “Lioness” into a steamy, dreamy, hard-emoting afrobeats affair. “This one hits extra hard for me,” Mercier writes of the remix, “as I remember buying tickets to all of their NY shows. Nothing is impossible.” Mercier has been touring heavily this summer, with dates over the next few weeks including Burning Man, New York Fashion Week and shows across Ibiza.

Mau P & Diplo feat. Gunna, “Receipts”

Mau P further further establishes himself as an absolute star of the new generation of producers with “Receipts” a hypnotic club-focused collab with Diplo and Gunna that was debuted during the two producers’ four hour b2b at Coachella this past April. “‘Receipts’ came to life as Wes and I were preparing for our b2b Coachella set which was also my debut performance at the festival,” Mau P says. “We had been talking for hours about music and our various influences, after which Wes asked me the obvious question – ‘Should we try to create a song together that we can play at Coachella?’ He had recently done a session with Gunna and gave me an acapella to mess around with. One night during Miami Music Week, I came home from a show feeling pretty hyped up, opened my laptop and landed on the first version of this track. From there, Wes and I went back and forth to nail it, and eventually premiered ‘Receipts’ at Coachella.”

Seven Lions & Subtronics feat. Skylar Grey, “I’ll Wait For You”

Seven Lions and Subtronics join forces (as “Seventronics,” naturally), with a track as huge and hard as you’d expect from the pair. But while both producers specialize in bass, they’re also both masters of layering on shimmering flourishes that give their work a deep space feel, even as it hits you over the head. Vocals from Skyler Grey give “I’ll Wait For You” added softness and power. The single is out on Seven Lions’ own Ophelia Records.

“No No Girls,” the girls’ group audition project organized by CHANMINA and SKY-HI, leader of BMSG, will begin streaming on YouTube starting in October. In preparation for the launch, on Aug. 9, the audition project’s theme song, “NG,” was released as a digital single. With its dope music and grounded lyrics, it’s like a sister song to CHANMINA’s iconic song “Bijin.”

CHANMINA created quite a stir with her announcement that she had married Korean rapper ASH ISLAND and was an expectant mother, moving on to a new stage in her life. Billboard JAPAN recently had the opportunity to talk with her about what went into the creation of this new song and the audition project.

Congratulations on getting married! Is everything going well, health-wise?

Thank you. I’m doing great. I appreciate everyone’s blessings. I’m doing just fine!

Around when the music video for “20” came out, a lot of people were suspecting that something was up, and your announcement right after that about getting married and being pregnant with your first child came as quite a surprise.

I thought about not mentioning anything about it, but I’ve never been a fan of hiding my private life, and I’ve always sung about my own life in my songs anyway.

I’m interested to hear what you feel as you experience marriage, pregnancy, and childbirth. I’m sure there are insights that you can only reach through those experiences. I wouldn’t be surprised if your artistic output also changes.

I think that’ll probably happen. I can already feel it. For example, I’ve gotten back that thorniness I used to have. I lose my temper easily. I think that’s because the “womanly” part of me is taking a bit of a break, in a way. I’m not trying to be well-liked–I’m not hung up on other people’s feelings. I feel like I’m standing up and taking on the challenges I really need to as a person. That’s why this song came out the way it did. It’s been a while since I rapped.

Yes, I wanted to talk about that. So the changes in your personal life are also affecting your music?

I think so. I actually tend to rap a lot lately.

When did you start working on “NG”?

Actually, I started working on it back when I was making “Bijin.” I wrote about ten songs while I was perfecting “Bijin,” and “NG” was one of them. While I didn’t release it back then, I always liked it, so I kept it in my back pocket. It felt like a good match for this audition project, so I rewrote the lyrics, reworked the sound and the melody, and changed up the flow. Really, I finally finished the song by remaking it. It’s not like somebody asked me to make a theme song, but I thought it would be better if the project had one, and that this would be a good fit.

Now that you mention it, it does feel very close in spirit to “Bijin.” Why didn’t you use this track originally for “Bijin”?

The beat was too hard, and I felt like I couldn’t fully handle it back then. It’s very unique, but also very minimal, and it really felt kind of scary. Plus, there were a lot of other things I wanted to do at the time. For example, I wanted to put in a melodic section. Now, I’m able to take on all those challenges, so I changed up a lot of parts, and this is how it turned out. JIGG, who I worked on the song with, was surprised at how the song evolved.

You said that you’re able to take on those challenges now. Why is that? Does it have to do with the changes in your personal life?

I think so. I don’t worry about the little things anymore. I’m no longer focused on “if I do this, then people will think about me that way.” That’s why the process of making “NG” was a rather fast one. I still can’t really explain the changes that happened in me very well, but what I can say is that I’m in fact changing. It’s like…I’ve become more solid.

Maybe it’s part of getting ready for motherhood.

Maybe. Until recently, I was more a “girl,” but now I’ve become more of a “woman”—more of an adult. I don’t focus so much on the little details. I’ve got bigger things to deal with now. So maybe that’s enabled me to focus on what I really need to do. “Bijin” was a struggle to write, but “NG” wasn’t at all. I knew what I wanted to say, so the whole song-writing process went more smoothly compared to the past.

The lyrics in the first half are about your experience with having your beauty denied.

I left those lyrics as-is from when I originally wrote them. “Bijin” alone wasn’t enough to finish the fight.

One of the things that gives the song such a distinctive CHANMINA feel is that it’s opposed to prejudice based on looks, but it doesn’t deny femininity.

I think you should be able to enjoy femininity. I think that beauty is the state of achieving your aesthetic ideals. So, of course, beauty will be different from person to person. For someone striving for femininity, that will be beauty. For someone who isn’t, then there will be some other kind of beauty.

And then in the second half of the song, you’re singing about human nature and attitude.

I don’t think true beauty is skin deep, but instead is achieved when outer beauty is paired with inner beauty. One of the lyrics is “Your ‘No’s didn’t kill me.” That’s about the responsibility that comes with being a person who lived on, without dying because of beauty. It has a strong sense of doing what you can.

The pronouns in the songs are also interesting. “Bijin” ends with you using “we,” which made quite an impression, but “NG” ends with you using “I.”

That’s another expression of that sense of responsibility. It’s the responsibility shown in saying “I’ll take the lead.”

I see. While the song is sung in the first person, with the lyrics sung from the position of “I,” I feel like it will resonate with anyone who has been told “No.” It will feel like “our song.” So even though you don’t use the word “we,” it expresses that collective “we.” On a wordsmanship level, it may even surpass “Bijin.”

Thank you. I feel like my lyrical skills are improving, little by little. For example, while the content of this song is hard, I don’t use the f-word even once. That’s something I’ve been trying to focus on in general.

So, I hear that this is your first interview since you announced your marriage and pregnancy. Is there anything you’d like to say to our readers?

I never expected for people to celebrate the news so much. There are so many people who have told me that they’re so happy, that it’s like they’re the ones who are getting married and becoming a mother. I’m so grateful for all the wishes, and I feel a profound sense of responsibility.

That just shows how much people are placing their hopes on you. You have to take good care of yourself.

I am. This isn’t just my own body anymore. I didn’t just feel that because of the baby inside me, but because of everyone’s reactions. I’m happy to have sung about my own life.

Right, you’re a part of everyone’s lives, now. You’ve got to live a long, happy life.

Thank you. I’ll do my best!

—This interview by Sotaro Yamada first appeared on Billboard Japan