The Wellness Hour - Hana Dolly

Welcome to the Wellness hour here on CNA 938. You're with me, Cheryl Goh. Now today's chat focuses on outer beauty because as the saying goes, if you look good, well, you feel good and for many women, makeup is a powerful tool to help us give us that confidence boost and in recent years, the trend of eyelash extensions, especially done in a salon, has helped many women to brighten their eyes and being semi-permanent also means saving a lot of time.

I'm so excited that you invited

me here. Yeah, and you look beautiful with your uh your Hannah Dolly extensions on as well. Tell us, you know, I mean, I think you and I, we know, but for our listeners who may not be familiar, maybe our male listeners or so, I like extensions. Why, why are they such a must have beauty tool for many women nowadays?

I think the first thing that you see people when you meet them for the first time is actually how your eyes speak to them. So having eyelashes makes a whole lot of difference because you know when you look at somebody and then their eyes sparkle, you are like, oh, this person is like. Really friendly.

It's a bit of a kinder look

and then it's really the first impression counts and eyelashes can bring the whole look together of course eyebrows as well, but eyelashes I really don't want to make

you pop, right? And the thing with Asian eyelashes, most of our eyelashes are very thin and not as voluminous, so we need some extra help to make it nicer, isn't

it? Yes, that's why we are here to help people simplify the idea of putting. eyelashes and also because I've always been doing salon extensions in the past. So I kind of also experienced all the, you know, like downsides to it. So that is why Hannah Dolly was born.

Yeah, so I love um the meaning of your name, Hannah Dolly. Hannah means one in Korean, right? So uh I see from your website that's a reminder to your reminder to women to put themselves first. I really love that, but tell us a bit more about how you came to start. Uh, the business of Hanna Dolly.

OK, so I think having to put yourself first is very, very important. That's one thing that you highlighted. I have not reflected on this for quite some time, but also when we are actually always going for salon appointments for the eyelashes, right? So most of the time you feel like, oh, I, I don't have time to go down for this appointment and then they try to slot you into another slot and then it's a little bit upsetting because you want to get it done.

often it's a two hour commitment, right?

So then it's very disappointing because if I really need it by this date, but then there's no more slots, then who can I look for? So that was why the whole idea of, you know, doing it yourself is born and this is how Hannah Dolly came into the picture.

So it's a very practical reason that uh. Yeah that led to the birth of Anna Dolly.

And on top of that, it was also because I was experiencing a lot of lash breakage and weak lashes. So when I removed the extensions and I want to feel myself again, it's always very depressing when I put the eyelash curler onto my eyes and then I go and then nothing.

I'm sure you know how that feels, it's like, oh dear, my own lashes are so sad. OK, um, so we obviously know that you can get it done professionally in a salon where it requires you to lie down for about 1 hour or 1 hour and a half and then they will put the lashes on lash by lash. But for Hannah Dolly, tell us how your DIY do it-yourself lash extensions work because you, you have this 7 minute lash routine that you've kind of put together to help women, right? Tell us more.

Yes, so we begin with the end in mind. So usually when you're going into the salon, you tell, we also try to begin with the end in mind, we tell this uh The artist that, oh, we want this look, but then you keep your eyes closed for the next 2 hours and you open your eyes and

like it might not be what you envisioned, right?

Yes, but with Hannah Dolly, you choose your look and then you are actually keeping your eyes open intentionally putting it on, so you know how you can look like and you can make adjustments along the way. So you actually apply cluster by cluster and why clusters because it's much more easier than the entire strip. So in the past, we always use the traditional food. strip lashes lashes. So those are might be a little bit harder to navigate because it might, you know, poke

It follows the shape of each individual eye which is different from woman to woman.

Correct. And then the clusters that we give are actually more than the, I mean more more clusters so you don't have to use everything. You can actually choose to use two or three pieces, which is most of the time what our customers are using. Because of our eye type and eye shape, so we don't want it to droop down. We use two or three pieces, we're able to make it more uplifted in terms of the application

and um Hannah Dolly's eyelash extensions are different from the falsies that we tend to put on the strip ones that you say because yours last can last beyond a day, right? Yeah, how does that work?

So basically instead of traditional falsies where you just put on for a DNA you take it off, yeah, yeah. Hannah Dolly's lashes can also last you through. A week. Wow. Usually we we say that sometimes when you go to colder countries it can last you 2 weeks because that's what I do. Yes, yeah, but we encourage you to actually remove them after a week because it is to respect the lash growth cycle so that you can let your lash rests, recover and also make

Yeah. So I, I remember part of your, your process is there's a lash serum that you encourage your users to put on that also protects the natural lash, is that

right? It's to complement the lash growth cycle. So on top, you know, the lash growth cycle there's like about 30 days or so but they will share. So at the same time while putting on your lash, you don't want to miss um putting on the serum. So that's why we make sure that the serum is compatible. With using the bond and C as well.

OK, um, so my other colleague, uh, Andrea from the morning show, she's also tried your lashes because I've talked about it, but she had the issue she had was that because she also put on other eye makeup like eye shadow and all that. So when she tried to clean it off at the end of the day, she found that the lashes also came off. So how do we navigate, you know, a situation where we need to clean off the other eye makeup, but we still want the lashes to stay on. OK,

so like you can see from

you've got eye shadow on as well now, right?

Yeah. right for the crease part, um, you just apply an eye shadow above the crease area that would help because when you open the eyes, right, for most Asian eyes, um, you don't really need to apply the insights unless you are a professional and you want like super nice makeup

not yeah and how and the way the best way to clean it would I guess be water-based cleaners as opposed to oil cleaners, right? Yeah. OK, tell us about the how your extensions differ from the salon ones besides the fact that it's a cluster lash compared to salons where they do it individually. How how is it different?

Um, how else it's different. I feel like you get to have more control over the kind of look that you want. That's, that's the most important part for me because I want to to change up my styles anytime I want to and I don't want to be bounded by like the the the salon appointment timings. And another thing is of course cost lah. It can be quite costly to buy like packages at salons. So for Hannah Dolly, each lash, let's say for the put it on yourself one, the

So that is a lot of bang for $23 a lot of bang for your buck. If you of course you have to take care and you have to maintain them properly like you have to put some effort into that, right? Yeah, OK, and can you tell us about the different styles that you have at Hannah Dolly? I mean, you have all to suit all sorts of eye shapes, isn't it?

Yes, so we have many different styles. But at the same time, right, the clusters are designed in the way where you can actually change it up. So for example, the most popular style is called natural. we have lined it up into a baby doll style where the longest strands are actually in the middle, but you can actually rearrange them to place the longest strands

up to

you

and I like that it gives women the freedom to experiment as well, right? I got to ask what you're wearing now, it's beautiful.

This is another top crowd favorite is a baby doll and many of our makeup artists, right, they use baby doll. For their brides as well because it's more visible

fantastic. I mean it's really, really um it's it's really a game changer I feel in the industry, but it's just that I think for a lot of people it's like getting it, getting it done right because you're so used to having someone do it for you. So the the do it-yourself element, at least for me, maybe I have no skill, but it just doesn't, it feels like maybe I'm not confident in myself. I know you've got tutorials and step by step guides, but what's the feedback been like?

Yeah, there are many customers who feel like, oh, this has been like a life changing, like, you know, solution for me, especially those who go for salon extensions and are sensitive to them and they cannot do salon extensions. I think, yeah, there are some people and for me as well when I do salon extensions, there are redness in the eyes or singing sensation. So I think these are some of the uh How do you say the pitfalls pitfalls extensions, so.

I'm gonna, I'm gonna I'm gonna try it again, uh Shemaine. I'm gonna, once I'm done with this current set of extensions, I'm gonna try and do it myself because I felt like maybe I didn't, I didn't have enough confidence and it, it didn't come out the way that I wanted, but of course we will always try. Again, uh, Shemaine, what, what do you think, um, you know,

lashes. I think it's also the trust in the brand because like what you said earlier, there are so many brands that came in right after that and um many of them don't exist anymore. So right, you know, they come and they go and then you're not so sure

pops. These are the press-on lashes

the press-ons, we launched it last uh two years back in December. So

this is another one even tell us how it works.

So these are strips, right, that you can replace by yourself. So if you are not confident in using the the bond and seal, right, you can actually take the glue strips and place it on the lash. So it's like a one-step solution now, but then you can, you know, use it with the agile lashes which don't have the pre-bonded jelly bond on them. But

these would, uh, I guess they won't last as long as you're born and seal ones, or can they last maybe more than a day.

Yes, they they can they the ones with the jelly bond, right, they actually can also last up to a week. We have tested on people with um not so oily eyes, but for those with oily eyes, OK, maybe 3 to 5 days, I think it's more realistic, especially in Singapore's weather. But um if you talk about like convenience, then that one step process is something that a lot of beginners look for,

right? I think it's the ease of doing it. OK, can I ask where do you go because you put So much thought into the designs and the quality of your lashes. Where do you source yours from?

Oh, we have so many different places where we saw um our products from, but we, we have like uh different suppliers for different parts of the process. So like boxes and lashes, um, they're all from different areas where we think produce the best in what they can. So

it's a multinational multi-country sourcing experience for you which which means again like how Shows you shows how hard you work to make sure you give the best for your customers,

isn't it? Yeah, and for business sense to safeguard so we can always, you know, control how we think of it that way. Yeah, because if you have everything with one company, then that's also another risk that you have to undertake.

Yeah, so you're diversifying and you're spreading your risk as well, very smart, um, and on that note, I also want to ask if you faced any challenges when it comes to running a business like Hannah Dolly.

I think um what you said earlier, having many competitors, that is always the case with any business out there. So, um, I would say the challenge is actually coming up with new innovations. So like for our agile lashes, um you have tried our lashes, right? Um, the, the reason why we have populated is that, you know, like it became so popular is because it's so lightweight and then there's this.

I love that and I mean like like I said, I think for a lot of women I like eyelash extensions, something we really just can't live without anymore. So having this alternative that is kinder to our lashes and also more suit requires less time is really a wonderful solution. Um, what are your plans, uh, Tremaine, for Hannah Dolly in 2025 and beyond, because I know you also just became a new mom, so you've got a lot on your plate. Uh, what can we look forward to?

So we actually have um a few different new launches that are upcoming already, so stay tuned for that. But I think the most exciting one was the one that I shared with you, the sticky lash pops, which was really a hit because we were once again one the first in the market to bring in the sticky lash pops where you can replace any um Normal lash so it can be any existing lashes that you have at home. Yeah, any normal lash into a press on just by placing the sticky lash pop onto

What would you say as like some final parting thoughts to any woman like me who still, you know, still cannot let go of eyelash extensions in the salon and you know, but you know, want to try this but just, you know, maybe a little bit apprehensive because you know they're just not sure of their own makeup skills.

I, I would say that there is no, you know, like you, you have to. Give one up or the other, like while you have eyelash extensions, there are many customers who also use Hanna Dolly as an infill.

Oh, when the lashes start to drop, then they they fill up the gaps,

is it? Yeah, so if you're not that confident, you can actually start by using them as infills and then that would build your confidence as well. But you just have to remember Hanna Dolly is a brand that is all about empowering women. So I invite you to one day take that step forward. Have confidence in yourself and really just play around. The more you apply, the more confident you get and the more beautiful you look. Yeah,

I think I'm gonna have, I need to have a 1 to 1 tutorial with you one day. This has been really, really intriguing. I mean, it's a topic that I mean very relevant to me. I hope it's relevant to you, our listeners as well, uh, especially the women out there who, you know, you know, have extensions on and want something, uh, looking for an alternative. We've been speaking today to Shemaine Tan, who is founder of Hannah Dolly. Uh eyelash extensions and they're beauty brand, local beauty brand,