lashmatrix.org

Hooded Eyes · Squirrel · Volume

A real a hooded eye, the shape this map is drawn for.
This is a hooded eye — check yours against it before reading the map. Photo source & removal
PEAK inner outer peak high, then eases to the tail stacked layers: dense base + directional top lashmatrix.org
Where the peak sits and which way the length tapers.
Why Why it is laid out this way

A hood is a flap of lid skin that eats length when the eye opens — a set that stuns on a closed eye can vanish on an open one. The squirrel map lifts its peak up under the arch, clear of the fold, then falls to the tail. In volume, that shape is built from fans, so layering discipline matters.

Zone order · bar = relative length Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4 Z5 PEAK Z6 Z7 inner outer
Build order, inner to outer — the peak zone flagged.

The order the zones go in

  1. Read the fold firstEyes open, relaxed. See where the hood lands — there is no universal hooded map.
  2. Peak above the fold, under the archLongest fans high on the lid, below the brow arch — above where the hood covers.
  3. Layer, don't flattenDense wider-fan base first, then a narrower directional top layer. Two widths give lift; one flat layer reads dull.
  4. Inner corners short and airyInner zones stay shortest and lightest — inner weight is what a hood punishes hardest.
  5. Taper the tail after the peakEase length back down to the outer corner so it reads as lift, not corner drag.
Length curve · one peak, gentle taper inner outer
The length curve: one soft peak, then a gentle taper.

The length curve

The hooded problem is visibility, not length. The fold hides whatever sits below it, so only the length above the fold counts — the map spends its height there and wastes none at the covered inner corner. Volume earns its place by building that peak from light fans: density to clear the fold without the dead weight a heavy single lash would drop on a crowded lid.

Built wrong, it looks like this

Mapped flat, so the peak lands in the foldExcellent with her eyes shut, gone when she opens them — the classic 'but it looked amazing in the chair'.
✗ WRONG vanishes when open ✓ RIGHT peak clears the fold
Heavy fans stacked at the inner cornerThe hood swallows them — the weight buys no visible lash, and retention drops where lid contact is worst.
✗ WRONG hood eats the weight ✓ RIGHT inner short & airy
One uniform fan layer instead of a base-plus-top stack.The map loses its directional lift and reads as a solid tired strip.
Chasing maximum curl to force the tips up.An over-curled fan presses its arc into the lid — tips point back at the eyelid and the lift is gone.
When not to use this mapSkip this map on a mild hood that needs no lifting — a full squirrel over-corrects. On a heavy hood, keep the fans light: high-drama volume is wrong when lid contact and retention are already fighting you.
Deep The physics underneath

The hood doesn't just hide lashes. It rests on them, all day, sideways — which changes what every technique is worth.

The same map, built four ways

Classic 1:1
To clear a fold with single strands you have one variable: length — the costly one, adding mass and lever together. Doable on a strong lash line; no margin.
Handmade volume
The reason this cell exists. Buy the height with several fine strands, not one thick one — same silhouette, less mass on a lid already pressing back. And you tune spread zone by zone.
Promade / pre-made fans
Consistency and speed across a dense set. The trade is a stiffer, bulkier base — and a hood is exactly where a stiff base perches instead of wrapping, then lifts first.
Woven / clover
Fixed lateral spread buys width, but the hood's problem is vertical — you gain width at the same height and the fold eats it. Base layer only, never the peak.

Spread angle versus weight

Spread moves mass — never removes it narrowload on the axis widetwists off-axis

On this shape, spread is the lever you control. A wide fan covers more per unit mass but its outer legs sit off the axis, carrying torsion — and under a fold already pressing sideways, that becomes visible twist within days. A narrow fan tracks the axis and reads as height, not width. That is the case for the two-layer build: wide base where the fold doesn't reach, narrow top where it does.

What the natural lash can carry

  • Volume's licence is coverage per unit mass — splitting one strand into several cuts mass faster than coverage. Spend the discount on height, not more material.
  • A fan is still one object on one natural lash. Fanning does not move the lash's ceiling.
  • The fold adds a load nobody weighs: a small, continuous sideways force, all day, on a bond built to resist downward pull. Two lashes with identical extensions don't share a fate if one lives under the fold.

Where this map fails first

Where this map fails first inner outer under the peak — rotates flat lashmatrix.org

Under the peak, not the tail — the opposite of most maps. Under the arch you put the longest, densest fans, and it is where the fold settles when the eye relaxes: highest load meets continuous sideways pressure. The first symptom is rotation, not shedding — fans turn flat, the peak drops, and the set slides back toward mapped-flat.

FAQ Common questions

Why is the squirrel map the go-to for hooded eyes?

Its peak sits high under the brow arch, above the lid fold — the one placement that stays visible when a hooded eye opens.

Where does the length go on a hooded squirrel map?

Into the centre and outer-centre zones, high enough to clear the fold. The inner corner stays short and light; length eases down after the peak.

How is a volume squirrel map layered?

Two stacked layers of different fan widths — a denser wider-fan base with a narrower directional layer on top. Varying the width gives the lift a single flat layer can't.

Is stronger curl better for clearing a hood?

No. Placement clears the hood; over-curling pushes the fan's arc into the lid and hurts look and retention both.

Also in: Hooded eyes · Squirrel / Fox · Volume