By Barbara Bishop
I think eyebrows might just be the most important facial feature. A beautiful set of brows frames the entire face and direct all the attention to exactly where I want it: my eyes. Every day, I use a special pencil and certain color of brow shadow to fill them in. I respect women who have a coifed, full brow line. It’s elegant and youthful.
When I asked one of those women how she made her eyebrows so perfect, she admitted her secret to me – Mircoblading. After significant research, I discovered Microblading is excellent for those wanting to enhance their brows or who have little to no eyebrows, thinning brows from age (that would be me) or over tweezed brows. The procedure is done by using a hand tool with ultrafine needles and each ‘hair’ is gently etched into the skin, giving an incredibly natural and realistic look. I decided to get it done. That day.
A typical appointment is around two hours, but the actual microblading happens in the last 15 to 30 minutes. A lot of measurements were taken, and my preferred brow outline was drawn. Just measuring and perfecting the look can take up to an hour! Pigments used with the microblade process were also chosen to match my desired brow color. Hair color and skin tone are also taken into consideration. My eyebrow color that was chosen was a light ash brown, to tone down the reddish tone in my skin.
Before the actual microblade procedure, a numbing cream was applied to my brows and set for about 15 minutes. There is some discomfort to the procedure; you don’t want to skimp on this part of the process if you want a painless experience.
Then using hand-held instrument, my technician filled in my brow outline that was so carefully created by etching in small, fine lines like my eyebrow hair looks like. This was followed by applying the selected pigment color into the lines.
No down time is required after a microblading procedure. My eyebrow area was slightly red after the procedure and my eyebrow color appeared overly dark. I was told this was normal and part of the healing process. My eyebrows will lighten up in color as it heals. It will take approximately 7-14 days for my brows to heal over, and about 1 month for the color to fully set. As of this writing, I am on day number 3.
A touch up session after 4-6 weeks is necessary as everyone heals differently and outcomes vary. Certain areas may not pick up during first session and will need to be refilled. Pigment color may need to be adjusted; brow thickness and more strokes can be added. Individuals with oily skin often require a deeper shade during the touch up session as the oils tend to lighten the pigment. Most importantly, a touch up session ensures that my brows will look perfect and retain the color for a whole year.
The cost for my eyebrows was $500; across the country costs can range from $500 up to $1600. For me, this procedure was a great investment. When my brows are groomed and perfected, I feel like I look more awake, younger, and polished. Brooke Shields, move over…
