My Eyebrow Microblading Experience
It’s been over four months since my eyebrows were microbladed, and I’ve got to say, I’m still very much happy with the results! I’ve always thought about getting my eyebrows microbladed, but I was nervous about shelling out a good chunk of money for something that may not turn out well. A microblading salon located in NYC that I’ve been eyeing for a while called EverTrue had a 50% off promo during the month of October (it’s usually $515). For me, this was a pretty good deal, so I decided to take a chance and get my brows done.
My story is the same as pretty much every millennial’s; thin brows used to be in, and years of over-waxing and tweezing ruined my eyebrows for good. They were super patchy, and never grew back to being as full as they originally were. I barely have any photos of my brows in that state, because I’d literally wake up every morning and immediately fill in my brows whether I was going anywhere or not. I decided to get them microbladed in October, and have my perfecting session in November. I kept it on the hush, because I knew the healing process would be on the longer side, and I didn’t want to preemptively speak on my experience without knowing what my fully healed brows would look like. Now that it’s been over four months since I’ve had them done, I thought this was the perfect time to share my experience!
THE DAY OF
1. CONSULTATION
I got my brows done by a lovely specialist by the name of May-Lin. Loved her! When I arrived, she sat me down at her station, and extensively took me through the whole process. I came in with my eyebrows grown-out and un-groomed (as recommend). May-Lin and I spoke about my brow shape and color. She recommend following my natural brown shape with a slight extension on the ends due to my eyes being large (she wanted to create more symmetry). For color, she recommended utilizing a mix between medium brown and dark brown so my eyebrows looked natural and didn’t appear too harsh. Although I wanted a brow makeover, I didn’t want Instagram brows 24/7 lol, so I’m glad that she recommended this shade mixture.
Next, May-Lin shaped my brows and filled them in with a brow pencil. This portion took a while because this is what would end up being her guide for the microblading; she drew each and every hair stroke. I appreciated the fact that she allowed me to look at her work after each brow was finished to ensure I liked how it looked before she began the microblading process. After we settled on the look, we went on to numbing.
2. NUMBING
May-Lin applied a topical numbing cream to my brows and allowed it to absorb for 20-30 minutes.
3. MICROBLADING SESSION
May-Lin showed herself unboxing a sterile disposable microblading needle (it looked kind of like an exacto knife). She then began the microblading process. This took about 1 hour.
On a scale of 1-10 I would rate the pain as a 3/4. Most portions I couldn’t feel due to the numbing, but after it started to wear off, I did feel slight discomfort. It felt as if a cat was scratching me; not the greatest feeling in the world, but it could’ve been worse.
4. HEALING INSTRUCTIONS
After my first session was finished, May-Lin supplied me with a healing ointment and healing instructions. She told me not to get my brows wet for 24 hrs, and to apply the healing ointment every morning and night for 7 days. During those 7 days, I was also told to avoid hot showers/saunas, sweating, makeup/skincare products on the brows, and exposing them to a lot of water.
THE HEALING PROCESS
1. DAYS 1-3
I followed May-Lin’s instructions, and kept my brows relatively dry and clean, only using miceller water to cleanse my face morning and night (I would lightly go over my brows), and the healing ointment right after cleansing.
I loved my brows right after they were done, but the next two days were a bit…ummm….rough lol. I’m exaggerating, but I did freak out a bit because the morning after I got my eyebrows, I woke up and they were super dark and harsh. This only lasted for a couple of days though.
2. DAYS 3-7
My brows started to scab up and flake off. I thought this process would be the worst, but it actually was pretty unnoticeable. This was likely due to the ointment softening the scabs. Some brow specialists recommend a completely dry healing regimen (no ointment at all). This method would likely make scabbing more apparent. Luckily for me, I didn’t have to go through this.
3. WEEK 2-4
This was the point where I was so disappointed in my brows. Although the scabs had completely flaked off, my brows now looked super faded and grey-toned. I was back to aggressively filling them in and wasn’t happy at all.
4. WEEKS 5-6
My brow color was starting to settle, and I was starting to get excited again. I just needed to touch up some spots, and darken the color overall, which I was able to do at my perfecting session!
WEEK 6: THE PERFECTING SESSION
This session was a lot quicker than the first. May-Lin examined my brows, and recommended extending the ends a tab bit more, and slightly darkening the shade. She filled in my brows with pencil to give me a clear visual; I agreed with her recommendations and she went to work.
The healing process was exactly the same as the first session. 4 months later, and I’m still loving my brows! The second session went super well, and my brows healed perfectly!
FAQ
Please note, that I’m not a professional and only speaking on my experience and knowledge that was fed to me. My word is not bond lol
Q: How long does it last?
A: It depends on your skin type and lifestyle. For example: someone with super oily skin who heavily works out will have to get their brows touched up more often than someone with normal skin who moderately works out. For a typical person, it will need to be touched up every 1-1.5 years.
Q: Does it hurt?
A: I have a high pain tolerance and numerous tattoos, so my opinion may be biased, but I didn’t think it was bad. With the numbing cream, a lot of strokes went unfelt. For the ones I did feel, it felt like a cat’s scratch.
Q: Do you fill in your brows now?
A: When I’m wearing a full face of makeup, I still do fill in my brows so my makeup look is balanced. If I’m wearing little to no makeup, I’ll keep them as it.
Q: Was the perfecting session necessary?
A: Yes! For me, my pigment color was darkened, my shape was slightly adjusted; certain areas didn’t take the first time, and needed to be gone over again. The touchup session is your chance to perfect your brows. I probably wouldn’t have liked my brows without it.
Q: How long did it take to fully heal?
A: After my perfecting session, it took about a month to fully heal and for the color to set it. If we’re talking from the very first session, than 2.5 months in total.
Q: Do you still have to get your eyebrows done?
A: Yes! It’s a common misconception that once you get your brows microbladed you can leave them be. Grooming them is actually crucial in making sure your brows stay on fleek. My brow specialist recommended against waxing or threading to avoid further damage to my brows. Microblading creates a guideline you can follow, so I actually find it pretty easy to clean them up them myself once a month. I just use brow scissors to cut the long hairs, and tweeze the hairs that have grown outside of the guideline. Super quick and easy!
That’s all folks! Feel free to reach out to me if you have any additional questions regarding my microblading experience.