Microblading, you’ve probably heard this word so many times the past couple of years. It has exploded in popularity and there is a good reason why. Just put #microblading in the search bar on instagram and you will see over 8 million pictures/videos about it! Grab some chips though because you are about to go down an IG wormhole you aren’t going to want to get out of. It is mind blowing!
I’d been interested in it for years but my huge fear of needles kept me from pulling the trigger. Eventually though, as the popularity grew, so did my interest, and I thought, ok I HAVE to do this!
Let me rewind to why I wanted to microblade my brows in the first place. My brows were the worst, or I should say, the lack there of. I hardly had any brows due to MAJOR over plucking in high school. They really just never grew back. This was one of those times I should have listened to my mom, because the same thing happened to her when she was in high school.
I finally had enough. I got so sick of having to pencil on my brows every single day, I hated looking in the mirror makeup less to my barely there brows. I always joked saying, I looked like an alien. It was the worst, so bad that I actually was ready to take on my colossal fear of needles.
And let me just say it was one of the BEST decisions I have ever made!!!! I am obsessed with them, I wake up to my makeup less face in the mirror and smile now! I know it sounds so stupid, but it really is life changing. I love my results so much, so SO much! My mom loved them so much too that she decided to get hers done as well and says the same exact thing. LIFE CHANGING!
Now let me get into the details about the preparation, process, aftercare, and price.
Preparation:
If you are big into retinols in your skincare routine you are supposed to not use them for a week prior to your appointment, you are also not supposed to take ibuprofen because it can make you bleed more. However you ARE supposed to take Tylenol about an hour before your appointment. Don’t forget the Tylenol!!! I have an incredibly low pain tolerance and got so caught up chatting with my mom in the car on the way to my appointment that I forgot to take it, highly regretted that. I was ok at first but towards the end it became extremely painful for me. Thankfully that only lasted a few minutes. Needless to say I didn’t forget the Tylenol for my next appointment (I took three!) and it didn’t hurt at all! Now for my third touch up I also remembered to take the Tylenol but noticed it did hurt a little bit more than the time before. Come to find out, when you are on your period it can be much more sensitive, so if possible try to make your appointment around that. She put numbing cream on, and I waited 20 mins before she started and she did that again throughout. I’m sure that helps tremendously! Now let it be said my mom has a high pain tolerance and she said hers didn’t hurt at all, not even the littlest bit. We had the same girl do our brows. So it all comes down to the individual and your pain tolerance level. Lastly for preparation take your headphones. Don’t forget this! If I didn’t have my headphones I wouldn’t have lasted one second through this procedure. The machine they use has a distinct noise I can only explain as them carving into your skin (I know this sounds way worse than it really is) but that is what is happening and I was super sensitive to it so I blasted my gangsta rap like every other basic white girl and got through it. My mom on the other hand wasn’t bothered by the noise at all. Not one bit. No headphones, I don’t know how she did it! Everyone’s different, it might not bother you at all but best to be prepared in case it does!
Process:
So I started by showing her pictures of what I was looking to obtain. I made sure they were from her own page so I knew she could easily replicate it. Then we discussed what color I wanted. She was an expert at this part, making sure they matched my hair color so they look completely natural. Then after she drew on the outline and I had her slightly alter a few things, she got started. Keep in mind this is semi permanent so do not feel bad about speaking up if you want a little more arch here, or a little less arch there, etc. After you agree and are completely satisfied with the outline then it is time to get started! She applied the numbing cream and waited 20 minutes before starting. After the 20 minutes is up turn on that playlist, shut your eyes and think about how freakin amazing your brows are going to look when this is over. If you have ever had a tattoo this will literally be NOTHING to you, it is much less painful. I have a small tattoo and it was way more painful than this. So then she started adding tons of natural hair strokes to my brows. If you want to see the process in detail YouTube microblading, I personally think I was better off not seeing the actual process and just reading about it. But that’s me. After about 45 mins or so I was done! She sat me up and added a few more strokes here and there and then handed me the mirror. I almost cried with happiness! Brows, they looked just like REAL brows! How did she do this I thought, how does this look like actual hair! This is incredible!! The results were worth every second of that little bit of pain!
Aftercare:
She gave me a packet of tattoo goo, that you are supposed to put on morning and night (only a rice sized amount for each brow) also pick up some tegaderm patches to put on over your brows before bed. Apply the tattoo goo, before you put on the tegaderm it helps it not to stick. Unless you are an avid back sleeper like my mom, it’s another thing she didn’t have to worry about lol! I’m a side sleeper so this was a necessity for me to put them on before bed. It is however a necessity for showering. You are not supposed to get your brows wet AT ALL for one week! Or until all your scabs have fallen off. I must say, this is the worst part. Especially for someone who spends over 20 mins on their skincare every night. So put that Clarisonic and those face masks to work the day before your appointment because you won’t be able to enjoy that again for a whole week! Thankfully I have the sweetest hubs who put the tegaderm on my brows for me every night and even made sure to make an air bubble over my brows so that they didn’t stick. Worked perfectly! Y’all he’s the best, but you already know that! Haha! After getting out of the shower you can remove the tegaderm and go about your day, you can wear makeup but just make sure you don’t get it anywhere near your brows. You also aren’t supposed to sweat, so no working out. Oh darn, guess that year of sitting on the couch and not working out just turned into a year and a week. 😂 Another silver lining, no heavy cleaning (especially dusting, because you don’t want any of that getting stuck in your brows) Now, the day after, your brows will be significantly darker and bigger than they will be once they are healed. Don’t freak out. This is totally normal and just part of the process. My mom totally freaked out over this part and then once her scabs fell off she realized she freaked for nothing. Now the first few days nothing really happens, for me day 4 is when a few of the scabs started to come off. The scabs are just each individual hair stroke that is tattooed on, that will fall off. When this happens it will look as if the majority of the color comes off. This is when I freaked out, but magically the color just returns after a few days. And if you still think it is too light after all the scabs are gone don’t worry, that’s what your touch up is for. The touch up is about 4-6 weeks after your initial appointment. This is absolutely necessary! So after about a week all your scabs will have fallen off and you can go back to your normal routine. Just be careful when exfoliating your face and avoid your eyebrow area. I’m bad about this, because I love getting all up in every inch of my face when exfoliating. Worst thing that can happen from this, is you will just have to get a touch up sooner if you didn’t exfoliate around them. I just had my first touch up (not including the necessary one with your first appointment) and I went 8 months without a touch up. A lot of people go over a year. Also don’t forget sunscreen. This helps with fading, in the spring and summer I always have a sunscreen stick with me and reapply throughout the day.
Price:
Now this varies, from state, to city etc. but mine were $500, I had mine done in Atlanta. My mom and I agree that we both would have paid wayyy over that. Can’t put a price on confidence! 🙌 The necessary touch up a few weeks after the appointment was free. Then every touch up after that is $175.
Do your research! Seriously, this is SO important. I researched for months and searched thousands of photos and found someone credible, with lots of experience, and the photos and testimonials to back it.
I’ll never look back, and I will continue to get touch ups every year, because I never want to go back to that browless alien face again. 🤣 Hope this helps you if you were on the fence about the procedure. If you end up getting it done let me know how it went for you! I’d love to hear! 💕
Next thing I’m interested in trying is the lash tint and lift! If you have had this done or know someone who has let me know in the comments! 😘