They’re Twins! Not Just Sisters: Microblading Journey
My eyebrows had always been a source of frustration for me. When I started to become conscious of my appearance in middle school, it annoyed me that I could never get them to look how I wanted them to look. At that point, I fell victim to the thin eyebrow craze of the late 90’s and over-plucked my eyebrows. Thin and tiny lines of hairs that did nothing for me, but at the time I thought I was doing an incredible job at maintaining them. They never grew back the same. Years later, I would fill them in far too dark for my complexion to better frame by face. I naturally have light hair that I’ve been coloring ever since I became a teenager and even lighter skin, so just picture Morticia Addams and you’ll get a clear picture of the look I must have been going for.
I’ve always been told that eyebrows should look like sisters and not twins. While they may look a lot alike, they are not to be duplicates of one another. Well…why not?! Symmetry isn’t such a bad thing. In terms of attraction and beauty, symmetry has been shown to be preferred more often than by asymmetry. This is not to say that asymmetry isn’t beautiful, but I never wanted each of my eyebrows to have a personality of their own. If they were children, one would be a straight-A student that I never needed to discipline and always ate their vegetables, while the other was held back in school and joined a neighborhood gang.
I had heard about Microblading and done some research on it before Kristin started offering the service at Neroli Salon & Spa. We used to work together before I moved over to the Neroli Bayshore location, so I knew I’d be in great hands when I finally booked the service. I tend to overthink and overanalyze, so I took my time researching everything I thought that I would need to know beforehand. I knew there would be some amount of discomfort (after all, she would be making superficial slices on my face) and it would take some time to heal. I do have a tattoo, so I thought the discomfort and healing time would be like that. I knew that I would need to keep my eyebrows clean and that I could not drink my beloved coffee for 24-hours prior to the service.
When I arrived to my appointment, Kristen spent at least forty-five minutes of my three-hour reservation prepping me, measuring, and consulting. That was partially because I had one million questions for her: Would it hurt a lot? Would it be too dark? Would it look too fake? Can she make it look like natural hair? Am I making a huge mistake? Luckily, she dealt with all my questions and anxieties like a champion. Not only would she numb the area, but she would check in with me frequently to see if I needed to be numbed further. Kristen custom-mixed a color that would look just like my own eyebrow hair color and each stroke would be placed to appear as a natural hair would look. We both decided that the best course of action would to bring symmetry to my brows, lowering one and giving height and a matching arch to the other.
My biggest concern was that it would look fake. I never wanted anyone to look at me and tell me that my make-up looked beautiful. I wanted people to wonder if I was wearing make-up at all and not that my brows were perfectly drawn-on. I worried about how they would heal and if I would like it in the end. I can truly say that I not only like it in the end, but I love it. It doesn’t look like permanent make-up. My brows look very natural and symmetrical, like the way they should have been all along.
A few things that I learned about Microblading that no amount of online research had answered were:
- The healing process is an emotional rollercoaster. I went from loving, to hating, to liking, and back to loving my brows depending on the stage of healing I was in.
- It didn’t hurt as much as I was led to believe. I’ve had more discomfort in a dentist’s chair than with this service.
- The consultation should be very thorough and will take longer that I anticipated. Getting semi-permanent or permanent make-up is not a topic that should be rushed through or allow for miscommunication.
- I was not prepared for the sound that my skin made with each stroke. It sounded like ripping Velcro.
- A complimentary touch-up six weeks later is mandatory! There are always small adjustments that should be made. My healing process after my touch-up was even faster and even more comfortable than my original appointment.
- Do your research and go to a professional that you trust for a service like Microblading. Your health and safety should be the number one priority! Although by law there are safety and sanitation regulations that must be followed in the State of Wisconsin, just because a business is compliant does not mean that their technicians are experienced enough and possess the necessary extended education for the result you are looking for.
- The hardest part after finding the technician that I trusted (Kristen) was giving up coffee for 24-hours.
Kristen, you have made me one happy woman! Thank you for giving me the twins I’ve always wanted. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: you’re the only person I’d ever want to cut my face.
