Everything you need to know about microblading
<p class="Body">As we grow older, eyebrows can be one of the trickiest facial features to navigate. Inevitably, hair growth becomes sparser and colour starts to fade, either to a washed-out version of your natural hue, or to a silver or grey shade. It’s why many women are looking to a more permanent solution with microblading.</p>
<p class="Body">Brow expert and microblade technician Rachael Pietruszka from The Signature Brow in Sydney, offers this advice for your best brows.</p>
<p class="Body"><strong>What is microblading?</strong></p>
<p class="Body">“Feather touch microblading is a modern brow tattooing technique that can rejuvenate the eyebrows and refresh your entire face. During the treatment, we draw individual hairs along the natural arch in the direction that your hair grows, to create a look that exactly mimics your own individual brows,” explains Rachael.</p>
<p>“Microblading can restore depth of colour and definition to your brows, but it won’t hide grey hairs, so I always suggest women keep up their brow tinting on a regular basis. Any unruly hairs will also need to be kept in place with tweezing or professional waxing, but your morning routine of drawing in your brows will be all but eliminated.”</p>
<p class="Body"><strong>What is the process like?</strong></p>
<p class="Body">“We use a scalpel-like tool that scratches a shallow line into the skin and then we fill in the line with a dye that creates the look of an individual brow hair. We repeat this along the brow in a specifically measured area to recreate a fuller, longer and more youthful looking brow,” says Rachael.</p>
<p class="Body">“For best results, we recommend two treatments spaced about four weeks apart. Each treatment takes between one and three hours, and as with every cosmetic procedure, there are a few guidelines recommended to protect the new eyebrow in its healing stages.</p>
<p class="Body">“Although it’s not super-painful, the scraping technique we use can sometimes be a bit uncomfortable, so we do apply a topical anesthetic gel 20 minutes prior to treatment and during treatment according to comfort. There is a little redness visible for an hour or two after initial treatment, but this typically settles quickly.”</p>
<p class="Body"><strong>Still not convinced?</strong></p>
<p class="Body">“While I would recommend feather touch microblading for many women, I realise some may be a little nervous to go down the ‘tattoo’ path straight away, as they aren’t sure of the shape or shade they wish to have. If this is you, I suggest experimenting at home with a few different shades of brow pencil. Draw them in to the length, width and depth of colour you like, take a selfie and then remove the make-up. You can do this as many times as you like and compare your selfies until you decide on a look that you love. You can then take this look to your microblade artist, who can emulate it exactly,” Rachael advises.</p>
<p class="Body">“Be sure to discuss your skin tone and hair colour at length with your brow expert before embarking on treatment. Again, test out a few shades using pencils or even brow tints before proceeding with more permanent options.”</p>
<p class="Body"><strong>Rachael’s top tips for anyone considering microblading (aside from definitely doing it):</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>If your eyes have sunken a bit with age, ask your microblader to create a brow that is slightly lower and straighter, elevating slightly at the tail. If the brow is too arched, it can accentuate the space between the brow and the contour of the eye, and make the eyes look even more sunken in and sad.</li>
<li>If your face has become plumper over the years, you’re better off asking for a slightly more elevated arch, which will help elongate the face a bit.</li>
<li>If you have a square jawline, request a rounder shape over angular brows or a straighter line. It will create a lovely equilibrium within the face and balance sharp angles.</li>
<li>Shorter hair? Make sure you don’t bring your brows too close together at the bridge of your nose. It can impart an angry, masculine appearance. It’s important to always space the inner brows so they are in line with the corner of the centre of the eye.</li>
<li>As for colour, it’s best to stay as close to your natural hair colour as possible, but if you have gone grey or platinum, ask for a deeper shade to offset the starkness of the bright hair and give your face a true frame.</li>
<li>If you are going darker with your brows, don’t go too thick, or you risk a too-heavy brow. You can afford to go a bit thicker if you are staying true to a lighter shade of brow.</li>
<li>Don’t forget the tail of your brow. If it’s left too thin, it can leave brows looking unfinished and make you appear older. Your microblade brow technician should take time and care to measure your brows specifically and create a balanced shape, length and width that suits your face and frames it perfectly.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Rachael’s DIY tips for beautiful brows:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>Always brush brows upwards and outwards when grooming them, as it creates a beautiful flow to the eye, widening it and making it appear more open and refreshed.</li>
<li>If you are using a pencil to recreate your brows, ensure it is sharp so it draws a precise line. You want to recreate the natural flow of the brow hair and draw in delicate feather strokes, as a microblade artist would. If the end of the pencil becomes bulbous, it will ruin your handy work.</li>
<li>You might find a few stray brow hairs become unruly as you get older. Keep them in place with a good brow gel. One of my favourites is M.A.C Brow Set, $28, but a great budget option is Essence Lash Brow Gel Mascara, $4.10.</li>
</ul>
<p>For even more oomph to your brows, swipe existing hairs with Ardell Fibre Gel, $16.99, to create a fuller brow before colouring with pencil.</p>
