For the past half-decade, microblading has been one of the most favored non-surgical beauty procedure among women. Almost everybody I knew had their brows done. The botch-up jobs were aplenty and the ones that looked unnatural (supernatural even) were hard to look at. The salesladies were “drawing” their brows like there was no tomorrow. It was scary!
The procedure had many names: brow resurrection, brow embroidery, brow lush, and more recently, microblading. Prices were exorbitant at the start. Clients spent anywhere from 20 thousand to 40 thousand at places dedicated mainly for brows. When the craze caught on, salons offered it for as low as 3 thousand to 5 thousand.
I’ve always had thick brows (and time and again, I’ve mentioned that I hardly wear makeup) so I never felt the need to do anything with it. I’ve been approached by brow salons in the past but I would shy away from the offers. Truthfully, I’m afraid of needles. Secondly, I did not want to get stuck with a bad brow job that I would have to live with for a long time. Fading greenish tattoos were images I did not care for.
Beautiful Brows
Time, however, has a funny way of changing people’s minds. One day I just decided that I’m ready for it and within a week I had it done. Bianca Festejo trained in Spain to perfect this art. Why did I go to her? Well, for one, I’ve seen her brows and they look perfectly shaped. Not heavily penciled in and very natural looking. I’ve also seen her work sported by celebrities and friends. My trust was further boosted by people who vouch that they are happy and would readily have it done again.
So, on a fateful Tuesday afternoon, I went to Bianca Festejo Hair and Skin Salon located at the GF of Promenade, Greenhills. I was handed a questionnaire about my health and was thoroughly briefed by Bianca about what to expect. Then she spent a good 20 minutes measuring the distance and arc of my brows. She drew the outline and finally said, “I’m happy with that. I’ll follow the natural contour of your brows but will shape it to best frame your face.” Topical anesthesia was applied and after 30 minutes she showed me the sealed needle to be used. Then the procedure started. The pain level is 1. That’s very, very bearable coming from someone like me who has almost zero tolerance for pain. You can hear a small buzz, feel a little itchy, konting-konti the pain. Within 45 minutes, I sported new brows and a big, big, smile on my face.
There is also hardly any downtime. The very next day, I went to an event and felt comfortable. You just have to apply an ointment to be provided by the salon every 2 hours for the next 2 days after the procedure. The soft scab will fall off, the color will lighten and then a very short while after, beautiful natural-looking brows will emerge.
PLEASE BE CAREFUL when trying anything new. One service could be good and the other not so.
Lashes to Lament
Unfortunately, I did not exercise the same kind of caution when I tried the same salon’s Russian Volume Lashes service. I had a lash extension done just one time prior. I felt immediately uncomfortable after the procedure. To make things worse, my forehead broke out in hives because while the lashes were drying up, the salon attendant offered to thread my brows. Good thing I had antihistamine medicine, drank it and quickly left. To cut the story short, I had the lashes removed by a different salon. (I was told, “Ma’am nakadikit sa balat. Dapat sa lashes lang.”) In between that time, I had a hard time putting my reading glasses on, had to deal with uneven clumps of synthetic lashes, and got funny looks from relatives and friends. So, PLEASE BE CAREFUL when trying anything new. One service could be good and the other not so. Ask to see pictures. Look at others who have done it and make sure it fits your lifestyle. So this is a valuable lesson learned on my part.
I think this is as fair a review as I can make given the discomfort (so plenty!) I experienced.
I hope this was a helpful read!
With a pocketful of glitter,
