PMU: Microblading vs Ombre Powdered Brows

Brows are in! But who wants to wake up every morning and fill them in? We have a solution for you: Permanent Makeup! 
Most people have heard some of the terms: microblading, powdered brows, ombré brows, permanent makeup, semi-permanent makeup…ect. What does it all mean? Let us break it down for you! 

-Let’s start with microblading vs powdered brows/ombré brows. With both techniques, you get your first session, and then a follow up (perfecting session) 6-8 weeks after (90% of clients get the follow up session). Both require no swimming and sweating for the first week. Depending on your artist and their preferred healing method, you may or may not wash them for the first few days. 

-Microblading is a technique that uses a hand tool to make little cuts into the skin to look like hair strokes. This looks can appear very natural and is not quite as filled in. It can be combined with some manual shading for the most natural look.  It’s great for normal to dry skin and usually requires a yearly touchup. Because they are tiny strokes, over time the brows may look a little patchy which is when you’d get your touchup. Also, after so many touchups, the strokes may start to blur together, almost giving you a powdered brow. If you start with microblading, you can always opt for powdered brows later, but usually can’t go the other way around. 

-Powdered brows/ombré brows: these techniques use a machine to get the job done. Different artists use different needle configurations depending on their preference and your skin type. Most skin types can handle powdered brows. Ombré brows are just powdered brows that get lighter towards the front/ top of the brows. Usually clients need a touchup every 1-3 years depending on your skin/metabolism, how saturated you want them and starting color. Powdered brows tend to heal better over time since it’s a more evenly filled brow and tend to fade more evenly. They can still look very natural, or can look very defined/give you that makeup look. 
Permanent vs semi-permanent: some people believe brows are semi-permanent and not a tattoo. This is simply not true. Unlike body tattooing, we use pigments instead of ink for brows. Pigments are designed to fade over time so you can change color and shape a bit as you age. But they almost never completely fade away. Also, any time you put any type of ink into skin, it is a tattoo. Some people get scared when they hear tattoo because they think of the little old ladies with old skinny ink brows, but permanent makeup has come a long way (depending on your artist). This is why I never tell people brows are semi-permanent or not a tattoo. 

-What to expect for your appointment: your artist will have you fill out some forms and have some questions for you. We ask that you avoid taking aspirin or other blood thinners 1 week before if possible (Confirm with your doctor if you are on thinners; Tylenol is ok). You must also be off retinol for a week. If you’ve been on accutane, you must be off for 1 year prior to getting your brows. When you come in, we will numb you for a bit, then pre-draw your brows before getting started and select a color together. You get to see everything before we get started! The whole process takes about 2-2.5 hours (including paperwork, numbing and drawing). You may be a bit red and swollen afterwards but that should subside fairly quickly. Your brows may appear reddish or yellowish when you leave, they will cool off and ash out as they heal. 

-Downtime: your brows may appear darker than you’d like at first. It’s completely normal. After a few days, they will start to flake/peel and will then lighten and soften. As they heal, they may appear patchy or like no color stayed. More color may come through as they heal. You won’t know your true color until 4 weeks out. After 6 weeks, you can get your touchup session to perfect them! As stated before, no swimming or sweating for at least 1 week is best. No makeup in the area for at least 1 week. Avoid the sun. Don’t get your brows done right before any big events and allow enough time for them to heal. Once the flaking is done, you can use makeup to fill in any areas needed. If you wear foundation, you may still need to add some color to your brows as the foundation may cover up some of the color.

-Research your artist: call it what you want, but your brows will be there to stay (at least for a good amount of time). You could always opt for laser removal or saline removal (both very expensive, timely and painful). So researching your artist is very important. Look at their reviews. Look at their before and after pics as well as HEALED pictures. Healed pictures are the most important. Make sure your artist is using only their own work in pictures. Each artist has their own style; make sure the artist you go to has a style you prefer. Permanent makeup is not the time to price shop. It is your face and it is permanent! 

We hope this helped answer any questions you may have. If we missed anything, please feel free to reach out and ask! We offer free consultations at Hideout Boutique and would love to help with any of your permanent makeup needs!