Brow Lamination ... next big thing or waste of money?

I’m afraid busy clinic means I haven’t posted in a while but the ever growing craze concerning brow lamination has spurred me to create a post to give some customers a little insight into this new trend.

Soooo, brow lamination is a treatment which essentially relaxes/perms the eyebrow hair, essentially “setting” it in much the same way as one might experience when chemically straightening or curling their hair. The reason that I feel compelled to create this post is because, in much the same way that people often enquire about microblading to understand the finer details of what it entails, I think people are not entirely aware of what this new treatment really is. And honestly, seeing the myriad of Instagram posts relating to brow lamination I can see why.

I am seeing an incredible volume of posts boasting that brow lamination offers a fantastic natural full looking brow that don’t really relay the facts surrounding the method used and how long this lasts relative to the price. Anyone who ever used to have HD brows done will know how frustrating it was to walk out of a brow salon having spent £40 for wonderful brows that are going to last about 3 minutes.

Now, after having undergone a training course in this treatment, I’m afraid I will not be rolling this one out to my customers. For ethical reasons I cannot push that this a more natural treatment, because almost all of the treatments I see online do not disclose that it is both a chemical AND tinting treatment. The residue from the tint leaves some colour behind that will be gone incredibly quickly, meaning the result you see really doesn’t last very long at all. Coupled with the fact that the chemical perm lasts only a few weeks (in much the same way as it does on a lash lift) means that this treatment is not offering much bang for its buck given that the average price by a reputably trained practitioner is roughly £40.

I have also seen a number of beauticians coin this treatment as being more “safe” as the skin isn’t broken, but all you need to do is speak to a hairdresser and ask them how often it is safe to perm the hair on your head. Sufficed to say, the chemicals used to straighten the brow hair are strong and cannot be underestimated.

All in all, in all honesty I do really like some of the brow lamination results I am seeing out there. I have even rolled this treatment out on some friends and family with pleasing results. But I have caveated this to all of them on the basis that it is likely to cost them about £40 a month if they want to keep it up, which unsurprisingly results in looks of dismay.

If you ask me, soap brows provides the same affect which can be achieved at home, and costs about 10p! Let’s keep the exaggeration in check people 😉

Keep safe and lots of love

Galata x

How do I choose a microblader and how much should good microblading cost?

Sometimes, you can get an impression of value or worth because people tend to assume that the more expensive something is, the better it must be. In some cases of course, this assumption is correct, there are reasons why a pair of shoes from Russell and Bromley will generally last longer than a pair bought from Primark (no knocking Primark, small caveat, I really like Primark).

Unfortunately, in a market like microblading, which is new and being further saturated every day by people who are under qualified and operating dangerously, this isn’t always the case and I am writing this post to explain why.

Expensive premises....

It goes without saying that there are many who perceive medical procedures to be of a high standard if the practitioner has a premises on Harley St. I’m afraid I have seen first hand that this isn’t always the case, and that some microblading companies/practitioners choose to set up shop here in order to give the illusion of experience or calibre, when in fact, when peeling back the layers, these are often poorly maintained clinical spaces and house generally overpriced practitioners for their level of experience.

Influencer led kudos...

Now, this is a touchy subject for those of us in this field. I have repeatedly been approached by PR firms offering to send influencers my way with a sponsored post in return for a free session with me. To be brutally honest, I am becoming increasingly wary of the “recommendations“ made by influencers, as I think are many astute followers who correctly assess that if it is play for play then what does it really say about the service or product? Also, I hate to say it, but why are these influencers who are making a mint, asking for free services? I don’t want to make it sound as though I haven’t thought about it, and been tempted. Or that I haven’t microbladed any celebrities. I have worked on incredibly famous people, but the difference is that I have not worked on them for free, and in most cases these celebrities have required an NDA (a non disclosure agreement) in place to protect the knowledge that their beauty is “enhanced” from the general public. I am proud to have worked on so many fantastically famous women, but why should I work for free and why should they plaster what they do to their faces all over the internet?

Availability and waiting lists...

I write this quietly chuckling to myself when I think about some of the advertisements my counterparts make online regarding their “lead time” and availability.

I don‘t try to disingenuously inflate how busy I look online by claiming that it will take 7 months to book an appointment with me. Perhaps because I don’t charge £700 for a pair of brows (like some of my counterparts) I actually need to blade more than one person a day meaning that I need to work a little harder to make my money. I have to say, I would rather be accessible. I don’t think my moral compass would allow me to strip someone of almost £1000 for a pair of brows that they can’t guarantee will last a certain length of time. Who are these people kidding? On this basis, I am proud to say that I am a specialist, that this is all I do all day. If I was only doing 1 a day, my waiting list would be a year long too!

Equally though, watch out for the practitioners charging £100 a set. There is no getting away from the fact that we need to properly sterilise our equipment and some of it is literally one use only. An autoclave (sterilising machine) costs in the region of approx £7000, how many £100 pairs of brows would it take to buy a piece of kit like this? Be careful...

I hope this helps some of you to gauge where value lies. If you want any more advice please give me a call. I am here to help...

Gali xxx

LondonBrowClinic

Healed Microblading - The facts

One of the main questions I get asked when we begin the consultative process at the start of a microblading session is “how long will my microblading last”?

Now, as those of you who are already regulars of mine will know, I don’t subscribe to the idea of selling my customers down a garden path, or being the “yes to everything” microblader. There are many of those out there, and academies like Phi Brow (just one of many) are making it their mission to saturate the market with thousands of sub standard microbladers who couldn’t tell the difference between a pig and a donkey, never mind the epidermis and the sub cutis (layers of skin). A two day course a good microblader maketh not.

Before we start I will arm you with the facts. If my job was to create a beautifully sculpted pair of brows on a piece of paper, I could probably draw them again and again and there not be much in it by way of many differences. The face, however, is a skull made up of 14 bones and 43 muscles, intricate vascular systems and is never completely symmetrical from one side to the other. Asking me how long your microblading will last is like asking me how much you are going to weigh in a years time. I can give you an idea by having an understanding of your physiology and lifestyle, but in the end, an idea is all it is if you want me to be honest.

The variables that govern how long your microblading will last include factors such as the effect of free radicals in the environment, sun exposure, how much you bled in session, diet, your general alcohol and anti inflammatory drug consumption, the oily versus dry (and everything in between) nature of the composition of your skin, the aftercare regimen you conducted proceeding the session, how much anaesthetic was used mid session, not to mention probably the biggest one, the level of cortisol in your blood stream. (This has such a tremendous effect that I intend to write a blog post specifically about it).

Needless to say, the details of how your microblading will last and how good it will look predicate on factors that are human, and vary from person to person. Ultimately, what you should want, is a microblader who will be honest with you about what you can and can’t do to give yourself the best chance of successful microblading treatments for many years to come.

If that (along with some interesting conversation) is your jam, then I’m your gal.

Galata x

London Brow Clinic