3 Things I Get Asked Most About Permanent Brows

Kerry K Permanent Brows

I speak with a lot of ladies about permanent brows and everyone naturally has a lot of questions. After all, having someone apply permanent makeup to your face is no small deal!

Time and again though, the same 3 questions keep cropping up, so I’m putting them together in this article so that you can get the answers too.

1. Is this the same as microblading?

OK, so the short answer is no…

Kerry K Permanent Brows
A typical Microblading hand tool

A popular form of applying permanent cosmetics to eyebrows is microblading. However, this relates to a specific technique that is achieved using a hand tool. The tool has a variety of different blade configurations that allow the technician to create fine, hair-like strokes to achieve the desired look.

The procedure I perform uses a digital machine to create the hair strokes – again, different needle configurations are available and fine hair strokes can be produced. There is a lot of misleading information which claims that strokes made with a digital machine are not as fine or detailed. This is simply not true.

Whilst there are a lot of similarities between microblading and the machine method, there are differences too. Microblading is not suitable for every type of skin; oily skin in particular often requires more regular top-ups. Also, with microblading, the pigment isn’t implanted as deeply as with the machine method, which means the results don’t tend to last quite as long. Another difference is the variety of look which can be achieved. Microblading is best suited to creating hair-like strokes, whereas the machine I use will allow you to have powder brows, a combination of the two and also ombré brows.

2. How long do permanent brows last?

Everybody has different skin. How long your permanent makeup lasts will depend on your skin type and many external factors. Your exposure to the sun, medication, smoking and lifestyle to name a few. One of the main factors is overexposure to the sun; this causes your skin cells to break down and disperse and so the pigments naturally disperse with them. Darker colours tend to last longer than lighter colours, so I advise a colour boost every 1-2 years.

In addition, brow styles which are more heavily blocked-in, like powder or ombré brows, will tend to last longer as there is more pigment used to achieve the look.

3. Why do prices vary so much?

If you’ve been shopping around for permanent brows, you can’t have escaped the fact that the prices you’ll find can vary greatly. There are artists out there charging anything in the range of less than £100 all the way to £500 and above. How can there be such a huge difference in price?

The main thing which influences the pricing is the individual artist’s reputation, experience and ability. Artists who work on celebrity brows will obviously be able to command a higher rate. This goes to pay for their experience and the demand for their time.

All permanent makeup artists will have other overheads like premisses costs, licence fees, pigment and needle costs, continual training and insurance.

There is also a lot of variation in what’s included in the price. Some artists will charge you an all-inclusive fee, whereas others, will charge separately for things like consultations, patch-tests and follow-up appointments. A price which you might think is reasonable might turn out to be more expensive by the time you get to a finished set of brows, so make sure you know what’s included beforehand.

You should certainly be wary of any prices that may look too good to be true. As with most things in life, you get what you pay for. Don’t judge an artist by price alone; more expensive doesn’t always mean better and above all, you should base your decision on previous work and reviews by past clients. If you want to know more about what goes into the price of a set of brows, check out my other article: The Truth About What Permanent Eyebrows Cost.

Still have more questions?

Those are the 3 most common questions I get asked about permanent brows. The answers to those and many others are available on my FAQs page. If there’s anything else you’d like to know, I’d be more than happy to hear from you, so get in touch with me and let’s talk about your new brows!