I got Nano-ed.
It was intense.
But so worth it.
In case you are not aware let me catch you up…
I suffered from “Bad Brows” and “REALLY Bad Brows” after over 15 years of over-plucking. I managed to grow them back ONCE, about 7 years ago, but after trying to grow them back again from 2013-2016 I realized that inevitably I had done irreversible damage. They were not growing back. Not only were they not growing back but I was stuck with MINIMAL natural brows to work with, not to mention the sheer asymmetry of them.
Makeup was fun the first few years. The “freedom” to change my brow shape, shade, and overall look was very appealing to me. In the recent years this has felt more like a chore and became more and more necessary if I desired some eyebrows on my face. It began to make me more and more self conscience about my face, I felt that my lack of brows and/or my waning eyebrow application skills were making me less attractive then I needed to be. For the most part super thin 90’s brows are NOT attractive.
I had heard of Eyebrow Tattooing many times but I was always very wary of getting a “standard tattoo” on my face. I also wanted to make sure that I got the best possible brows for my buck and as much as I wanted nice eyebrows I just didn’t trust anyone to do them for me.
I just learned about Microblading a little over a year ago. My boyfriend’s sister had gone to a Brow Place and though she did not get Microblading, the results were astounding. Her eyebrows were and are beautiful, I couldn’t stop looking at them. I wanted them. I needed them.
I found the Brow Place she went to on Instagram and I learned that her Brow Artist does Mircoblading. I did not know what that was but after some scrolling and reading I quickly came to the conclusion that it was just what I needed. Since EVERY SINGLE PICTURE was spot on, every eyebrow this girl touches became beautiful, I HAD to have her help me fix my terrible eyebrows. I felt like she really knows what a perfect, natural brow looks like and that I could trust her fully with my face.
Click here for more information about Microblading.
I wasted very little time contacting this amazing Brow Wizard and before I knew it [6 months later… she is so good I had to wait which was hard but totally fine] I got Microbladed. It was well worth every minute of waiting and every penny I saved and invested into my face (if memory serves me correctly it was $500 CAD for entire procedure).
Click here to read about my Microblading experience.
Fast forward to 6 months later. Scrolling good ole Instagram I see that my Eyebrow Artist has a new semi-permenant eyebrow technique and tool that is like Microblading but BETTER.
NANO BROW.
Nano Brows use ultra-sharp nano needles to deposit pigment under the skin. It also, as far as I have read, is a deeper pigment deposit then Microblading thus is lasts longer (up to 5 years vs 1-3 which can also mean less scar tissue because you don’t need to touch them up as often or at all). Nano needles are more precise and can actually mimic the look of real hair on the skin. Since my Microblading was already starting to fade and actually ended up more warm in colour then what I was hoping for I immediately decided that this was to be my next investment.
I thought about it for awhile before making an appointment. I knew I wanted them but I didn’t know if I could afford them anytime soon. To my pleasant surprise, because I had Microblading done when I did I was able to take advantage of a promo that my Brow Artist was offering. It was too good of a deal and way affordable for me. It was a sign.
So. Long story made a little less longer, I booked.
I had them done yesterday. Almost exactly 24 hours ago to be exact (1:30-ish pm). I was actually more nervous about then I thought. Luckily I took a preventative-ativan before I even left the house, it kept me nice and calm while I waited 15-20 minutes for the numbing cream to take affect. I was more then fairly warned that it would be painful and I have many tattoos so I knew what kind of pain I was in for. Some parts were worse then others and it LITERALLY felt like my face was getting tattooed. I don’t know if the numbing cream worked or not *but* PHEW, that was intense. There were times I was thinking “it’s okay, it’s not that bad. Breath.” And other times I was just thinking “ow, ow, ow, OW, ow, ow,ow, OW, OW, OW”.
On the upside it went fast. It was over in about 1 hour.
As soon as I looked in the mirror I knew it had all been worth it. My nerves, the drive, the OW factor. My eyebrows are even better then I ever pictured them to be.
Luckily because of the numbing cream they did not hurt afterwards. I put on my big sunglasses and a/c and drove for over an hour to get home, happy and proud of myself for doing this for myself. In the past I would have not only felt that I did not deserve such a service and I was afraid of the drive (into a city I don’t often go to, very busy, I used to find it intimidating). These days I do feel that I deserve this. I did it strictly for me and my self esteem. I needed this to make myself feel better about my outer appearance. In a lot of ways I am starting over [in life] and feeling less depressed about my outer appearance will help me to pursue my future; school, a new job, whatever it may be. I have been able to make the trip with no hiccups, in a mini-van no less [the one thing I never wanted to drive], and it isn’t nearly as scary as I would have once thought. I drove by myself to the city, parked and paid for parking in the city, and took myself to my appointment in the city, all with more confidence and less fear then ever before.
Another step completed in becoming the “new and improved” me.
Now I must muster through the healing process. Today my eyebrows feel kind of heavy and tired, much like when I had my first Microblading application. Their not overly tender though I am avoiding touching them at all and I plan to wear my hair back all week. This afternoon I dabbed them with a lukewarm, damp washcloth and then applied coconut oil. I washed my face simply by wiping it with a warm washcloth (avoiding my brows!). I pat dry with a towel and applied some moisturizer, again, avoiding my brows. I usually use a toner but I skipped it today. Hec, I might skip it all week. I cannot get my brows wet for a couple of days nor can I expose them to sunlight or excessive sweat. And no face sleeping! VERY HARD for me. But so far so good.
I was told I may NOT need a touch up but if I feel that I need one that it is included in the price if done within 6-8 weeks. I hope to not need the touch up but if I think I might I will pursue it after healing. I should know in 2 weeks or so.
I can’t wait for 9 days from now when I will see the final appearance of my new Nano Brows. Doesn’t seem too long to wait though and my Brow Artist told me that healing is easier and/or faster with Nano Brows. I suppose I will find out over the next 7-10 days.
I have managed to film some clips and I hope to film a few more for a Nano Brow Vlog video that will be available on my YouTube Channel [hopefully] within the week.
I could not be happier with my overall experience with Microblading and Nano Brow. I am so happy in fact that I would like to look into learning how to do it. Again, time will tell. This week it’s all about healing 🙂
iDREAMinViNTAGE 