To avoid this, Mortlock recommends having a professional do your shaping, then performing minor cleaning up yourself between waxings or tweezings. If it’s too late and you have already over-tweezed or are experiencing hair thinning related to age or hormones, don’t worry, there are ways to compensate. The most common and least expensive is filling in with a brow pencil, but other options are gaining popularity. “Tinting is really common for people with thin brows,” said Mortlock. Or those with graying hair. There are also brow mousses, tinted gels, powders and eyebrow mascaras that darken and fill in sparse spots. While tattooing on eyebrows was popular in the past, there is a more natural-looking option available today. “It’s really hot and heavy with the microblading now,” said Mortlock.”It’s a great way to enhance the brow … the old tattooing was very blocky.” Alicia Seyhanli of Alicia Seyhnali Permanent Cosmetics agrees. She says the procedure makes up a large part of her business. “I’d say microblading is probably half of what we’re getting all the calls for,” she said. Microblading is a form of tattooing where pigment is implanted under the skin with a handheld tool. A topical anesthetic is used for pain and hair-like strokes are made to mimic natural hair growth. It isn’t as deep as a regular tattoo and, as a result, not as permanent, lasting about one-and-a-half to three years. “People were really scared of brows for a long time because they didn’t want them to look Sharpied on,” said Seyhanli. “A lot of people feel more comfortable with the microblading because you’re not going to have those eyebrows 25 years from now.” If you did have brow tattoos that you aren’t happy with, Seyhanli can help with that too. “I’m seeing a lot of corrections and it’s a bummer … I saw a woman a few weeks ago who went to someone who didn’t have a license. She called me crying hysterically.” One warning about microblading from Seyhanli: the trend is so hot that new “artists” are popping up every day who may not have the proper training or experience to do the job right. She shared a photo of a woman with noticeably uneven and purplishcolored brows. Her recommendation is to do your research before going to just anyone. She also says a quality job is worth the wait. “It’s not unusual for a reputable and experienced artist to be booked out a little ways.” No matter what method you use to maintain your brows, if you fill them in using any technique, aesthetician Mortlock recommends going a shade or two darker than your normal hair color or your low light if your hair is colored. “It’s almost like being a mini hairdresser,” she said of tinting brows. “There are times you have to use up to three colors to blend it to get the perfect color.” P
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