Microblading healing day by day + my experience!

I did a thing! I had my eyebrows microbladed!

I wanted to show the full process of microblading because I obsessed over it before I decided to get it done and then again after I had it done. The whole process is so much more than seeing someone’s before and after results. I’ll be honest, the healing was an emotional rollercoaster, but IMO, so worth it!

My brows just prior to getting them microbladed

Here are my brows before. As you can see, I barely have any hair, especially at the ends. I also grew them out for the procedure so this is as thick and filled in as they get naturally. I also don’t play around much with makeup – occasionally I’d use a brow pencil to fill them in. I would, however, get my eyebrows threaded and tinted when I could. Between the cost of these two and not feeling like I looked a whole lot better, it made the most sense for me to look into microblading. When I broke up the cost monthly, it was a good investment.

The healing process was difficult. The stages of healing are fairly accurate to the little sheet I was given during my session.

This is spot on!

Everyone’s healing process is so different but this is a pretty accurate overview. Here is my healing process day 1 through day 24. I still have a few weeks until my touch up appointment and will update this post when that happens ♥️

healing process 👏🏼 I still have my touch up appointment coming up in a couple weeks & will update with the final results ♥️

Initial appointment & day 1

Right after my appointment, I absolutely loved the shape of my brows, but I panicked a bit because they were darker than I wanted. You really have to trust the process here. They will get darker later that day but overall they will shrink in width about 20% and will lighten about 20-40%. I can’t stress this enough, trust the process.

Day 1 – my eyes brows appeared thicker and red due to the swelling. I wasn’t panicking just yet but I was on my way. The redness made my face look like angry bird & I was worried that my inner corners looked more red than I had seen in other healing processes. I tried not to worry because I knew that I had just put tiny paper cuts all over my eyes brows and I personally have fair skin & it’s not abnormal for me to get red even after threading my eyebrows.

Day 2 – this was probably the worst day for me. Although my eyebrows and the skin around them were less red, they were SUPER thick and darker than ever. I felt embarrassed going outside and especially to work. Lucky right now we wear googles at work and in addition to my chunky glasses, I was able to at least look a little normal. I almost cried this day, I was like “omg, what did I just do to my face???” Again, relax. Deep breaths. It will lighten.

Day 3 – Day 5 – not a whole lotta changes happening on these days. Definitely reduced swelling & much less red in the corner of my eyes. They definitely are starting to become less chunky and I’m actually starting to like them, except I still wasn’t use to having eyebrows so I continued feeling like angry bird & that they were way to dark for me. I did receive a lot of compliments during this time though. They are still a thicker and for some, they will only get darker at this stage. I think a lot depends on what type of healing method you choose (explained later).

1 Week – This was my least favorite part of the healing process. {And excuse how hot of a mess I look, I just got off of a loooong 12 hour shift working with COVID, meaning wearing my N95 all day long}. This week my eyebrows started to flake and for some reason my whole face became dry and just looked puffy. Your eyes brows may begin peeling and the skin around it may flake. Your eyes brows may begin looking patchy as well during this phase. Not to worry, but some magic (?) they return!

2 Weeks – ah, so much better already! Much more bare and still patchy but I finally felt better going out in public. Also to other people this may not look like much, but this was a huge change for me because I started with no eyebrows and no shape. During my perfection session I will definitely ask for darker and a more defined shape, but for now, this was already a game changer for me. I could wake up in the morning and not worry about my brows. Especially being a nurse, I don’t have time nor do I want to do much makeup for work right now during COVID. Overall, very happy at this stage!

Day 24 or completely healed (for me – though you may heal faster!) so happy with the results! The color faded to a nice natural shade & now I finally feel like the investment was so worth it. I’m getting so exciting for my touch up appointment so we can darker & shape them a little more. As you can see, they look a little different in shape. I have two different naturally shaped eyebrows and I am so glad she didn’t try to change that. She went with the natural curve of my bone structure. Don’t change, just enhance! Also, my eyebrows are looking really good since it’s been almost a month since they’ve been waxed/threaded during my initial session. Since my eyebrows are thicker than my natural eyebrows, it appears like I may have to do less threading/waxing and they won’t look as bad!

Is microblading worth it?

In my opinion, absolutely! But for me, I didn’t have a lot to lose since I didn’t have a lot to begin with as far as eyebrows. I wasn’t good at filling them in or picky at all. I think a lot of girls who are more professional with their makeup and eyebrow care may be disappointed if they are expecting exact results or don’t see much of a change. This was worth it to me though!

Does microblading hurt?

In my experience, no. Not at all. Not even close to the pain felt while getting a tattoo, but I have a good pain tolerance and that didn’t hurt either. They do numb your eyebrows before the procedure and I’m sure if you are in pain, they can apply more after the first pass (the first time they go through your eyebrows and make the cuts is considering the first pass). And after doing a lot of research, it’s been a common theme that you shouldn’t feel much pain, only a little discomfort. Your artist should know the depth of how deep they need to go. You should not bleed, and only slightly if you do. I have heard things like an increase in pain and sensitivity during your menstrual cycle, but I am unsure if that is true or not. The worst part about the procedure for me was hearing what sounded like metal scrapping and knowing that was my skin!

What are some tips for finding the right tattoo artist?

My biggest recommendation is word of mouth! 100%. Seeing friends or anyone else’s brows who got them done by that artist is a great way to feel more confident in that artist. Specifically look for the final results and not just right after the procedure. You want to see how their work healed. And do not just trust Instagram photographs because from what I heard, people have stolen other photos and claimed them as their work.

What can I expect pre, intra, and post procedure?

After finding an artist you want to work with, your first appointment will be just a consultation. I really can’t imagine you not having one. This appointment shouldn’t be on the same day as your procedure. I really think you need time to ask questions and go home and think about this. It’s a tattoo after all! You’ll be asked questions and talking about medications (blood thinners), pregnancy, healing process, and discuss what you want your eyebrows to look like.

After the consultation, you’ll come back to the salon and sign some papers. You can expect your appointment to take about an hour from the first pass to the last pass. They will put a numbing cream on your eyebrows before the procedure and you shouldn’t be in any pain, minor discomfort maybe, during the procedure. Speak up if you are in pain. They can apply more cream. Your artist will map out your shape and talk about your color before they begin. Make sure you are 100% satisfied with the rough draft of your shape. Now is the time to adjust you don’t love.

After the procedure your eyebrows will be beautiful but much darker than you’d probably like, or for me at least! My jaw fell open! During the rest of the day, you can expect your eyebrows to feel tight and some discomfort if you frown or sneeze. This is completely natural. Your eyebrows may seem somewhat puffy and red. This made my eyebrows look even darker. You may not be able to see your individual hair strokes due to this. Don’t fear! Once they heal, that redness will go away and you’re eyebrows will be lighter and not as thick. Make sure to listen to your artist through the healing process, no matter what other artist say. There is a reason you went to that particular artist. If that artist tells you to do the “dry healing” method vs “wet healing”, be sure to listen to them.

If you have any other questions, please reach out 🙂

Here are my brows one week post touch up!